KOSCIUSKO, Miss.–The storm that came through and caused damage in Kosciusko Wednesday afternoon may have been a microburst, according National Weather Service meteorologist Eric Carpenter. A microburst is not a tornado, but can cause damage similar to a low-end twister.
“With this kind of setup you get a lot of rain and hail falling into hot air and a lot of wind gets generated. You get what we call a microburst,” said Carpenter. “They’re kind of the opposite in process versus a tornado. But, you can get tornado-like winds.”
LISTEN: Eric Carpenter talks microburst
He said it’s easy to mistake for a tornado because the winds are intense and local and blow in different directions.
“Having said that, we don’t close the book on things until after a thorough investigation<‘ he said. Carpenter said the weather service team would talk with Attala County’s emergency manager Danny Townsend and decide whether they would send a survey team.
“Nobody that I talked with actually saw a funnel or saw a tornado,” said Townsend. “We were under a severe thunderstorm warning at that particular time and of course they can produce 70 to 80 mph winds.”
LISTEN: Danny Townsend talks damage
He said the damage to structures has been minor and has been mostly on the west side of Kosciusko.
Trees were reported down in several places, blocking roads. Townsend said crews from the city, county and even MDOT were trying to get those cleared. Power lines were also down.
The most visible damage from the storm, and the most dramatic, may have been the collapse of the tower at Boswell Media, the Big Radio Building, which knocked the three stations off the air.
Once power is restored, you can listen on the Breezy101, Kicks96 and Crusin98 apps.
@NWSJacksonMS #mswx Very large tree down over Natchez trace near the Highway 14 bridge in Kosciusko MS. pic.twitter.com/mFKhqk7p15
— Nolton Dyer (@noltondyer) September 1, 2021
