At 3:55 a.m. on Friday, Jan. 12, the National Weather Service issued a tornado watch for areas that include North and Central Mississippi counties including Lafayette County. The watch is in effect until 11 a.m. on Friday morning.

Unseasonably warm conditions are fueling a fast moving weather system that will bring high winds, heavy rains and possibly hail.

After the storm moves through a cold front will cause temperatures to fall throughout the day and into the weekend. Frigid temperatures will continue.

The complete list of counties under the watch is Alcorn, Attala, Benton, Bolivar, Calhoun, Carroll, Chickasaw, Choctaw, Claiborne, Clay, Coahoma, Desoto, Grenada, Hinds, Holmes, Humphreys, Issaquena, Itawamba, Kemper, Lafayette, Lauderdale, Leake, Lee, Leflore, Lowndes, Madison, Marshall, Monroe, Montgomery, Neshoba, Newton, Noxubee, Oktibbeha, Panola, Pontotoc, Prentiss, Quitman, Rankin, Scott, Sharkey, Sunflower, Tallahatchie, Tate, Tippah, Tishomingo, Tunica, Union, Warren, Washington, Webster, Winston, Yalobusha and Yazoo.

After 11 a.m., the area will remain under a Wind Advisory issued by The National Weather Service until Saturday, Jan. 13, at midnight. Southwest winds with guests between 20 and 55 miles per hour are expected. Secure any outdoor furniture, potted plants, fixtures that could be blown by the high winds.

We will continue to update our readers through the weekend as we expect a severe winter storm that could bring snow and ice to hit late weekend into Monday.