EF0 tornado in Lee County, Mississippi

The tornado developed in far northwestern Lee where it damaged trees and several commercial buildings as it crossed Highway 45. The tornado then crossed Highway 370 into Prentiss County.

A cold season quasi-linear convective system (QLCS) moved across the Mid-South during the overnight and early morning hours Saturday, January 11, 2020. Strong southerly winds drew unseasonably warm, moist air northward into the region ahead of a cold front. Early morning temperatures were in the upper 60s and lower 70s with dewpoints in the upper 60s. This aided in the development of uncapped surface-based instability that was more than sufficient to maintain the QLCS. A strengthening shortwave trough was lifting northeastward across the Ozarks during the event resulting in strengthing wind fields and ample wind shear. The QLCS evolved into a Line Echo Wave Pattern (LEWP) with several persistent mesovortices across north Mississippi and a few transient mesovortices farther north into west Tennessee. Widespread damaging wind was observed across the entire County Warning Area (CWA) along with 13 tornadoes. In addition to the severe weather potential, heavy rainfall was a noted threat. Isolated flash flooding did occur with this system.