A historically damaging ice storm occurred in a corridor from Northeast Louisiana and Southwest Mississippi northeastward across the southeastern corner of Arkansas, and through the ArkLaMiss Delta into North Mississippi. The corridor of heaviest ice accretion, with ice thickness measured at up to one inch, spanned from Richland Parish, including the area from Rayville to Delhi, northeastward through West and East Carroll parishes and the Lake Providence area, to Sharkey and Issaquena counties and southern Washington County, through Humphreys, Holmes, and northwestern Yazoo counties, through Leflore, Carroll, and Grenada counties. Tree damage in this region was tremendous, and several homes were damaged or destroyed by falling trees. Travel impacts persisted through Friday, January 30th in some areas. More than 189,000 customers in Mississippi and more than 143,000 customers in Louisiana lost power during the peak of the storm with thousands of power poles broken. Full power restoration took more than two weeks in the hardest hit areas, and it took more than one week for some customers in Attala, Bolivar, Carroll Grenada, Holmes, Humphreys, Issaquena, Leflore, Madison, Montgomery, Sharkey, Sunflower, Warren, Washington, Webster and Yazoo counties and East Carroll, Franklin, Madison, Morehouse, Richland, and West Carroll parishes in the NWS Jackson forecast area. Some meters remained unpowered for three weeks in the hardest hit portions of our area. The loss of electricity and the very cold temperatures that followed resulted in the loss of water in several communities.
Significant sleet accumulations, as high as 6" to 7" in Ashley County, occurred from parts of far northern Louisiana across much of Southeast Arkansas into Northwest Mississippi. In these areas, the weight of the accumulation resulted in the collapse of several sheds, carports, gas station awnings and the roofs of some buildings. Sleet remained on the ground across much of Ashley, Chicot, Bolivar, Sunflower, and Washington counties and Morehouse Parish for an entire week, with some of the deeper sleet accumulations from Ashley County through Bolivar County persisting through at least Sunday, February 8th.
Bitter cold conditions followed the storm, with temperatures as low as 11 at Bluff Lake, 12 at Natchez and Starkville, 13 at Ackerman, Collins, Crystal Springs, Forest, and Golden Triangle Airport; 14 at Brookhaven, Canton, Columbia, Columbus AFB, Hawkins Field in Jackson, Louisville, Madison, Newton, and Philadelphia; 15 at Jackson International and Lake Providence; 16 at Greenville, Indianola, Meridian, and Vicksburg; and 17 at Cleveland, Crossett, Laurel, Rolling Fork. Wind chills were as low as -1 at Greenville, 2 at Golden Triangle Airport, 3 at Louisville, 4 at Crossett and Natchez; 5 at Columbus AFB, Hawkins Field in Jackson, and Vicksburg; 6 at Cleveland, Crystal Springs, Jackson, Meridian, and Starkville; 7 at Madison, 8 at Philadelphia, and 9 at Canton and Laurel. Note: At several area weather stations, the lowest wind chill was unavailable because the anemometer was frozen and unable to record wind speed data.
So far, eight deaths have been reported in the NWS Jackson area - five due to exposure to the cold in Franklin Parish and Hinds, Sharkey, Warren, and Yazoo counties, and three in fire-related incidents in Adams, Leflore, and Jefferson counties. Additional injuries were reported in Grenada, Hinds, Sharkey, Smith, Warren, and Washington counties. At least 278 residences and nine businesses were damaged or destroyed in the Mississippi portion of our forecast area.
Storm Total Ice Accumulation Analysis from MRMS FRANA. Graphic courtesy Daniel Tripp, CIWRO
GOES East Snow/Ice Band image from the morning of January 27, 2026 revealing ice and snow cover across the Southeastern United States.
A cold front pushed across the area the night of Wednesday, January 21st into the morning of Thursday, January 22nd, bringing an initial bout of cooler and drier air to the region. This was followed by a more potent Arctic front, driven by a 1051 mb surface high, reaching the area on the morning of Friday, January 23rd. The first portion of this Arctic airmass gradually spread southward into the area throughout the day Friday. Meanwhile, well ahead of an advancing cutoff upper low over the Baja California and a digging upper trough over the Intermountain West, a surface low began to organize near the Texas Coast along the stalling cold front. A broad area of light precipitation shifted from Texas toward the Mid South Friday afternoon and evening. Though low level dry air initially inhibited precipitation, ultimately, it began to reach the surface overnight. Where temperatures were below freezing across portions of Northeast Louisiana, Southeast Arkansas, and Northwest Mississippi, this precipitation fell as light freezing rain and sleet. This resulted in slick spots developing on roads and bridges before sunrise Saturday morning, with a thin layer of sleet being reported in many areas.
Sleet accumulations along US 82 east of Crossett. Image via Ashley County OEM
As the Gulf Coast low pressure system began to strengthen during the day Saturday, areas of moderate to heavy precipitation began to spread from North Louisiana into Mississippi and Southeast Arkansas. North of a line from around Monroe, LA to Leland to Minter City, sleet was the predominant precipitation type, and accumulations began to surpass an inch in areas like Bastrop, LA and northern Bolivar County, MS. Meanwhile, freezing rain was falling in areas like Rayville, Lake Providence, Rolling Fork, Greenwood, and Grenada, where ice accumulations began to approach one quarter to one half inch. Light icing began to occur as far southeast as Yazoo City, Kosciusko, Louisville, Ackerman, and Starkville. During the mid to late afternoon, power outages began to increase across North Louisiana, and Northwest and North Central Mississippi. In the areas impacted by freezing rain and sleet, roads were increasingly slushy and slippery. This initial wave of heavy precipitation began to move out of the area during the late afternoon and early evening hours.
Ice accumulations in Rolling Fork on Saturday evening. Image courtesy of Tyler Spalding.
The Sunday 1/25 12Z Jackson, MS upper air sounding revealed a strong and deep layer of warm in the lower levels of the atmosphere overlaying a much colder near-surface layer.
Overnight Saturday night into Sunday, the Gulf low lifted northeastward from the Gulf Coast across South Mississippi and across the Golden Triangle early Sunday morning, bringing a substantially warmer airmass to much of south and east Mississippi. Heavier precipitation began to move back in, initially across South Mississippi. The temperature at Hattiesburg, which had spent much of the day Saturday around 40 degrees rose to near 70 by early Sunday morning with a line of thunderstorms pushing through with the passage of the cold front. Precipitation then spread northward during the early morning, filling in across North Louisiana, Southeast Arkansas, and North and West Mississippi by daybreak. In these areas, freezing temperatures were still locked in at the surface, though from just a couple thousand feet above the surface through a deep layer above, temperatures were above freezing. The 12Z upper air sounding from the Jackson Airport showed this temperature profile, a classic setup for freezing rain at locations with subfreezing surface temperatures. During this time, moderate to heavy freezing rain fell across Northeast Louisiana, far Southeast Arkansas, and northwestern and northern portions of Central Mississippi. Accumulations increased substantially during this time, approaching one inch in the hardest hit areas. Ice accumulation also spread farther south and east, with accumulations around a quarter inch occurring from the Natchez area to northwest of Jackson to just north of Kosciusko to around Ackerman. Lighter ice accumulations occurred into the Brookhaven and Jackson areas early Sunday morning. In the northwesternmost portion of the NWS Jackson area, sleet remained the predominant precipitation type, and storm total sleet accumulations reached an impressive 7" in Ashley County, with up to 5" reported near Duncan in Bolivar County. Precipitation quickly ended from west to east during the late morning and early afternoon, but for the hardest hit areas, the damage had already been done. There were patchy light snow flurries on the back edge of the precipitation Sunday into Sunday evening, but none that led to additional impacts.
Ice accumulation and downed trees in Lake Providence on Sunday. Image via East Carroll Parish OHSEP.
Ice accumulation in Belzoni on Sunday. Image courtesy of Kenny and Theresa Rodgers.
Impressive sleet accumulation in North Crossett on Sunday. Image via Ashley County OEM.
Sleet and freezing rain accumulation in Bastrop on Sunday. Image courtesy of Isaiah Hampton.
Unfortunately, even after the ice storm ended, weather conditions provided little in the way of relief. A strong surface high centered over the Plains States began to build across the region in the wake of the winter storm. Temperatures fell into the teens and lower 20s areawide Sunday night into the morning of Monday, January 26th. Wind chills fell into the single digits across most of the area, and even dipped below zero in a few locations. Across most of the area, temperatures remained below freezing during the entire day Monday. It was even colder Monday night into Tuesday morning, with low temperatures in the teens areawide. Tragically, with many areas without power, this dangerously cold weather proved to be deadly, with some people succumbing to hypothermia and others perishing in fires that resulted from efforts to stay warm. In the northwestern portion of the area, temperatures remained at or below freezing for more than three consecutive days...92+ hours at Cleveland and 88+ hours at Greenville. Temperatures finally returned to above freezing across most of the area by the afternoon of Tuesday, January 27th, but overall, temperatures remained below normal during the week that followed.
Tree damage lining MS Highway 17 south of Carrollton. Image via MDOT.
...FREEZING RAIN REPORTS... Location Amount Time/Date Lat/Lon ...Arkansas... ...Ashley County... 1 NNE Crossett 0.15 in 0200 PM 01/24 33.14N/91.96W ...Chicot County... Ross Van Ness 0.35 in 0830 AM 01/25 33.11N/91.35W ...Louisiana... ...Catahoula Parish... Harrisonburg 0.50 in 0730 AM 01/25 31.77N/91.82W ...Concordia Parish... 1 SSE Clayton 0.25 in 1000 AM 01/25 31.71N/91.54W ...East Carroll Parish... 1 S Lake Providence 1.00 in 1000 AM 01/25 32.80N/91.18W ...Franklin Parish... Winnsboro 0.50 in 0820 AM 01/25 32.16N/91.72W ...Richland Parish... Rayville 1.00 in 1000 AM 01/25 32.47N/91.76W ...Tensas Parish... 5 W Newellton 0.25 in 1025 AM 01/25 32.07N/91.33W ...West Carroll Parish... 3 NNW Monticello 1.00 in 1000 AM 01/25 32.64N/91.40W ...Mississippi... ...Adams County... 1 ESE Natchez 0.25 in 1000 AM 01/25 31.54N/91.37W 1 W Pine Ridge 0.25 in 1000 AM 01/25 31.63N/91.35W ...Attala County... 1 NW Carmack 0.50 in 1000 AM 01/25 33.25N/89.67W 2 NE Possumneck 0.50 in 1100 AM 01/25 33.17N/89.71W 2 NW Sallis 0.25 in 1000 AM 01/25 33.04N/89.79W 1 NW Mccool 0.25 in 1000 AM 01/25 33.21N/89.36W Kosciusko 0.10 in 1025 AM 01/25 33.06N/89.59W ...Bolivar County... Cleveland 0.25 in 0400 PM 01/24 33.74N/90.73W 1 NNW Lamont 0.20 in 0345 PM 01/24 33.55N/91.08W 1 WSW Merigold 0.25 in 0830 AM 01/25 33.84N/90.74W ...Carroll County... Carrollton 0.50 in 0730 AM 01/25 33.51N/89.92W 3 SSW Carrollton 0.30 in 1005 AM 01/25 33.47N/89.95W ...Choctaw County... 1 E Ackerman 0.50 in 1200 PM 01/25 33.31N/89.16W 5 NNW Weir 0.25 in 0945 AM 01/25 33.32N/89.32W ...Claiborne County... Port Gibson 0.35 in 1040 AM 01/25 31.95N/90.98W ...Clay County... Montpelier 0.25 in 0900 AM 01/25 33.72N/88.95W ...Copiah County... Hazlehurst 0.05 in 0710 AM 01/25 31.86N/90.39W ...Franklin County... Eddiceton 0.05 in 0755 AM 01/25 31.51N/90.79W ...Grenada County... 1 WSW Grenada 0.50 in 1123 AM 01/25 33.77N/89.83W ...Hinds County... Learned 0.25 in 0820 AM 01/25 32.20N/90.55W 1 SE Pocahontas 0.25 in 0830 AM 01/25 32.46N/90.27W 4 SE Brownsville 0.25 in 1100 AM 01/25 32.41N/90.38W Utica 0.25 in 1100 AM 01/25 32.11N/90.62W Hawkins Field 0.22 in 1100 AM 01/25 32.34N/90.22W Terry 0.05 in 0812 AM 01/25 32.10N/90.30W ...Holmes County... Lexington 1.00 in 1000 AM 01/25 33.11N/90.05W 2 SSE Franklin 0.75 in 1115 AM 01/25 33.01N/89.99W 4 S Cruger 0.75 in 1115 AM 01/25 33.26N/90.23W ...Humphreys County... 2 ESE Belzoni 1.00 in 0930 AM 01/25 33.17N/90.46W ...Jefferson County... Fayette 0.25 in 1040 AM 01/25 31.71N/91.06W ...Leflore County... Greenwood 0.50 in 1000 AM 01/25 33.52N/90.19W ...Lincoln County... Brookhaven 0.15 in 1015 AM 01/25 31.58N/90.44W ...Madison County... 3 W Gluckstadt 0.25 in 1017 AM 01/25 32.52N/90.15W 2 W Cameron 0.25 in 1100 AM 01/25 32.84N/89.92W 5 NE Kearney Park 0.25 in 1100 AM 01/25 32.62N/90.26W ...Montgomery County... Winona 1.00 in 1100 AM 01/25 33.48N/89.73W ...Oktibbeha County... 1 N Double Springs 0.50 in 1200 PM 01/25 33.49N/89.06W 1 ESE Starkville 0.25 in 0800 PM 01/24 33.45N/88.79W ...Rankin County... JAN Airport 0.14 in 1100 AM 01/25 32.32N/90.08W Florence 0.05 in 0735 AM 01/25 32.15N/90.13W ...Scott County... Morton 0.05 in 0700 AM 01/25 32.35N/89.65W ...Sharkey County... Rolling Fork 1.00 in 0930 AM 01/25 32.91N/90.88W ...Sunflower County... Inverness 0.50 in 0852 AM 01/25 33.35N/90.59W Ruleville 0.50 in 1000 AM 01/25 33.73N/90.55W Indianola 0.50 in 1000 AM 01/25 33.45N/90.65W Parchman 0.50 in 1155 AM 01/25 33.92N/90.50W ...Warren County... 11 NW Kings 0.40 in 1000 AM 01/25 32.51N/90.99W Vicksburg 0.30 in 1000 AM 01/25 32.35N/90.88W 2 ESE Culkin 0.25 in 1100 AM 01/25 32.35N/90.78W ...Washington County... 3 S Hollandale 0.50 in 0608 AM 01/25 33.14N/90.86W Glen Allan 0.50 in 0810 AM 01/25 33.02N/91.03W 2 NNE Metcalfe 0.44 in 0642 AM 01/25 33.48N/90.99W ...Webster County... 3 SSE Clarkson 0.50 in 1200 PM 01/25 33.59N/89.14W Walthall 0.25 in 0930 AM 01/25 33.61N/89.28W ...Yazoo County... Yazoo City 0.50 in 1000 AM 01/26 32.85N/90.41W 3 N Little Yazoo 0.35 in 0950 AM 01/25 32.75N/90.37W ...SLEET REPORTS... Location Amount Time/Date Lat/Lon ...Arkansas... ...Ashley County... 3 NW North Crossett 7.0 in 0730 AM 01/25 33.20N/91.97W 4 ESE Crossett 4.5 in 0635 AM 01/25 33.12N/91.90W ...Chicot County... Ross Van Ness 2.0 in 0830 AM 01/25 33.11N/91.35W ...Louisiana... ...Morehouse Parish... Bastrop 2.0 in 0915 AM 01/25 32.78N/91.91W ...West Carroll Parish... Oak Grove 1.5 in 1200 PM 01/24 32.86N/91.39W ...Mississippi... ...Bolivar County... Cleveland 2.0 in 1000 AM 01/25 33.74N/90.73W Duncan 5.0 in 0830 AM 01/25 34.04N/90.74W Scott 3.0 in 0815 AM 01/25 33.59N/91.08W 1 WSW Merigold 3.0 in 0830 AM 01/25 33.84N/90.74W ...Carroll County... Vaiden T in 0140 AM 01/24 33.33N/89.75W ...Hinds County... Clinton 0.1 in 0605 AM 01/25 32.34N/90.33W ...Madison County... 3 W Gluckstadt 0.3 in 0520 AM 01/25 32.52N/90.16W ...Sunflower County... Ruleville 3.0 in 1000 AM 01/25 33.73N/90.55W Indianola 2.5 in 1000 AM 01/25 33.45N/90.65W ...SNOWFALL REPORTS... Location Amount Time/Date Lat/Lon ...Arkansas... ...Ashley County... 3 NW North Crossett T in 0730 AM 01/25 33.20N/91.97W 4 ESE Crossett T in 0635 AM 01/25 33.12N/91.90W ...Mississippi... ...Bolivar County... Cleveland T in 0436 AM 01/25 33.74N/90.73W ...Rankin County... JAN Airport T in 1200 PM 01/25 32.32N/90.08W
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