JACKSON, Miss.—Strong storms pounded the Deep South on Sunday, killing at least seven people in south Mississippi and damaging up to 300 homes and other buildings in northern Louisiana. Another person is reported to have died in Arkansas.
Mississippi Emergency Management Agency director Greg Michel said one person killed was in Walthall County, two were killed in Lawrence County and three were killed in Jefferson Davis County. All three counties are more than an hour’s drive south of Jackson, near the Louisiana state line.
The National Weather Service said strong winds were sweeping through other parts of Mississippi, and a tornado was spotted north of Meridian near the Alabama state line.
Before the storms moved into Mississippi, the weather service reported multiple tornadoes and damaging winds over much of northern Louisiana. There were no immediate reports of serious injuries. Utility companies reported thousands of power outages.
In northwest Louisiana, officials reported damage to dozens of homes in DeSoto and Webster parishes, according to news outlets.
The weather service said the greatest risk for strong Easter Sunday storms covered much of Mississippi, Alabama and western Georgia. That area was at “moderate risk” while much of the rest of the South was under at least a “marginal” risk, the weather service said.
The weather service said a broader area, from east Texas to the East Coast was under at least a “marginal” risk of storms.
