Storms down trees on Madison homes

Dawn Foster was in her bed on Jasper Lane in Madison’s Treasure Cove Tuesday night as the first round of severe weather rolled in and a large tree fell into her home. 

Foster wasn’t injured in the ordeal and said Wednesday afternoon her main concern was addressing “all the water pouring into her house.”

Trees were down on a couple of houses in Treasure Cove, but that wasn’t the only neighborhood that was pummeled by the back-to-back storm systems. 

In Northbay, Tiffany Regan reported damage to several homes in her neighborhood, including hers, where the entire chimney was blown off. 

Tuesday night began with severe thunderstorms that brought straight-line winds and nickel-sized hail to parts of Madison County. Severe weather continued Wednesday morning, with thousands of power outages spread across the county and metro. 

As of 11 a.m., 6,520 customers were without power in Madison County according to Entergy spokesperson Sandy Powlett. 

"We are continuing to assess damage and restore power as quickly and safely as possible," Powlett said. "Weather continues to move through the area."

A portion of U.S. Highway 51 in Madison had to be closed from Olympic Way to Green Oak on Wednesday for Entergy crews to replace numerous power poles. The road will again be closed Thursday morning, beginning at 8 a.m., official said.

According to the Madison Police Department, on Wednesday afternoon Entergy was responding to a power line over the road at Ashtree Lane and North Azalaea. There was a tree over the road with power lines on Ingleside Road from Ingleside Drive to Inglesie East Drive. Another tree with power lines was down on Picnic Hill Road and North Old Canton Road. 

No major injuries have been reported so far.

As Entergy crews are "swamped,” Madison the City spokesman Matt Smith said first responders were operating at full capacity.

"Our first responders are going 100 percent," Smith said. "There are no lapses in coverage."

He said Entergy told the city they were "aggressively" working to restore power in affected areas.

Moist of the trees that have come down due to the weather have been pines, according to Smith.

"We want to remind people to stay weather-aware and keep an eye out for hazards," Smith said. "Please do not hesitate to call the city or 9-1-1 if you see anything."

Madison Fire Chief Derrick Leyton said three trees had struck homes in the southwest part of town.

"There have been no injuries, no entrapments and no fires," he said.

Ridgeland Police Chief Brian Myers said the city has no ongoing issues.

"We dealt with trees on a few residences and across many streets," Myers said. "No major injuries reported. All major roads are now passable." 

Myers said there were still a few trees down on neighborhood streets but crews are working to get everything cleared on Wednesday. 

Much of Northeast Jackson remained without power late Wednesday. The area around Jackson Academy was hit hard.