1966 Jackson, Mississippi tornado

On Thursday, March 3, the atmosphere over Mississippi was ripe for a violent tornado. In the upper-levels of the troposphere, a fairly strong jet stream, with winds estimated at , oriented itself northeastward over the state, providing strong diffluence. A large mid-level trough, centered near Sioux Falls, South Dakota, was the overall system that produced the tornado. It featured low millibar heights roughly four times below the standard mean. Additionally, an unusually strong mid-level jet stream with winds provided additional energy to the storm system. The final factor in the development of the Candlestick Park storm was a subtle wind shift near the surface. At the higher levels, winds flowed from the southwest to the northeast in relation to the jet stream; however, closer to the surface, the inflow from the low pressure system over South Dakota resulted in a south to north flow, allowing for rotation within storms. In the hours prior to the tornado forming, convective available potential energy (CAPE) values of over 1,500 J/kg were present, indicating moderate instability. However, dry air at higher levels created a capping inversion, limiting the number of thunderstorms that could develop. Later on, a warm front moved past Jackson, Mississippi, allowing more moist air into the region and increasing lapse rates. While this cap served to prevent a widespread tornado outbreak, it did allow for the formation of a few discrete strong storms. With this, a supercell thunderstorm developed over Louisiana and produced at least three tornadoes, including the large F5 tornado that moved through Mississippi and Alabama. == Tornado Summary ==

Initial formation and rural Hinds County The tornado first touched down in rural Hinds County, near the community of Adams south of Learned, Mississippi at around 4:00 p.m. CST. Tracking generally to the northeast, the tornado moved through mostly rural areas south of Raymond though several barns and a few homes were heavily damaged. The tornado demolished a homestead before toppling the recently constructed broadcast tower for Jackson television station WLBT just 50 feet above its base. The tornado crossed Midway Road before striking a home, killing three people. The tornado then twisted much of an AT&T Long Lines tower, with only two sections at the base remaining. Jackson Around 4:30 p.m. CST, the storm approached the southern limits of Jackson, Mississippi. A large pecan orchard received heavy damage before the tornado damaged or destroyed multiple homes near the intersection of Forest Hill Road and Cooper Road, causing two more additional fatalities. The brick Woodville Heights Baptist Church and its neighboring parsonage were completely destroyed with such force that it seemingly "exploded" after the tornado directly struck. The tornado turned a home adjacent to Carter's Nursing home on its side before tornado began to move due east. Just east of Candlestick Park, the Mississippi Power & Light Southwest Jackson Substation was heavily damaged, severing at least six transmission lines, and a bridge on Cooper near Oak Forest Drive was destroyed. Several homes near the Disciples of Christ Church were heavily damaged, with one home being flipped upside down on its foundation, and a strip mall along Cooper Road between Beatrice Drive and Rickay Drive was significantly damaged. ==Other tornadoes==

==Aftermath and historic perspective==

In the immediate aftermath of the tornado, long distance telephone service in the Jackson area was lost for several hours in the immediate aftermath of the tornado. Throughout Mississippi, damage from the tornado amounted to $75 million (1966 USD) ($ ( USD)). The most severe damage took place at the Candlestick Park shopping center in southern Jackson where 12 people were killed. Much of the building was leveled and only one wall remained standing. For many years, a memorial stood at the site of a home in Scott County where a family of 6 people were killed. It was the most recent F/EF5 tornado in Mississippi until April 27, 2011, when two EF5 tornadoes touched down near the towns of Philadelphia and Smithville. Overall, the tornado ranks as the second-deadliest and longest-tracked in the state's history, having killed 57-58 and traveled ; however, excluding outside portions of the track, it ranks third. In the decades following the tornado, reassessments on the history of the storm have been made; most notably the Jackson, Mississippi branch of the National Weather Service and meteorologist Thomas P. Grazulis both indicate that there were two separate tornadoes. Based on reports from residents who experienced the tornado, a second one formed as the original dissipated, a common occurrence in cycling supercell thunderstorms. Though there is agreement on this feature, the results have not been implemented into the National Climatic Data Center's severe weather database, thus it is still officially considered one tornado. According to the study by Grazulis, the tornado dissipated over Leake County and a second tornado, estimated at F2 strength, touched down in Pickens County, Alabama. On the 50th anniversary of the tornado, the National Weather Service in Jackson published a section on the tornado titled "If the Tornado Happened Today," briefly detailing the scale of damage in relation to new development just to the east of Jackson in the communities of Pearl and Flowood. Given exactly the same path that took place in 1966, the death toll could've been considerably higher. Striking at rush hour, numerous vehicles were in the path of the tornado as it crossed Interstates 20 and 55 as well as US 80 and MS 25. Despite vastly improved warning systems, the population density of Jackson's eastern suburbs leaned towards a higher likelihood of fatalities. ==See also==