Those on the river were the first to hear what must have been a thunderous roar from the river as it churned with massive waves and whitecaps. Unlike the present time, there was no national weather service to alert people to an approaching storm and there were none of the things that individuals could have used to warn others, two-way radios, telephones, or cell phones. It was a part of a system that produced 12 major tornadoes altogether. Which had a total of 695, that perished. Regarding a final death count, the CNN web article,"The 10 deadliest US tornadoes on record" reports that, "The official death toll may not have included slaves, according to the Federal Emergency Management Agency. Several homes in the American Legion community off Rock Road suffered damage in the storm. Forty-eight people were killed on land, and 269 others were killed on the river. A piece of a steamboat window was reportedly found 30 miles (50km) from the river. This massive tornado formed approximately twenty (20) miles southwest of Natchez, shortly before 1 p.m., and moved northeast along the Mississippi River. Other boats were picked up and thrown onto land. Tri-State Tornado, 1925. Aviation Weather Forecast at Natchez, Mississippi Station: KHEZ North: 31.62 West: -91.25 Timezone: Central Daylight Saving Time UTC: -5 Model: National Blend of Models - Aviation Format Many were preparing to eat, fully aware of the dangers that any thunderstorm would present but unaware that this particular storm was much more than a thunderstorm. (WLBT) - Communities hit by strong storms Wednesday morning are cleaning out from the damage left behind. The storm was loaded with all kinds of debris it had picked up along its path. 1925 Tri-State Tornado. [2], Numerous other deaths may have occurred further along the path as the tornado struck rural portions of Concordia Parish, Louisiana as well. The town of Natchez, Mississippi, was unprepared for the raw power and destruction the storm would bring. It is difficult for us today to appreciate the scene in Natchez in the year 1840. Flatboats and people were tossed into the air like toys and, as they came down, they were drowned. The Great Natchez Tornado May 7, 1840, is a date long remembered in Natchez as a day of tragedy and destruction. Known today as the Great Natchez Tornado, estimates of damages were in the millions. But unlike today, there was no National Weather Service in 1840 and no warnings of what was to come. This was pre-Civil War America and there were two social classes of humanity living and working in the plantations and in the homeordinary Americans and slaves. A piece of a steamboat window was reportedly found 30 miles (50 km) from the river. It left around 80,000 people homeless, per weather.com. The two deadliest tornadoes of the century the Great Natchez Tornado of 1840 and the St. Louis Tornado of 1896 led Americans to theological reflection and 1840: Bnai Israel of Natchez established. Just the night before the area on both sides of the river, Concordia Parish in Louisiana and Adams County in Mississippi, were drenched with over three inches of rain. Senate Document No. In addition to the 317 deaths, only 109 were injured, a testament to the tornado's intensity. We now have the ability to identify the kind of weather that is likely to lead to a tornado and we can trace the paths of these twisters so that those in their paths can take shelter. Shortly after noon on May 7, 1840, a mile-wide tornado slammed into Natchez, Mississippi, a city on the Mississippi River, about 150 miles north of New Orleans.