Severe weather preparedness events taking place this week in Mississippi

COLUMBUS, Miss. (WCBI) – Fall is officially here and that means it’s time to prepare for the potential of severe weather.

The National Weather Service in coordination with the Mississippi Emergency Management Agency has designated this week as Fall Severe Weather Preparedness Week in the state of Mississippi.

⛈ ❄
Fall Severe Weather Preparedness Week starts on Monday.

Throughout this week, our focus is to educate you on
1. Receiving warnings
2. Severe storm safety
3. Tornado safety
4. Flash flood safety
5. Winter weather safety

Stay tuned for some great info! pic.twitter.com/bfBQJQszv3

— NWS Jackson MS (@NWSJacksonMS) October 18, 2020

Each day will feature a different topic and information on how to prepare for significant weather. Felecia Bowser with the National Weather Service in Jackson says you should use this time to brush up on your severe weather safety plans and knowledge of potential hazards.

The National Weather Service will conduct a statewide tornado drill this Wednesday, October 21st, at 9:15 am. You may get an alert on your phone or hear tornado sirens sounding, but it is only a drill. However, it’s still a great time to practice what to do during a tornado.

Be sure to visit the National Weather Service on Facebook and Twitter to keep up with information through the week.

FALL SEVERE WEATHER PREPAREDNESS WEEK 2020

Monday Oct. 19th: Warning Reception — Having different ways to receive important weather hazardous information such as warnings and watches, can mean the difference between life and death. We will talk about the multiple ways to receive significant weather information.

Tuesday Oct. 20th: Severe Thunderstorms — Although plants and shrubbery start to become dormant and cooler temperatures occur, there are times when a surge of moisture from the Gulf of Mexico coincides with an intruding warmer airmass and an approaching upper level disturbance, to increase chances for severe thunderstorms.

Wednesday Oct. 21st: Tornadoes — Tornadoes can occur at any time of the day or night and at any time of the year. Although tornadoes are most common across the southeastern-half of the U.S.A., they have been reported in all 50 states. We will talk about tornado safety, and in addition the Tornado Drill will take place on this day at 9:15 am.

Thursday Oct. 22nd: Flash Flooding — Have you ever been in a situation where you approach a water covered roadway due to a previous day heavy rainfall event? What do you do? Well when it comes to Flash Flooding and any water hazard we have a saying: Turn Around Don’t Drown. We will speak to Flash Flood safety precautions that you can take.

Friday Oct. 23rd: Winter Weather — It is often an overlooked hazard for states located in the southern part of the U.S. However, it deserves its due attention given it can paralyze portions of the state due to snow and ice covered roadways, close airports and disrupt the flow of supplies. We will discuss ways to be prepared for this dangerous hazard.