WLBT 3 - Jackson, MS: Storm Brings Hail, Rain, Wind, Fire

Storm Brings Hail, Rain, Wind, Fire

By Wilson Stribling
wilson@wlbt.net

On Bozeman Road just outside Madison, Ray Holder could hardly believe what he saw next door through his camcorder. His neighbor's huge, multi-story home at 285 Bozeman Road, just south of Highway 463, was an inferno.

Madison Fire Chief Tom Lariviere says county investigators will determine the cause, but it started just as the lightning was striking.

No one was inside the house, which is now reminiscent of a plantation after the Civil War in charred ruins -- despite the efforts of three different fire departments.

Across town, the sound was deafening. A torrent of hail, falling all over the metro area, damaging cars, roofs, and anything else unfortunate enough to be underneath it.

The wind also pummeled trees and powerlines.

At the state capitol, unrest and sparks above the same down below. Lawmakers were at work in special session well past 10:00, the storm passing over during their recess.

Drivers, some peering through blinding rain, ran or slid into things they could not see.

It was a night of fireworks -- the kind only Mother Nature can create.