The tornado first touched down south of Bassfield, quickly intensifying to EF2 strength, multiple trees were snapped and uprooted.

The tornado peaked at 190 mph (310 km/h), sweeping away a well-built cabin near Cantwell Mill and mangling a truck beyond recognition.

In Covington County, the tornado continued to bulldoze numerous trees, briefly intensifying to low-end EF4 status near Seminary.

By the pre-dawn hours of April 12, mid-level cooling associated with the feature overspread the Edwards Plateau, Hill Country, and much of central Texas.

[5] These thunderstorms were initially isolated in nature but soon coalesced into a mesoscale convective system as they encountered an enhanced corridor of warm air streaming northward, as well as very strong wind shear.

[11] A weather balloon launch from Jackson, Mississippi, at 18:00 UTC revealed the presence of a capping inversion across the region.

[13] As a small area of low pressure progressed across northwestern Mississippi, it caused surface winds to turn out of the east-southeast, enhancing the potential for tornadoes.

As a cluster of storms across central Mississippi progressed toward the northeast, it began to reintensify and develop embedded supercell characteristics with an attendant threat of strong tornadoes.

The tornado soon intensified to low-end EF2 strength as it crossed Ray Hathorn Road, multiple softwood trees were snapped and many more were downed.

[16] The tornado, now 1,400 yd (1,300 m) wide, crossed State Highway 42, intensifying to mid-range EF2 strength; one home suffered severe roof damage, with large sections of it ripped off.

Another home nearby received significant roof damage, with estimated wind speeds reaching 122 mph (196 km/h).

[16] At the Jefferson Thompson Complex, multiple sports facilities were destroyed by the tornado, with several fences and signs damaged.

The tornado moved further northeast, additional intensification occurred as several softwood trees were snapped and debarked in large quantities.

[16]The tornado remained violent, along Reese Road, hardwood and softwood trees were heavily debarked, denuded, and snapped.

[16] North of Graves Keys Road, the tornado abruptly intensified to high-end EF4 strength with estimated windspeeds up to 190 mph (310 km/h).

A well-anchored wooden cabin was obliterated and swept clean at high-end EF4 intensity, with the metal roof being completely stripped away.

The tornado weakened to low-end EF3 strength, more trees were debarked and homes nearby sustained moderate to severe damage.

The National Weather Service in Jackson, Mississippi issued a tornado emergency for Covington, Jones, Jasper, and Smith counties at 5:01 PM (CST).

[26] The tornado maintained low-end EF3 intensity, several trees was snapped and debarked along Seminary Mike Connor Road.

Along Willow Grove Church Road, a metal building system was significantly damaged and a double-wide manufactured home was destroyed.

A heavy concentration of snapped and debarked softwood and hardwood trees around the Brent Knight Road area were noted.

Alongside Hebron Centerville Road, a chicken house was demolished, significant tree debarking was noted nearby and a mobile home was ripped off its unit and rolled, causing severe damage.

South of Soso, near Highway 29, a one-story home received significant roof damage and a small barn was leveled.

[37][16] Afterwards, the tornado weakened rapidly to low-end EF2 intensity, significantly damaging a framed home, destroying an outbuilding, along with multiple trees snapped or uprooted.

East of Heidelberg, the tornado maintained low-end EF2 intensity; several trees were snapped or uprooted, multiple outbuildings were leveled, and some homes received significant damage.

The tornado weakened further to high-end EF1 status, several more trees were snapped or uprooted and homes sustained light damage.

[23][42] Families who suffered any form of damage from severe storms across Covington, Jefferson Davis and Jones counties were eligible for disaster assistance by Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), with President Donald Trump declaring the three counties as a major disaster area.

[47][48] Reeves addressed the residents of Soso at the front entrances of the heavily damaged First Baptist Church Recover.

[51] NFL and native born Bassfield players A. J. Moore and Cornell Armstrong went to Bassfield to hand out 100 supply boxes to victims of the tornado at Jefferson Davis County High School a few days after the tornado, helping out one-hundred families in Jefferson Davis County.

[52] St. Peter's Catholic Church in Bassfield gave out free meals to survivors of the tornado, ultimately feeding hundreds of people.