Lincoln County, Mississippi · Brookhaven
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Lincoln County averages 2 nights a year at 20°F or colder, mostly midwinter, and 16% of its homes predate 1960.
January brings the most downpours to Lincoln County, part of 17.2 heavy-rain days a year. Check the sump first.
16% of homes here predate 1960, when clay and cast iron sewer laterals were standard. Roots and cracks in those lines are a common cause of backups.
In Lincoln County, 7.06 inches fell on the wettest day of the 2015–2024 record. Storms like that, and ice dams in snowy winters, cause most roof leaks.
13% of occupied homes in Lincoln County heat mainly with wood or propane, below the Mississippi county median of 15.1%.
With 133 muggy nights a year, mold in Lincoln County can appear within days of a leak. Dry first, then clean.
Local risk profile
About 34,877 people live in Lincoln County, 586 square miles in southwest Mississippi, in roughly 15,966 homes. Brookhaven is the county seat; Bogue Chitto is the next largest community. The county's median home was built in 1984.
53/100 Water Damage Risk Index: Elevated Lincoln County ranks 33 of 82 Mississippi counties. See the statewide ranking and method.The three factors where Lincoln County ranks highest compared with other Mississippi counties.
For frozen pipes, Lincoln County is a typical Mississippi county, which is still plenty. It averaged 25 freezing nights a year over 2015–2024, 2 of them at 20°F or colder, cold enough for pipes in outside walls and crawl spaces to freeze. Among 82 Mississippi counties that's 47th.
Most freezing nights fall from midwinter, peaking in January. Disconnect garden hoses and shut off outdoor spigots before the first hard frost, and keep the heat at 55°F or higher if you'll be away.
On average the first fall freeze arrives around Nov 18 and the last spring freeze around Feb 26.
Heavy rain is a bigger factor here than in most of Mississippi. The county gets about 62.8 inches of rain and melted snow a year, with 17.2 days of an inch or more (23rd of 82). Those downpours cluster in January, April and May, when sump pumps and gutters are tested hardest. The wettest day on record brought 7.06 inches on October 26, 2015. Multi-day storms matter most for basements; the wettest three days on record here totaled 8.53 inches (through October 27, 2015).
The temperature crosses 32°F in both directions on roughly 24 days a year. Each cycle melts and refreezes water at roof edges and in foundation cracks, which is how ice dams and basement seepage get started.
Housing
Roughly 45% of the county's housing was built before 1980. That puts Lincoln near the middle of Mississippi's 82 counties.
The mix runs from 16% built before 1960 to 26% built since 2000, so older neighborhoods bring aging pipe while newer subdivisions bring failed appliance lines and water heaters.
29% date from 1980 to 1999, the window when polybutylene, a gray flexible plastic supply pipe, was used in some homes. It's prone to leaks at the fittings, so it's worth checking for in a house from those years.
Manufactured and mobile homes make up 25% of the housing here. Water lines in the underbelly depend on intact skirting and working heat tape, and they're usually the first to freeze in a cold snap.
Beyond water
Summer nights that don't drop below 65°F, a good marker of humid air, come about 133 times a year here, close to the Mississippi county median of 125. Mold grows when indoor humidity stays above about 60%, the EPA's ceiling. A basement dehumidifier set to 50% and drying anything wet within 24 to 48 hours prevents most problems.
Mold remediation: what to expectHeating fuel matters for fire risk. In Lincoln County it's 18% utility gas, 69% electric, 12% propane and under 1% wood. Heating equipment, cooking and electrical failures cause most home fires nationally. Even a small kitchen fire can leave soot through the whole house, because smoke follows air currents into closets, ducts and attic space.
Fire and smoke cleanup: first stepsCoverage
Calls connect to restoration companies that work across Lincoln County. The largest communities by population:
Population from ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates. Townships and unincorporated areas are covered too.
Nearby
Lincoln gets more pipe-freeze nights than any of its neighbors. Franklin County has the oldest housing nearby, with 48% of homes built before 1980.
By the numbers
| Factor | Lincoln | Mississippi median | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| Homes built before 1960 | 16% | 15% | 36 of 82 |
| Homes built before 1980 | 45% | 45% | 44 of 82 |
| Homes built 2000 or later | 26% | 23% | 33 of 82 |
| Manufactured or mobile homes | 25% | 20% | 24 of 82 |
| Vacant homes | 18% | 17% | 35 of 82 |
| Wood or propane heat | 13% | 15% | 49 of 82 |
| Nights at 20°F or colder | 2/yr | 3/yr | 47 of 82 |
| Days with 1 inch+ of rain | 17/yr | 16/yr | 23 of 82 |
| Freeze-thaw days | 24/yr | 32/yr | 59 of 82 |
| Muggy nights (65°F+) | 133/yr | 125/yr | 27 of 82 |
Rank 1 is the highest value. Bars run from the lowest to the highest Mississippi county; the tick marks the median; orange means higher water damage risk than the median, green means lower.
Questions
Peak risk months in Lincoln County: freezing from midwinter, heavy rain in January, April and May.
Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 2024 5-year estimates (2020-2024); weather from NOAA nClimGrid-Daily county averages (EpiNOAA), 2015–2024, averaged across the county; county boundaries from Census TIGER. Reviewed 2026-10-21. Methodology