Dense Fog Advisory for Corinth, Iuka, Booneville Until 9 AM

The National Weather Service in Memphis issued a dense fog advisory at 9:26 p.m. Wednesday for Alcorn, Tishomingo and Prentiss counties. It runs until 9 a.m. Thursday, Nov. 5, so drivers in Corinth, Iuka, Booneville and the surrounding communities should expect very poor visibility overnight and into the Thursday morning commute.

Forecasters say visibility could drop to a quarter mile or less in dense fog. That can make roads such as U.S. 45, U.S. 72, Highway 25 and Highway 4 hazardous, especially on rural stretches with little lighting.

What the dense fog advisory covers

The advisory covers a large part of North Mississippi, not just our three counties. According to the NWS alert, it includes:

• Local counties: Alcorn, Tishomingo and Prentiss
• Nearby counties: Tippah, Union, Lee, Itawamba, Pontotoc, Benton, Marshall, DeSoto and others across North Mississippi
• Timing: Now until 9 a.m. Thursday
• Main hazard: Visibility of one-quarter mile or less

Earlier Wednesday evening, an NWS Memphis graphic estimated about a 65% chance of visibility under a quarter mile around Corinth overnight and about a 64% chance near Tupelo. The forecasters said dense fog looked increasingly likely into the Thursday morning commute, and the advisory followed a couple of hours later.

Driving safety tips for fog

The weather service says low visibility could make driving hazardous. Its advice for anyone who has to be on the road overnight or early Thursday:

• Slow down and give yourself extra time to reach work or school.
• Use your low-beam headlights. High beams reflect off fog and make it harder to see.
• Leave plenty of distance between you and the vehicle ahead.
• Watch for school buses, farm equipment and stopped vehicles that may appear suddenly.

If visibility gets so bad that you can’t see safely, pull completely off the road in a safe spot, turn on your hazard lights and wait for conditions to improve.

What comes after the fog

The fog follows this week’s rounds of storms and heavy rain across the Mid-South. The NWS Memphis forecast calls for a reinforcing cold front to move through on Friday, followed by a chilly, dry weekend. The weather service’s forecast table for Corinth shows lows near 39 Saturday morning and 34 on Sunday and Monday mornings, with frost possible.

Parents should also allow extra time for school drop-off and bus routes Thursday morning. Check your district’s official channels for any schedule changes, though none had been announced when this story was published.

For more on this week’s weather, see our earlier coverage: NWS Memphis warns of severe storms and flash flooding through Wednesday.

Source: National Weather Service Memphis