Alert archive / Arkansas / Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in 1998

Severe Thunderstorm Warning 151, NWS Tulsa, OK

May 2, 1998Madison County, Arkansas

NWS Tulsa, OK issued this severe thunderstorm warning at May 2, 1998, 5:40 PM CDT for Madison County, Arkansas. It was in force for 50 min. No storm report in the archive falls inside the area while it was in force.

The area

The counties it named.

The facts

Issued
May 2, 1998, 5:40 PM CDT (22:40 UTC)
Expired
May 2, 1998, 6:30 PM CDT
In force
50 min
Issued by
NWS Tulsa, OK
Area
Whole counties

County Madison County, AR

The radar

The Western Arkansas radar (KSRX), 99 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 22:43 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.

The nearest sounding before it

Springfield, MO (KSGF), launched 12:00Z, 10.7 hours before the alert went out and 99 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 12:00Z on 1998-05-02Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 98 joules per kilogram.LCLLFCEL10008507005003002001001 km2 km3 km6 km9 km12 km15 km-30°-20°-10°0°10°20°30°40°
Temperature in red, dew point in green, the mixed-layer parcel dashed.
HodographHodograph, Springfield, MO at 12:00Z on 1998-05-02The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 82 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
98 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-90 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
1336 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
40 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
82 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
108 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.0
Supercell composite
0.2

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

319 
WUUS54 KTSA 022242 RRA
SVRTUL
ARC087-022330-

BULLETIN - IMMEDIATE BROADCAST REQUESTED
SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TULSA OK
540 PM CDT SAT MAY 2 1998

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN TULSA HAS ISSUED A

* SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING FOR...

  SOUTHERN MADISON COUNTY - NORTHWESTERN ARKANSAS

* UNTIL 630 PM CDT

* AT 539 PM...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR DETECTED A
  SEVERE THUNDERSTORM 5 MILES WEST OF ST. PAUL...MOVING EAST-
  SOUTHEAST AT 30 MPH.

* SOME LOCATIONS AFFECTED INCLUDE...
  ST. PAUL
  PETTIGREW

  HAIL TO THE SIZE OF NICKELS AND WIND GUSTS TO 60 MPH CAN BE
  EXPECTED IN THE WARNED AREA.

BE ALERT TO RAPIDLY CHANGING WEATHER CONDITIONS AS STORMS APPROACH.

WHEN THUNDERSTORMS APPROACH...TAKE COVER INSIDE A STURDY BUILDING.
STAY AWAY FROM WINDOWS. TO PROTECT YOURSELF FROM LIGHTNING STAY OFF
THE PHONE AND DONT USE HAND HELD ELECTRICAL APPLIANCES. MOTORISTS
SHOULD NEVER DRIVE INTO AREAS WHERE WATER COVERS THE ROAD.

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.

NWS Tulsa, OK wrote its last area forecast discussion before this severe thunderstorm warning went out at May 2, 3:20 PM CDT, 2 hours 20 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, May 2, 3:20 PM CDT, 2 hours 20 minutes before
FPUS3 KTUL 022021
AFDTUL

EASTERN OKLAHOMA/NORTHWEST ARKANSAS FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TULSA OK
320 PM CDT SAT MAY 2 1998

LOOKS LIKE A FEW HRS OF ACTIVE WX THRU EARLY THIS EVENING...THEN WX
SHLD BE RATHER QUIET TILL NXT SYSTM APPRCHED MID-WEEK.  PREFNTL TROF
HAS PUSHED THRU THE TUL AREA THIS AFTN AND STRETCHES FROM NEAR JAY IN
DELAWARE COUNTY TO NEAR OKEMAH IN OKFUSKEE COUNTY AT 1930Z.  MAIN
CDFNT LAGGING A LTL BHND.  AHD OF THE TROF TEMPS HAVE WARMED TO ARND
80 THIS AFTN WITH DWEPTS MAINLY IN THE U50S...EVEN A FEW L60S ALNG
THE ARKANSAS RVR VALLEY IN E-CNTL OK.  HAVE HAD HI-BASED TSRA/SHRA
MOVING ACRS THE AREA THRU THE DAY...BUT STRONGER STORMS NOW EVIDENT
ON KINX OVR SRN MO CLOSER TO UPR SUPPORT AS S/WV MOVES SEWRD FRM IA
INTO NRN MO.  XPCT TO SEE ADNTL STORMS FIRE OVR THE NXT HR OR TWO ON
DOWN INTO ERN OK ALNG AND AHD OF THE SFC BNDRY...THEN MOVE ON OFF TO
THE EAST OF THE AREA BY EARLY THIS EVENING.  ADDITIONAL STORMS XPCTD
TO DVLP TO THE SOUTH OF FA WITH SFC LO LOCATED NEAR ABI AND WRMFNT
EXTENDING EWRD ACROSS NE TX.

S/WV WILL CONT TO MOVE DOWN ACROSS MO DURING THE NGT...AND THEN TO
THE EAST ON SUN.  AREA WILL RMN IN GENRL NW FLOW THEN FOR THE NXT FEW
DAYS WITH SFC HI PRES BUILDING OVR THE AREA.  WILL HANG ON TO A FEW
CLDS INTO SUNDAY OVR THE NW AR ZONES AND FAR NE OK ZONES...CLOSEST TO
UPR SYSTM.  OTHRWISE PLENTY OF SUNSHINE NXT FEW DAYS WITH TEMPS NEAR
OR A LTL BELOW NORM.  NXT SYSTM TO AFFECT AREA ARND TUE/WED.

FCSTID = 4
TUL   50  74  51  78 /  10   0   0   0
FSM   50  73  48  78 /  20   0   0   0
MLC   51  76  50  79 /  10   0   0   0
BVO   47  74  48  78 /  10   0   0   0
FYV   45  71  44  75 /  20   0   0   0
IDB   51  77  49  80 /  40   0   0   0
BYV   44  70  44  74 /  20   0   0   0
MIO   46  72  47  77 /  20   0   0   0
MKO   50  74  50  78 /  10   0   0   0
F10   50  74  50  78 /  10   0   0   0
HHW   51  78  49  80 /  40   0   0   0

.TUL...
OK...NONE.
AR...NONE.

In the hours before

Special weather statement, May 2, 1:00 PM CDT, 4 hours 40 minutes before
ARZ001-002-010-011-019-020-029-OKZ049-053>076-031200-

EASTERN OKLAHOMA/NORTHWEST ARKANSAS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TULSA OK
100 PM CDT SAT MAY 2 1998

A FEW SEVERE THUNDERST
Special weather statement, May 2, 1:00 PM CDT, 4 hours 40 minutes before
ARZ001-002-010-011-019-020-029-OKZ049-053>076-031200-

EASTERN OKLAHOMA/NORTHWEST ARKANSAS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TULSA OK
100 PM CDT SAT MAY 2 1998

A FEW SEVERE THUNDERST

The office that day

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

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
May 2, 5:06 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningTSACrawford54 min
May 2, 5:14 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningTSASebastian61 min
May 2, 5:23 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningTSASebastian52 min
May 2, 5:29 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningTSACrawford, Franklin61 min

Nearby

Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in Arkansas, 1998Every severe thunderstorm warning in 1998

Sources

The product and its follow-ups from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service and Storm Prediction Center text; the sounding from the Mesonet's radiosonde archive; radar from the NEXRAD Level II archive.