Alert archive / Arkansas / Tornado Warnings in 1990
Tornado Warning 7, NWS Memphis, TN
NWS Memphis, TN issued this tornado warning at May 19, 1990, 10:39 PM CDT for St. Francis County, Arkansas. It was in force for 36 min. 1 report 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
- May 19, 1990, 10:39 PM CDT (03:39 UTC)
- Expired
- May 19, 1990, 11:15 PM CDT
- In force
- 36 min
- Issued by
- NWS Memphis, TN
- Area
- Whole counties
County St. Francis 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| May 19, 11:00 PM CDT | Thunderstorm Wind 0 | St. Francis, 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
Little Rock, AR (KLZK), launched 00:00Z, 3.7 hours before the alert went out and 76 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
- 0 J/kg
- Mixed-layer CIN
- No buoyant parcel
- Mixed-layer LCL
- 3611 m above ground
- 0-6 km bulk shear
- 23 kt
- 0-1 km storm-relative helicity
- 138 m²/s²
- 0-3 km storm-relative helicity
- 176 m²/s²
- Significant tornado parameter
- 0.0
- Supercell composite
- 0.0
The text
As transmitted, in the capitals the NWS used until 2016.
000 TTAA00 KMEM 200341 TORMEM ARC123-200415- BULLETIN - EBS ACTIVATION REQUESTED TORNADO WARNING NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MEMPHIS TN 1039 PM CDT SAT MAY 19 1990 THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN MEMPHIS HAS ISSUED A TORNADO WARNING EFFECTIVE UNTIL 1115 PM CDT FOR PEOPLE IN THE FOLLOWING LOCATIONS... IN EAST ARKANSAS ...EASTERN ST.FRANCIS COUNTY AT 1035 WEATHER RADAR SHOWED A TORNADO 5 MILES EAST OF FOREST CITY ARKANSAS MOVING EAST AT 35 MILES AN HOUR. IF YOU ARE IN THE PATH OF A TORNADO...THE SAFEST PLACE IS A BASEMENT. GET UNDER A WORKBENCH OR PIECE OF STURDY FURNITURE. IF NO BASEMENT IS AVAILABLE...SEEK SHELTER IN AN INTERIOR ROOM SUCH AS A CLOSET ON THE LOWEST FLOOR. USE BLANKETS...PILLOWS... OR !CUSHIONS TO COVER YOUR BODY. AVOID WINDOWS.
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, May 19, 6:50 PM CDT, 3 hours 49 minutes before
MSZ004-180045- SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TUPELO MS 650 PM CDT THU MAY 17 1990 ...STRONG THUNDERSTORMS DEVEOPING IN NORTH MISSISSIPPI... AT 635 PM NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE RADAR INDICATED THUNDERSTORMS WITH VERY HEAVY RAINS IN PARTS OF NORTH MISSISSIPPI. THE HEAVIEST ACTIVITY WERE IN LAFAYETTE AND BENTON COUNTIES. IN ADDITION...AT 600 PM MEMPHIS NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE ISSUED A TORNADO WARNING FOR DESOTO COUNTY...JUST SOUTH OF MEMPHIS. THESE THUNDERSTORMS ARE MOVING TO THE EAST-NORTHEAST AT 30 MPH. THESE THUNDERSTORMS HAVE THE POTENTIAL OF PRODUCING HEAVY RAIN...FREQUENT LIGHTNING...STRONG GUSTY WINDS...AND SMALL HAIL. BE WEATHER ALERT AND SEEK SHELTER SHOULD THREATENING WEATHER APPROACH. NNNN
Special weather statement, May 19, 7:56 PM CDT, 2 hours 43 minutes before
MSC003-180200- SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TUPELO MS 756 PM CDT THU MAY 17 1990 ...STRONG THUNDERSTORMS PERSIST OVER NORTH MISSISSIPPI... AT 735 PM NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE RADAR INDICATED THUNDERSTORMS WITH VERY HEAVY RAIN IN NORTH MISSISSIPPI. A BAND OF THUNDERSTORMS STRECHED FROM CENTRAL PONTOTOC COUNTY TO NEAR CORINTH. THESE CELLS ARE MOVING TO THE EAST NORTHEAST AT 25 MPH. THESE THUNDERSTORMS HAVE THE POTENT*IAL OF PRODUCING HEAVY RAIN...FREQUENT LIGHTNING...STRONG GUSTY WIND...AND SMALL HAIL. BE WEATHER ALERT AND SEEK SHELTER SHOULD THREATENING WEATHER APPROACH. NNNN
Special weather statement, May 19, 8:14 PM CDT, 2 hours 25 minutes before
TNZ012-013-014-015-ARZ012-013-014-200215- SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MEMPHIS TN 812 PM CDT SAT MAY 19 1990 ...THUNDERSTORMS CONTINUING OVER SOUTHWEST TENNESSEE AND NORTHWEST ARKANSAS... AT 8 PM THUNDERSTORMS WITH HEAV RAIN...SMALL HAIL AND GUSTY WINDS CONTINUED ALONG THE TENNESSEE BORDER OVER AND AROUND THE TOWNS OF MOSCOW...BOLIVAR AND SAVANNAH TENNESSEE AS WELL AS HOLLY SPRINGS AND ASHLAND MISSISSIPPI. THESE AREAS HAVE EXPERIENCED MODERATE TO HEAVY RAINFALL DURING THE PAST HOUR WITH STREET FLOODING LIKELY IN LOW LYING REGIONS. THUNDERSTORMS WITH HEAVY RAINS HAVE ALSO DEVELOPED OVER NORTHEAST ARKANSAS NEAR FORREST CITY AND WALDENBERG. THESE STORMS WERE MOVING NORTHEAST AT 40 MILES AN HOUR. THIS SECOND AREA OF STORMS WILL CONTINUE TO PUSH INTO EXTREME EAST ARKANSAS AND WEST TENNESSEE AND PRODUCE HEAVY RAINFALLS IN SECTIONS WHERE THE GROUND IS SATURATED FROM PREVIOUS RAINS. PERSONS IN WEST TENNESSE+E AND EAST ARKANSAS SHOULD THEREFORE KEEP INFORMED OF THE LATEST WEATHER INFORMATION SINCE MORE THUNDERSTORMS ARE EXPECTED LATER THIS EVENING.
Special weather statement, May 19, 9:21 PM CDT, 1 hour 18 minutes before
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
The office that day
Everything else NWS Memphis, TN issued on the same UTC day.
| Issued | Product | Office | Counties | Lasted |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 19, 9:56 PM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | MEG | Poinsett | 49 min |
| May 19, 10:02 PM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | MEG | Cross | 43 min |
| May 19, 10:42 PM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | MEG | Cross, Poinsett | 48 min |
| May 19, 11:43 PM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | MEG | Crittenden, Mississippi | 32 min |
Nearby
Tornado Warnings in Arkansas, 1990Every tornado warning in 1990Tornadoes in 1990
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.