Simpson County, Mississippi · Mendenhall
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Simpson County averages 2 nights a year at 20°F or colder, mostly midwinter, and 14% of its homes predate 1960.
January brings the most downpours to Simpson County, part of 16.2 heavy-rain days a year. Check the sump first.
14% 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 Simpson County, 5.4 inches fell on the wettest day of the 2015–2024 record. Storms like that, and ice dams in snowy winters, cause most roof leaks.
22% of occupied homes in Simpson County heat mainly with wood or propane, above the Mississippi county median of 15.1%.
About 129 nights a year here stay at 65°F or warmer, so basements and crawl spaces can grow mold even without a leak.
Local risk profile
About 25,691 people live in Simpson County, 589 square miles in central Mississippi, in roughly 11,694 homes. Mendenhall is the county seat; Magee, D'Lo and Braxton are the next largest communities. Much of its housing is recent, with a median build year of 1986.
42/100 Water Damage Risk Index: Moderate Simpson County ranks 64 of 82 Mississippi counties. See the statewide ranking and method.The three factors where Simpson County ranks highest compared with other Mississippi counties.
For frozen pipes, Simpson County is a typical Mississippi county, which is still plenty. It averaged 31 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.
Expect the hardest freezes in January, inside a season that runs midwinter. That's when an outdoor spigot left connected to a hose, or a pipe in a crawl space, is most likely to split.
On average the first fall freeze arrives around Nov 13 and the last spring freeze around Mar 10.
Rainfall is about average for Mississippi. The county gets about 62.4 inches of rain and melted snow a year, with 16.2 days of an inch or more (42nd of 82). Those downpours cluster in January, March and April, when sump pumps and gutters are tested hardest. The wettest day on record brought 5.4 inches on March 11, 2016. Multi-day storms matter most for basements; the wettest three days on record here totaled 6.71 inches (through August 25, 2022).
Freeze-thaw days, below freezing overnight and above it by afternoon, come about 30 times a year here. They're the main driver of ice dams and of water working its way through foundation cracks in late winter.
Housing
Roughly 43% of the county's housing was built before 1980. That puts Simpson near the middle of Mississippi's 82 counties.
Growth since 2000 added 30% of today's homes. In houses that new, the weak points are washing machine hoses, ice maker lines, water heaters and sump pumps rather than the pipes in the walls.
28% 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.
Here 25% of housing is manufactured homes. Check the skirting and the heat tape on the main water line every fall, because that one exposed line is what freezes.
Beyond water
Summer nights that don't drop below 65°F, a good marker of humid air, come about 129 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 Simpson County it's 15% utility gas, 63% electric, 20% propane and 2% wood. Propane heat is above the Mississippi norm. Annual chimney and vent inspection, which the NFPA recommends, is one of the most effective fire-prevention habits for these homes.
Fire and smoke cleanup: first stepsCoverage
Calls connect to restoration companies that work across Simpson County. The largest communities by population:
Population from ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates. Townships and unincorporated areas are covered too.
Nearby
Rankin and Smith get more pipe-freeze nights than Simpson. Lawrence County has the oldest housing nearby, with 45% of homes built before 1980.
By the numbers
| Factor | Simpson | Mississippi median | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| Homes built before 1960 | 14% | 15% | 45 of 82 |
| Homes built before 1980 | 43% | 45% | 53 of 82 |
| Homes built 2000 or later | 30% | 23% | 23 of 82 |
| Manufactured or mobile homes | 25% | 20% | 27 of 82 |
| Vacant homes | 18% | 17% | 29 of 82 |
| Wood or propane heat | 22% | 15% | 26 of 82 |
| Nights at 20°F or colder | 2/yr | 3/yr | 47 of 82 |
| Days with 1 inch+ of rain | 16/yr | 16/yr | 42 of 82 |
| Freeze-thaw days | 30/yr | 32/yr | 44 of 82 |
| Muggy nights (65°F+) | 129/yr | 125/yr | 34 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 Simpson County: freezing from midwinter, heavy rain in January, March and April.
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