Tornado watch for 59 Mississippi counties until 8 o’clock. Flood warning for 19 counties. Rain isn’t over yet across the state, with severe weather warnings and watches lasting throughout the morning. The squall line is moving across the state slowly, from Greenwood, down to Jackson and Natchez, you’ll be dealing with storms and rain through your morning commute, Columbus, down into Meridian you’ll see storms through midmorning. Get the latest weather alerts on the News Mississippi app or on Twitter @news_ms.
Flooding is a continuing problem from last week’s heavy storms. In Monroe County, roads have been washed away and 50 homes have been evacuated.
Flooding is a slow problem.. along the Mississippi river, particularly around Warren County, flooding from these storms will get worse and continue to be a problem through January, and the excess water travels down river.
A high speed chase, a shooting, and now one man is dead. George County deputies say a driver refused to stop so they had to chase him. Officers were forced to fire shots, and the driver was killed, says the Mississippi Bureau of Investigation. No names yet. MBI is looking into it.
Back in the lockup again, the two men who escaped from the Prentiss County lockup on Christmas Day. Dustin Shook and Chad Strange were picked up over the weekend. Strange is in for robbery charges, and Shook is in for drug charges. Add escaping charges to their lists.
A shooting leaves two men dead in Brookhaven, and a 17 year old girl in the lockup. Police say Jaquarius Jones and Julian Gayten shot each other, but they’re not sure who pulled the trigger first. Brookhaven Police Chief Bobby Bell tells the Enterprise Journal that the girl may have had something to do with it, and she may have been in a relationship with both men. She’s charged with conspiracy after the fact to commit murder.
When you need some comfort, a stuffed animal goes a long way. That’s why Makayla Zeller decided to play Santa Clause over the holiday, and give out over 100 stuffed animals. Zeller gave the fluffy buddies to police officers, firefighters, and other first responders. They’ll go to kids who are in domestic abuse situations. The Jackson County girl says she hopes to do this every year, and she was inspired by a movie she saw when she was just 5 years old.
