Alert archive / Arkansas / Tornado Warnings in 1986
Tornado Warning 8, NWS Shreveport, LA
NWS Shreveport, LA issued this tornado warning at Apr 4, 1986, 5:50 PM CST for Howard County, Little River County, Sevier County, Arkansas. It was in force for 70 min. 3 reports came from inside the area while it was in force.
The area
The counties it named, with what was reported inside it.
The facts
- Issued
- Apr 4, 1986, 5:50 PM CST (23:50 UTC)
- Expired
- Apr 4, 1986, 7:00 PM CST
- In force
- 70 min
- Issued by
- NWS Shreveport, LA
- Area
- Whole counties
Counties Howard County, AR, Little River County, AR, Sevier County, AR
The radar
The WSR-88D network and its archive begin in 1991, so there is no radar volume for this alert.
What was reported inside it
| Time | Report | Where | Remark |
|---|---|---|---|
| Apr 4, 6:10 PM CST | Hail 1 | Little River, AR | |
| Apr 4, 6:20 PM CST | Hail 1.75 | Sevier, AR | |
| Apr 4, 6:35 PM CST | Hail 2.75 | Howard, AR |
NCEI Storm Data entries that began inside the alert's area while it was in force. Before 2003 the local storm report archive is thin, so this is the record of what happened rather than what was phoned in. Storm Data before 1996 records only tornadoes, thunderstorm wind and hail.
The nearest sounding before it
Longview/Gregg, TX (KGGG), launched 12:00Z, 11.8 hours before the alert went out and 180 km from the middle of its area. This is the routine balloon launch nearest before it, the air the forecaster had in hand, not a measurement taken for the alert.
- Mixed-layer CAPE
- 724 J/kg
- Mixed-layer CIN
- -77 J/kg
- Mixed-layer LCL
- 594 m above ground
- 0-6 km bulk shear
- 40 kt
- 0-1 km storm-relative helicity
- 327 m²/s²
- 0-3 km storm-relative helicity
- 230 m²/s²
- Significant tornado parameter
- 0.8
- Supercell composite
- 6.0
The text
As transmitted, in the capitals the NWS used until 2016.
000
TTAA00 KSHV 042352
TORSHV
ARC081-133-061-050100-
BULLETIN...EBS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
TORNADO WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE SHREVEPORT LA
550 PM CST FRI APR 4 1986
THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HAS ISSUED A TORNADO WARNING EFFECTIVE
UNTIL 700 PM CST FOR PEOPLE IN THE FOLLOWING COUNTIES IN
SOUTHWEST ARKANSAS...LITTLE RIVER..SOUTHEAST HALF OF SEVIER AND
HOWARD
AT 550 PM CST THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE RADAR IN SHREEPORT WAS
INDICATING A POSSIBLE TORNADO BETWEEN FORMEN AND ASHDOWN ARKANSAS
...MOVING EAST NORTHEAST AT 35 MPH. THIS STORM HAS PRODUCED AT
LEAST TWO TORNADO TOUCHDOWNS...EARLIER NORTHWEST OF DEKALB TEXAS
...NORTH OF HOOKS TEXAS ALONG THE RED RIVER AND SOUTHEAST OF FORMEN
ARKANSAS...SEVERAL FUNNEL CLOUD SIGHTINGS ALONG WITH GOLF BALL SIZE
HAIL.
.
PERSONS IN THE PATH OF THIS TORNADO SHOULD SEEK SHELTER IN A PERMANENT
STRUCTURE ON THE LOWEST FLOOR IN AN INTERIOR SMALL ROOM. GET UNDER A
PIECE OF HEAVY FURNITURE OR COVER YOURSELF WITH SOMETHING TO PROTECT
AGAINST FLYING OR FALLING DEBRIS.
ALSO...SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING REMAINS IN EFFECT FOR WESTERN PARTS
OF HARRISON AND MARION COUNTIES IN NORTHEAST TEXAS. SEVERE THUNDERSTORM
INDICATED BY RADAR 10 MILES NORTHEAST OF LONGVIEW...MOVING NORTHEAST AT
30 MPH. HAIL UP TO GOLF BALL SIZE REPORTED EARLIER IN THE LONGVIEW AREA.
TORNADO WATCH REMAINS IN EFFECT FOR MUCH OF NORTHEAST TEXAS...SOUTHEAST
OKLAHOMA AND SOUTHWEST ARKANSAS. OTHER SEVERE STORMS OVER THE WESTERN
SECTIONS OF NORTHEAST TEXAS SPREADING NORTHEAST.What forecasters said that day
The local office's own words before this tornado warning went out, as it sent them, from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service text.
In the hours before
Special weather statement, Apr 4, 2:31 PM CST, 3 hours 19 minutes before
NEWSPSSHV SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE SHREVEPORT LA 230 PM CST FRI APR 4 1986 A TORNADO WATCH HAS BEEN ISSUED AND IN EFECT FOR A LARGE AREA INCLUD- ING SOUTHEAST OKLAHOMA..WEST CENTRAL AND SOUTHWEST ARKANSAS AND MUCH OF NORTHCENTRAL AND NORTHEAST TEXAS. AT 230 PM CST THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE RADAR IN SHRVEPORT CONTINUED TO SHOW A BAND OF STONG THUNDERSTORMS OVER EAST OKLAHOMA INTO NORTH- CENTRAL TEXAS..WITH SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS DEVELOPING AHEAD OF THE BAND OVER EXTREME NORTHEAST TEXAS..EXTREME SOUTHEAST OKLAHOMA AND SOUTH WEST ARKANSAS. AT 230 PM CST THE OLD BAND OF THUNDERSTORMS WERE FROM THE NORTHWEST CORNER OF ARKANSAS IN THE FAYETTEVILLE/FORT SMITH AREA..THROUGH EAST CENTRAL OKLAHOMA NEAR MCALESTER...ON SOUTHWEST TO THE DALLAS FORT WORTH AREA. A NEW BAND OF SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS WERE DEVELOPING FROM NEAR MENA IN SOUTHWEST ARKANSAS...ACROSS DEQUEEN TO NEAR CLARKSVILLE AND GREENVILLE TEXAS. STRONG THUNDERSTORMS IN THE NEW BAND WERE FROM NEAR CLARKSVILLE TO NEAR IDABEL OKLAHOMA. INDIVIDUAL THUNDERSTORMS WILL MOVE NORTHEAST AT 30 TO 40 MPH WHILE THE SYSTEMS DEVELOP EAST. INDICTIONS ARE THE SEVERE STORMS WILL DEVELOP ACROSS THE NORTHWEST HALF OF THE ARKLATED INTO SOUTHEAST OKLAHOMA...ALSO ADDITIONAL HEAVY RAINFALL MAY PRODUCE FLOODING IN THE AREAS THAT RECEIVED FROM TWO TO OVER FIVE INCHES OF RAIN LAST NIGHT.
Special weather statement, Apr 4, 4:13 PM CST, 1 hour 37 minutes before
NEWSPSSHV SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE SHREVEPORT LA 410 PM CST FRI APR 4 1986 A TORNADO WATCH REMAINS IN EFFECT FOR A LARGE AREA INCLUDING SOUTH EAST OKLAHOMA..WEST CENTRAL AND SOUTHWEST ARKANSAS AND MUCH OF NORTH CENTRAL AND NORTHEAST TEXAS. OVER THE PAST HOUR SMALL HAIL REPORTED IN STRONG THUNDERSTORM NORTH OF NASHVILLE ARKANSAS...BRIEF HEAVY RAINFALL AND GUSTY WINDS WITH THUNDER STORMS OVER SOUTHWEST ARKANAS AND EXTREME NORTHEAST TEXAS AND EXTREME SOUTHEAST OKLAHOMA. ISOLATED STRONG THUNDERSTORMS WERE OCCURRING OVER SOUTHWEST ARKANSAS AND EXTEME NORTHEAST TEXAS FROM SOUTHWEST OF HOT SPRINGS TO NORTH OF NASSVILLE TO NEAR DEKALB TEXAS. MOVMENT WAS NORTHEAST AT 30 MPH. THESE STORMS WERE AHEAD OF A BAND OF VERY STRONG THUNDERSTORMS THAT WERE SPREADING EAST ACROSS NORTH TEXAS AND SOUTHEAST OKLAHONA. THE BAND WAS LOCATED AT 410 PM FROM 40 MILEA NORTH OF IDABEL OKLAHOMA TO SOUTHWEST OF HUGO TO NEAR DALLAS TEXAS. AREAL COVERAGE OF STRONG THUNDERSTORMS WILL CONTINUE TO INCREASE OVER THE NORTHWEST HALF OF THE ARKLATEX THIS EVENING INTO THE SOUTHEAST PART OF OKLAHOMA..A FEW SEVERE STORMS ARE LIKELY. ALSO...ADDITIONAL HEAVY RAINFALL WmILL OCCUR TONIGHT OVER THE SAME AREA WHERE TWO TO OVER FIVE INCHES FELL THURSDAY NIGHT...THUS FLOODING MAY DEVELOP LATER THIS EVENING..AS AREA STREAMS ARE NOW RUNNING HIGH.
The office that day
Everything else NWS Shreveport, LA issued on the same UTC day.
| Issued | Product | Office | Counties | Lasted |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apr 4, 12:25 AM CST | Flash Flood Warning | SHV | Little River, Sevier | 3 hr |
| Apr 4, 12:25 AM CST | Flash Flood Warning | SHV | Howard | 3 hr |
| Apr 4, 4:30 AM CST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | SHV | Howard, Sevier | 60 min |
| Apr 4, 4:30 AM CST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | SHV | Pike | 60 min |
| Apr 4, 4:20 PM CST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | SHV | Pike | 55 min |
| Apr 4, 4:45 PM CST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | SHV | Little River | 65 min |
| Apr 4, 4:48 PM CST | Tornado Warning | SHV | Pike | 32 min |
| Apr 4, 4:54 PM CST | Tornado Warning | SHV | Little River | 61 min |
Nearby
Tornado Warnings in Arkansas, 1986Every tornado warning in 1986Tornadoes in 1986
Sources
The product and its follow-ups from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service and Storm Prediction Center text; verification from NCEI's Storm Data; the sounding from the Mesonet's radiosonde archive.