Alert archive / Arkansas / Tornado Warnings in 1990

Tornado Warning 3, NWS Tulsa, OK

April 16, 1990Benton County, Washington County, Arkansas

NWS Tulsa, OK issued this tornado warning at Apr 16, 1990, 8:47 PM CDT for Benton County, Washington County, Arkansas. It was in force for 28 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
Apr 16, 1990, 8:47 PM CDT (01:47 UTC)
Expired
Apr 16, 1990, 9:15 PM CDT
In force
28 min
Issued by
NWS Tulsa, OK
Area
Whole counties

Counties Benton County, AR, Washington 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

TimeReportWhereRemark
Apr 16, 9:10 PM CDTHail 0.75Benton, 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

Springfield, MO (KUMN), launched 00:00Z, 1.8 hours before the alert went out and 91 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.

Skew-T log-pSkew-T log-p diagram, Springfield, MO at 00:00Z on 1990-04-17Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 993 joules per kilogram.LCLLFCEL10008507005003002001001 km2 km3 km6 km9 km12 km15 km-30°-20°-10°10°20°30°40°
Temperature in red, dew point in green, the mixed-layer parcel dashed.
HodographHodograph, Springfield, MO at 00:00Z on 1990-04-17The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 29 square meters per square second.193958Sfc1 km3 km6 km9 kmRMLM
The wind turning with height, colored by layer: ground to 1 km, 1 to 3 km, 3 to 6 km, 6 to 10 km.
Mixed-layer CAPE
993 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-14 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
1295 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
38 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
29 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
94 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.2
Supercell composite
1.7

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

As transmitted, in the capitals the NWS used until 2016.

000 
TTAA00 KFSM 170149
TORFSM
ARC007-143-170215-
 
BULLETIN - EBS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
TORNADO WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE FORT SMITH AR
847 PM CDT MON APR 16 1990
 
THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN FORT SMITH HAS ISSUED A
TORNADO WARNING EFFECTIVE UNTIL  915 PM CDT
FOR PEOPLE IN THE FOLLOWING LOCATIONS...
 
IN NORTHWEST ARKANSAS
 
   ...SOUTHERN BENTON COUNTY...NORTHERN WASHINGTON COUNTY
 
AT 845 PM WEATHER SERVICE RADAR SHOWED A POSSIBLE TORNADO 5 MILES
SOUTH OF CAVES SPRINGS. THE STORM IS MOVING EASTSOUTHEAST AT 30 MPH.
 
 
THIS IS A DANGEROUS STORM SITUATION.  ACT QUICKLY.  IF YOU ARE
IN THE PATH OF THIS TORNADO MOVE TO A SHELTER BELOW GROUND IF
AVAILABLE.  OTHERWISE...GO TO A SMALL INTERIOR ROOM ON THE LOWEST
FLOOR POSSIBLE.  AVOID WINDOWS.  ABANDON CARS AND MOBILE HOMES
FOR A REINFORCED BUILDING OR GET INTO A DITCH OR CULVERT.

The office that day

Everything else NWS Tulsa, OK issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Apr 16, 7:07 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningTSABenton68 min
Apr 16, 7:31 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningTSAWashington59 min
Apr 16, 7:54 PM CDTTornado WarningTSABenton24 min
Apr 16, 7:58 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningTSAScott62 min
Apr 16, 8:04 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningTSAMadison56 min
Apr 16, 8:30 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningTSAWashington30 min
Apr 16, 9:00 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningTSACrawford, Madison, Washington60 min
Apr 16, 9:25 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningTSABenton35 min
Apr 16, 10:00 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningTSACrawford, Washington60 min
Apr 16, 11:41 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningTSAJohnson64 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.