Tag Archives: Mississippi

Historic flood disaster leaves at least 25 dead

Important Takeaways:

  • A deadly barrage of severe weather, tornadoes and torrential rain has come to an end, but the danger is far from over in communities across the Midwest and South as angry rivers continue to rise, forcing families from their homes.
  • At least 25 people in seven states have been killed due to the severe weather, including deaths from tornadoes and extreme weather in Tennessee, Missouri, Indiana, Arkansas and Mississippi, and fatalities from flooding in Kentucky.
  • One of those monster tornadoes was captured live on FOX Weather on Wednesday, April 2, by FOX Weather Exclusive Storm Tracker Brandon Copic.
  • That tornado that touched down in northwestern Arkansas prompted forecasters to issue a rare Tornado Emergency as the supercell thunderstorm passed through communities such as Lake City and Blytheville.
  • Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear said at a news conference on Monday. “Remember, this event is not over until the waters have receded. Until the areas that are flooded are fully dry. Until we don’t have saturated ground that could create mudslides over roads and bridges.”
  • Beshear said on Monday that more than 500 roads across the state were closed due to historic flooding, mudslides and landslides.
  • Tennessee flooding leads to mandatory evacuations
  • The order also had a dire warning – those who don’t comply with the evacuation order may not be able to receive help from first responders. In addition, residents may be held personally liable for any damage or injuries sustained.
  • Meteorologist-in-Charge at the National Weather Service office in Memphis, Tennessee, Darone Jones, joined FOX Weather on Tuesday morning and said there’s still a lot of recovery ahead for waterlogged communities.
  • “It’s very hard to contextualize this,” Jones continued. “You know, you mentioned the 223 warnings. Just in comparison to last year, 2024, we issued 262 warnings for the entire year. So, we did all of that in like a four-day span.”
  • Jones went on to say that the event is still unfolding.
  • “The worst is yet to come for a lot of areas,” he said. So, you know, it’s not over. So, it’s hard to talk about the uniqueness from a historical perspective at this time.”

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The Mississippi, Ohio and Tennessee valleys under mandatory evacuations as rivers hit peak levels

Train derailed flood

Important Takeaways:

  • As a record rain event comes to an end for the Mississippi, Ohio and Tennessee valleys, flooding impacts will continue this week amid mandatory evacuations as floodwaters flow into streams and rivers, likely causing more flooding in previously spared areas.
  • The FOX Forecast Center said the storm system that brought six Flash Flood Emergencies and a deadly tornado outbreak across multiple states since last week will finally exit off the East Coast by Tuesday.
  • Over a foot of rain fell in Kentucky, western Tennessee and Arkansas throughout this event. Now, all this water needs to go somewhere.
  • The Kentucky River in Frankfort reached 48.27 feet at 5 a.m. ET Monday morning. This is only 0.2 feet (2.4 inches) below the all-time record crest of 48.47 feet, set on Dec 10, 1978.
  • Meanwhile, more than 50 river locations are currently experiencing or expected to reach major flood stage over the next few days, and another 90 river locations are forecast to reach moderate flood stage.
  • According to the National Weather Service, the Ohio River in Cincinnati and Louisville, Kentucky, is expected to crest at its highest level in seven years.
  • According to the FOX Forecast Center, rainfall water on the Mississippi River is forecast to reach Baton Rouge, Louisiana, in more than two and a half weeks, and water levels could rise to the highest level in four years.
  • “That’s the biggest threat here with communities that live along the river expected to see that water rise,” Minar said. “We can expect to see some concerns for businesses and buildings, just driving along the way as well. You don’t ever want to drive through floodwaters, but this is gonna be a really difficult task.”

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Mississippi River low water conditions look to continue into next year

Dry-Boat-Mississippi

Important Takeaways:

  • Lack of rain brought drought to much of the Mississippi River basin early this summer, and it’s likely going to linger into winter, Army Corps of Engineers leadership said during a press conference on Nov. 8 in Memphis, while a dredge was working nonstop to keep the river channel open a few miles south.
  • It’s the second year in a row that extreme drought has caused a shrinking channel, forcing the Corps to dredge later in the season than normal. Last year, low river levels lingered into the winter, and dredging continued until January.
  • “We’re anticipating challenges as we progress into the winter months,” said Colonel Brian Sawser, commander of the Corps’ Memphis District.

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Flash Flooding in Louisville Mississippi

Dollar General Flooding

Matthew 24:7 For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom, and there will be famines and earthquakes in various places.

Important Takeaways:

  • Flash Flood Emergency declared in Mississippi as torrential rains trigger water rescues
  • The worst rain Thursday morning was reported in Louisville, where 6-10 inches had already fallen with 3-5 more inches of rain still on the way, falling at rates of 2-3 inches per hour, according to the National Weather Service.
  • Louisville Police have reported multiple flooded structures and vehicles, with water rescues ongoing, according to the NWS.
  • “We’ve had several vehicles go head first into deep water,” Winston County Sheriff Jason Pugh told FOX Weather. “In two locations, we have two vehicles that are under water completely.”
  • Luckily there have been no reports of anyone injured.
  • Meanwhile, floodwaters have washed out multiple roads in the Louisville area as a spotter reports 12.91 inches of rain so far in the storm just Thursday.
  • “Many of the surface streets in Louisville are under water; the highways are under water,” Pugh said. “Several road and highways are closed.”

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EF-4 Tornado carves a path through Mississippi into Alabama leaving 26 dead

Mississippi Tornadoes

Luke 21:25 ““And there will be signs in sun and moon and stars, and on the earth distress of nations in perplexity because of the roaring of the sea and the waves

Important Takeaways:

  • ‘There’s nothing left’: Deep South tornadoes kill 26
  • A powerful tornado cut a devastating path through Mississippi, killing at least 25 people, injuring dozens, and flattening entire blocks as it carved a path of destruction for more than an hour. One person was killed in Alabama.
  • The tornado devastated a swath of the Mississippi Delta town of Rolling Fork, reducing homes to piles of rubble, flipping cars on their sides and toppling the town’s water tower.
  • “There’s nothing left,” said Wonder Bolden, holding her granddaughter
  • Based on early data, the tornado received a preliminary EF-4 rating
  • An EF-4 tornado has top wind gusts between 166 mph and 200 mph (265 kph and 320 kph), according to the service.
  • Mississippi Gov. Tate Reeves issued a State of Emergency and vowed to help rebuild as he headed to view the damage in an area speckled with wide expanses of cotton, corn and soybean fields and catfish farming ponds. President Joe Biden also promised federal help, describing the damage as “heartbreaking.”

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Tornadoes tear through the South: Reports of 42 twisters touching down

Tornado Threat

Luke 21:25 ““And there will be signs in sun and moon and stars, and on the earth distress of nations in perplexity because of the roaring of the sea and the waves

Important Takeaways:

  • Winter storm latest: Deadly tornadoes strike South, snow slams north
  • More tornadoes were expected on Wednesday in Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama as the storm moves east.
  • The tornado threat also extended into the Florida Panhandle Wednesday night, with tornadoes possible overnight in the region.
  • This comes after at least 42 tornadoes touched down across the South since Tuesday afternoon in Oklahoma, Texas, Louisiana and Mississippi. A woman and her 8-year-old son were killed when one of those tornadoes swept through Pecan Farms, Louisiana, on Tuesday, according to local officials.

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As Drought now effects half the country the Mississippi is seeing record low water levels

Revelation 16:9 “They were scorched by the fierce heat, and they cursed the name of God who had power over these plagues. They did not repent and give him glory.”

Important Takeaways:

  • Before and after: See how the Mississippi River and its tributaries have dropped to record lows
  • Drone video of the Mississippi River near Memphis shows how far the mighty river has contracted away from its banks.
  • The river dropped to minus-10.75 feet there earlier this week, according to data from the National Weather Service, which was the lowest level ever recorded in Memphis.
  • Half of the contiguous US is covered by moderate or worse drought conditions – the third-highest value of the year so far and the highest since March.

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Mississippi declares national emergency after major flooding and clean water crisis

Revelation 16:9 “They were scorched by the fierce heat, and they cursed the name of God who had power over these plagues. They did not repent and give him glory.”

Important Takeaways:

  • Jackson water crisis: 180,000 without drinking water as treatment plant fails following floods
  • A failure of a main water treatment plant in the wake of severe flooding last week has left much of the entire town of Jackson, Mississippi without reliable drinking water.
  • Both Jackson Mayor Chokwe Antar Lumumba and Gov. Reeves have declared a state of emergency in Jackson and mobilized local and state resources to meet the challenge of now providing water to the city’s 180,000 residents.
  • Jackson received over 9 inches of rain in two days and a total of over 10 inches over four days. Hundreds fled their homes as water rose to doorsteps and, in some cases, pushed indoors.

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Pearl River expected to crest. Mayor urges residents to get out now, declares National Emergency

Revelation 16:9 “They were scorched by the fierce heat, and they cursed the name of God who had power over these plagues. They did not repent and give him glory.”

Important Takeaways:

  • Mississippi mayor urges residents to ‘get out now’ as state braces for river flooding after record rainfall
  • “If you are capable of getting out now, get out now,” Jackson Mayor Chokwe Antar Lumumba said in a news conference
  • He said it’s possible for 100 to 150 homes to be impacted in floods from the Pearl River and warned locals to head for higher ground or go to city shelters.
  • Mississippi Gov. Tate Reeves declared a state of emergency Saturday in anticipation of the Pearl River flooding, now forecast to crest at 35.5 feet Monday morning
  • Mississippi has been grappling with flash flooding since Aug. 22. So far, 42 homes, nine businesses, five farms and 43 public roads have been reported as damaged, the Mississippi Emergency Management Agency said in its initial assessment.
  • Some areas got 14 inches of rain in a 72-hour timeframe as the state saw record rainfall, the agency said.

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Justices debate abortion rights in U.S. Supreme Court showdown

By Lawrence Hurley and Andrew Chung

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The U.S. Supreme Court on Wednesday began hearing arguments in a case on whether to gut abortion rights in America as it weighs Mississippi’s bid to overturn the landmark 1973 Roe v. Wade ruling that legalized the procedure nationwide.

The court, which has a 6-3 conservative majority, is hearing at least 70 minutes of oral arguments in the southern state’s appeal to revive its ban on abortion starting at 15 weeks of pregnancy. Lower courts blocked the Republican-backed law.

Jackson Women’s Health Organization, the only abortion clinic in Mississippi, challenged the law and has the support of Democratic President Joe Biden’s administration. A ruling is expected by the end of next June.

Roe v. Wade recognized that the right to personal privacy under the U.S. Constitution protects a woman’s ability to terminate her pregnancy. The Supreme Court in a 1992 ruling called Planned Parenthood of Southeastern Pennsylvania v. Casey reaffirmed abortion rights and prohibited laws imposing an “undue burden” on abortion access.

Liberal Justice Stephen Breyer quoted from the Supreme Court’s Casey ruling, which stated that the court should not bow to political pressure in overturning Roe and that such a ruling would “subvert the court’s legitimacy.”

“The right of a woman to choose, the right to control her own body, has been clearly set since Casey and never challenged. You want us to reject that line of viability and adopt something different,” liberal Justice Sonia Sotomayor said.

Sotomayor said Mississippi brought its new challenge purely because of changes on the Supreme Court, which has become more conservative.

“Will this institution survive the stench this creates?” Sotomayor asked, saying that it would give the impression that the Constitution and its interpretation is based purely on politics. “If people think it is all political … how will the court survive?”

Anti-abortion advocates believe they are closer than ever to overturning Roe, a longstanding goal for Christian conservatives.

Mississippi’s is one of a series of restrictive abortion laws passed in Republican-governed states in recent years. The Supreme Court on Nov. 1 heard arguments over a Texas law banning abortion at around six weeks of pregnancy but has not yet issued a ruling.

Hundreds of protesters from both sides of the abortion debate rallied outside the white marble neoclassical courthouse ahead of the arguments. Anti-abortion protesters held huge signs reading “abortion is murder,” some carrying Christian crosses. Abortion rights activists chanted “what do we want? Abortion access. When do we want it? Now.”

FETAL VIABILITY

The Roe and Casey decisions determined that states cannot ban abortion before a fetus is viable outside the womb, generally viewed by doctors as between 24 and 28 weeks.

Conservative Chief Justice John Roberts questioned whether viability was a central issue in the Roe or Casey rulings.

Mississippi’s 15-week ban directly challenged the viability finding. Even if the court does not explicitly overturn Roe, any ruling letting states ban abortion before fetal viability outside the womb would raise questions about how early states could prohibit the procedure. In the 1992 Casey ruling, the court said Roe’s “central holding” was that viability was the earliest point at which states could ban abortion.

While urging the court to overturn Roe, Mississippi Attorney General Lynn Fitch, a Republican, has said the justices could uphold its law by finding that a 15-week ban does not impose an undue burden. Such a ruling would wipe out the viability standard embraced in the Roe and Casey decisions, meaning the justices would have to consider where to draw the line.

Abortion rights advocates have said such a decision would eviscerate Roe, making it easier for conservative states to impose sweeping abortion restrictions.

Mississippi is among 12 states with so-called trigger laws designed to ban abortion if Roe v. Wade is overturned. Additional states also likely would move quickly to curtail abortion access.

If Roe were overturned or limited, large swathes of America could return to an era in which women who want to end a pregnancy face the choice of undergoing a potentially dangerous illegal abortion, traveling long distances to a state where the procedure remains legal and available or buying abortion pills online. The procedure would remain legal in liberal-leaning states, 15 of which have laws protecting abortion rights.

Abortion remains a contentious issue in the United States, as in many countries. In a June Reuters/Ipsos poll, 52% of U.S. adults said abortion should be legal in all or most cases, while 36% said it should be illegal in most or all cases.

(Reporting by Lawrence Hurley and Andrew Chung; Additional reporting by Gabriella Borter, Jan Wolfe and Julia Harte; Editing by Will Dunham)