Brunt Of Storm Damage In City
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A massive oak tree fell at the intersection of Dupuy Street and Leland Street, bringing down power lines and crushing Amos Harvey’s carport and pickup truck. The roots pulled up chunks of asphalt on Leland Street when the tree toppled.
WATER VALLEY – Downed trees and power lines were the primary casualties during a severe thunderstorm that crossed the county late Saturday afternoon with the brunt of the damage reported inside the city limits of Water Valley.
“It could have been immeasurably worse than it was,” Mayor Tommy Reynolds noted during an emergency Board of Alderman meeting held Monday afternoon at city hall. Mayor Reynolds had issued a proclamation declaring a local emergency Sunday as the clean-up continued. The declaration was ratified with an unanimous vote by aldermen.
“That gives us the ability to help people who have damage. We still have to follow the law,” Reynolds noted after the vote.
A home at the intersection of North Main and Lafayette streets sustained major damage during Saturday’s storm.
The storm struck a little before 6 p.m. and residents took cover as weather sirens blared and phones went off . The annual Watermelon Pageant was underway at the high school gym and parents and contestant ducked into the halls. The pageant resumed without electricity after the storm passed.
Reynolds expressed gratitude to the Yalobusha County Beat One crew, who brought in equipment to help clear damage on the main feeder line on Ridge Street.
“Our volunteers and everybody who has been helpful, we want to commend all of them too.
Reynolds reported that an estimated 80 percent of the city’s electric grid was down until around 1:30 a.m. Sunday morning. Work continued Sunday to restore power for an estimated 20 percent of the city without power and the mayor reported they were down to four residences Monday morning.
One of these homes is on Martin Street, and Willie Foxx was thankful city crews worked most of the day to get a massive oak tree off a power line to restore electricity. Foxx’s daughter lives in the home and had recently completed interior renovations. Foxx reported multiple family members were inside when the storm toppled a massive oak tree in the back yard. While the tree damaged the home’s carport and roof, the occupants inside were protected after another massive oak shielded the house from the falling tree.
“God watched over them,” Foxx told the Herald Tuesday morning.
In the county, Yalobusha County EMA Director Stewart Spence reported sporadic damage including areas along Hwy. 330 between Oakland and Tillatoba. Spence also said there were a few trees down on Hwy. 32 between Oakland and Water Valley, and a few in the vicinity of County Road 25 and Country 118 in the Otuckalofa area.
“The hardest hit was the City of Water Valley,” Deputy EMA Director Jarred Logan added.
Spence said that it appears that the damage was caused by straight-line wind.
“I heard a few people say they saw rotation, but it was in the air and not on the ground,” Spence added. “They are saying now that tornado alley has shifted east and is on top of us.”
The latest storm system pushes the total number of tornadoes in Mississippi to 88 according to the preliminary report summary provided by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). Nationwide NOAA reports 461 tornadoes from January through April 7, and Mississippi leads the nation as the state with the most tornadoes in 2025.
Ward 2 Alderman Ron Hart noted the similarities for Saturday afternoon and the Easter eve tornado in 1984 that killed seven people and injured around 75 in Water Valley. The 1984 storm was also on a Saturday around the same time in the afternoon.
“Hot and thick air,” Hart said in Monday’s meeting. “When I stepped outside, I told my wife this is how I remember it feeling.”
