Alert archive / Arkansas / Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in 1997
Severe Thunderstorm Warning 206, NWS Memphis, TN
NWS Memphis, TN issued this severe thunderstorm warning at Jun 17, 1997, 12:53 AM CDT for St. Francis County, Arkansas. It was in force for 47 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
- Jun 17, 1997, 12:53 AM CDT (05:53 UTC)
- Expired
- Jun 17, 1997, 1:40 AM CDT
- In force
- 47 min
- Issued by
- NWS Memphis, TN
- Area
- Whole counties
County St. Francis County, AR
The radar
The Memphis radar (KNQA), 87 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 05:52 UTC, the scan nearest the moment this went out.
Open the radar archive at this moment
The archived warnings, watches and discussions in force at that minute are drawn over the scan, this one among them.
What was reported inside it
| Time | Report | Where | Remark |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jun 17, 1:30 AM CDT | Thunderstorm Wind | Forrest City, AR | Several buildings suffered damage to their roofs and awnings. Numerous trees and power lines were blown down. |
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.
The nearest sounding before it
Little Rock, AR (KLZK), launched 00:00Z, 5.9 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
- 2715 J/kg
- Mixed-layer CIN
- -16 J/kg
- Mixed-layer LCL
- 726 m above ground
- 0-6 km bulk shear
- 33 kt
- 0-1 km storm-relative helicity
- 41 m²/s²
- 0-3 km storm-relative helicity
- 58 m²/s²
- Significant tornado parameter
- 0.4
- Supercell composite
- 2.2
The text
As transmitted, in the capitals the NWS used until 2016.
000 TTAA00 KMEM 170555 RRA SVRMEM ARC123-170640- BULLETIN - IMMEDIATE BROADCAST REQUESTED SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MEMPHIS TN 1253 AM CDT TUE JUN 17 1997 THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN MEMPHIS TN HAS ISSUED A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING EFFECTIVE UNTIL 140 AM CDT FOR PEOPLE IN THE FOLLOWING LOCATION... IN NORTHEASTERN ARKANSAS ...ST. FRANCIS COUNTY AT 1250 AM CDT...DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A LINE OF SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS WITH DAMAGING WINDS FROM WHEATLEY TO RONDO AND MARVEL. THESE STORMS WERE MOVING EAST NORTHEAST AT 35 MPH AND WILL AFFECT PALESTINE BY 1AM..AND FOREST CITY AND HUGHES BETWEEN 115 AND 130 AM. .WHEN THUNDERSTORMS ARE OCCURRING...PEOPLE SHOULD MOVE INSIDE A STRONG BUI.LDING. DO NOT STAND BY WINDOWS. DO NOT USE TELEPHONES OR ELECTRICAL APPLIANCES UNLESS IN AN EMERGENCY UNTIL THE STORM HAS PASSED. MOTORISTS SHOULD NOT DRIVE INTO LOW WATER CROSSINGS.
What forecasters said that day
The local office's own words before this severe thunderstorm 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, Jun 16, 6:58 PM CDT, 5 hours 55 minutes before
MSZ001>017-020>024-030-031-170015- SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MEMPHIS TN 658 PM CDT MON JUN 16 1997 ...SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH FOR NORTH MISSISSIPPI CANCELLED... SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH NUMBER 450 HAS BEEN CANCELLED FOR NORTH MISSISSIPPI. MOST THUNDERSTORM ACTIVITY HAS MOVED INTO ALABAMA AND ADDITIONAL REDEVELOPMENT IS NOT EXPECTED UNTIL LATER TONIGHT.
Special weather statement, Jun 16, 7:00 PM CDT, 5 hours 53 minutes before
MSZ001>017-020>024-030-031-170015- SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MEMPHIS TN 658 PM CDT MON JUN 16 1997 ...SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH FOR NORTH MISSISSIPPI CANCELLED... SEVERE THUNdDERSTORM WATCH NUMBER 450 HAS BEEN CANCELLED FOR NORTH MISSISSIPPI. MOST THUNDERSTORM ACTIVITY HAS MOVED INTO ALABAMA AND ADDITIONAL REDEVELOPMENT IS NOT EXPECTED UNTIL LATER TONIGHT.
The office that day
Everything else NWS Memphis, TN issued on the same UTC day.
| Issued | Product | Office | Counties | Lasted |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jun 17, 12:29 AM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | MEG | Lee, Phillips | 61 min |
| Jun 17, 1:20 AM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | MEG | Crittenden | 50 min |
Nearby
Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in Arkansas, 1997Every severe thunderstorm warning in 1997
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; radar from the NEXRAD Level II archive.