PDS Severe Thunderstorm Watch Issued

A Potentially Dangerous Situation Severe Thunderstorm Watch has been issued for Oktibbeha County until 7 p.m. This watch is rarely issued by the SPC, but the current situation certainly warrants its issuance. An intense derecho is currently plowing through Eastern Arkansas and has been associated with extensive and widespread wind damage across Arkansas and Oklahoma. A wind speed of 100 mph was reported in Northwest Arkansas early this afternoon and other reports suggest that hurricane force winds are very likely with this complex of storms.


It does appear that Oktibbeha County will be clipped by the southern end of this bow echo after 7 p.m. The current thermodynamic environment does not suggest this derecho will lose strength anytime soon; in fact, the thermodynamic environment actually supports strengthening! However, this derecho is running away from stronger vertical wind profiles as it progresses further east. This indicates that the thermodynamic and dynamic environments across Mississippi are not as favorable for sustained maintenance as the environment across Arkansas. I expect a little but not a tremendous amount of weakening of the derecho as it plows across Mississippi in the next few hours. These extreme wind events typically take a few hours to wind down, especially given that a mature cold pool is present.

What can we realistically expect in Starkville and surrounding areas?
*The derecho will approach the area just after 7 p.m.
*A severe thunderstorm warning is almost guaranteed
*Wind gusts could exceed 65 mph
*Expect streets to be littered with small sticks and some larger branches; some trees may even be knocked down
*There could be many power outages across the county