Alert archive / Arkansas / Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in 1999
Severe Thunderstorm Warning 2, NWS Memphis, TN
NWS Memphis, TN issued this severe thunderstorm warning at Jan 17, 1999, 3:20 PM CST for Randolph County, Arkansas. It was in force for 50 min. 2 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
- Jan 17, 1999, 3:20 PM CST (21:20 UTC)
- Expired
- Jan 17, 1999, 4:10 PM CST
- In force
- 50 min
- Issued by
- NWS Memphis, TN
- Area
- Whole counties
County Randolph County, AR
What was reported inside it
| Time | Report | Where | Remark |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jan 17, 3:45 PM CST | Hail 1.75 | Countywide, AR | Hail ranged in size from dime to golfball. |
| Jan 17, 3:50 PM CST | Thunderstorm Wind | Pocahontas, AR | Several houses had their roofs blown off. One truck was blown off the road injuring the driver. Several trees were knocked down as well. |
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 watch it was issued in
The SPC watch in force over the same counties when this warning went out.
| Issued | Product | Office | Lasted |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jan 17, 2:30 PM CST | Tornado Watch | SPC | 6 hr |
The nearest sounding before it
Little Rock, AR (KLZK), launched 12:00Z, 9.3 hours before the alert went out and 194 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
- 23 J/kg
- Mixed-layer CIN
- -31 J/kg
- Mixed-layer LCL
- 502 m above ground
- 0-6 km bulk shear
- 43 kt
- 0-1 km storm-relative helicity
- 331 m²/s²
- 0-3 km storm-relative helicity
- 353 m²/s²
- Significant tornado parameter
- 0.0
- Supercell composite
- 0.0
The text
As transmitted, in the capitals the NWS used until 2016.
999 WUUS1 KMEM 172119 RRA SVRMEM ARC121-172210- BULLETIN - IMMEDIATE BROADCAST REQUESTED SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MEMPHIS TN 320 PM CST SUN JAN 17 1999 THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN MEMPHIS HAS ISSUED A * SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING FOR... RANDOLPH COUNTY IN NORTHEASTERN ARKANSAS * UNTIL 410 PM CST * AT 316 PM CST... DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WITH LARGE HAIL AND DAMAGING WINDS 15 MILES WEST OF POCAHONTAS OR 3 MILES WEST OF IMBODEN... MOVING NORTHEAST AT 35 MPH. * THE SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WILL BE NEAR... IMBODEN BY 325 PM CST POCAHONTAS BY 340 PM CST ATTICA BY 345 PM CST MAYNARD BY 355 PM CST BIGGERS BY 355 PM CST .A TORNADO WATCH IS ALSO IN EFFECT FOR THE WARNED AREA. REMEMBER... SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS CAN AND OCCASIONALLY DO PRODUCE TORNADOES WITH LITTLE OR NO ADVANCE WARNING. REMAIN CALM BUT BE ALERT TO RAPIDLY CHANGING WEATHER CONDITIONS.
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, Jan 17, 9:45 AM CST, 5 hours 35 minutes before
ARZ008-009-017-018-026>028-035-036-048-049-058-MOZ113-115-MSZ001>017- 020>024-TNZ001>004-019>021-048>054-088>092-180200- SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MEMPHIS TN 945 AM CST SUN JAN 17 1999 THIS OUTLOOK COVERS THE COUNTY WARNING AREA OF THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE FORECAST OFFICE IN MEMPHIS TENNESSEE..INCLUDING WEST TENNESSEE..NORTH MISSISSIPPI..EAST ARKANSAS AND THE MISSOURI BOOTHEEL. THERE IS A SLIGHT RISK OF SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS THIS AFTERNOON AND EARLY THIS EVENING ACROSS PORTIONS OF EASTERN ARKANSAS..WEST TENNESSEE..AND ALL OF NORTH MISSISSIPPI. THE AREA OF GREATEST CONCERN IS ALONG AND SOUTH OF A LINE FROM NEAR JONESBORO ARKANSAS EAST TO DYERSBURG TENNESSEE AND ON EAST PASSED MCKENZIE TENNESSEE. THIS MORNING..LOW PRESSURE WAS STRENGTHENING OVER SOUTHWEST KANSAS. A COLD FRONT DRAPED SOUTH FROM THE LOW WELL INTO TEXAS. THE LOW CENTER WILL MOVE NORTHEAST TO NEAR CHICAGO BY MIDNIGHT TONIGHT. THE ASSOCIATED COLD FRONT WILL MOVE INTO WEST TENNESSEE AND NORTH MISSISSIPPI EARLY THIS EVENING..AND STRETCH ACROSS MIDDLE TENNESSEE INTO CENTRAL MISSISSIPPI BY MIDNIGHT. AIR OVER THE MIDSOUTH WILL OBTAIN SEVERE WEATHER POTENTIAL BEFORE THE FRONT ARRIVES. THE ATMOSPHERE IS BECOMING SOAKED WITH MOISTURE FROM THE SURFACE TO HIGH LEVELS WHILE SOUTHERLY WINDS RAISE TEMPERATURES. COUPLED WITH THIS IS A VERY UNSTABLE LAYER OF AIR AT MID LEVELS AND DRASTICALLY DIFFERENT WIND SPEEDS FROM THE SURFACE UPWARD. ALL OF THESE FEATURES ARE THE RIGHT INGREDIENTS FOR SUPERCELL DEVELOPMENT. ISOLATED TORNADOES ARE POSSIBLE ALONG WITH DAMAGING STRAIGHT LINE WINDS AND HAIL. STORM SPOTTER GROUPS AND EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT PERSONNEL SHOULD BE PREPARED FOR POSSIBLE ACTIVATION THIS AFTERNOON AND EARLY THIS EVENING. MONITOR NOAA WEATHER RADIO..COMMERCIAL RADIO..TV AND CABLE TELEVISION OUTLETS FOR THE LATEST FORECASTS AND INFORMATION.
Special weather statement, Jan 17, 2:00 PM CST, 1 hour 20 minutes before
ARZ008-009-017-018-026>028-035-036-048-049-058-MOZ113-115-MSZ001>017- 020>024-TNZ001>004-019>021-048>054-088>092-180300- SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MEMPHIS TN 200 PM CST SUN JAN 17 1999 THIS OUTLOOK COVERS THE COUNTY WARNING AREA OF THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE FORECAST OFFICE IN MEMPHIS TENNESSEE..INCLUDING NORTHEAST ARKANSAS..THE MISSOURI BOOTHEEL..WEST TENNESSEE..AND NORTHERN MISSISSIPPI. RISK OF SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS HAVE INCREASED IN THE MIDSOUTH. MODERATE RISK OF SEVERE WEATHER IS NOW CENTERED OVER MEMPHIS TENNESSEE..WITH THIS RISK EXTENDING OUT AROUND 75 MILES. A SLIGHT RISK OF SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS EXITS FOR THE REST OF THE MIDSOUTH. AN AREA OF STORMS IS DEVELOPING FROM NORTH CENTRAL TO SOUTH CENTRAL ARKANSAS. THESE STORMS WILL INTENSIFY AS THEY MOVE EAST THIS AFTERNOON AND EVENING. VERY STRONG SOUTHWESTERLY WINDS ARE FILLING THE ATMOSPHERE WITH INCREASINGLY MOIST UNSTABLE AIR. ISOLATED TORNADOES ARE POSSIBLE ALONG WITH DAMAGING STRAIGHT LINE WINDS AND LARGE HAIL UNTIL A COLD FROM PASSES THIS EVENING. STORM SPOTTER GROUPS AND EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT PERSONNEL SHOULD BE PREPARED FOR POSSIBLE ACTIVATION THIS AFTERNOON AND EARLY THIS EVENING. MONITOR NOAA WEATHER RADIO..COMMERCIAL RADIO..TV AND CABLE TELEVISION OUTLETS FOR THE LATEST FORECASTS AND INFORMATION.
The office that day
Everything else NWS Memphis, TN issued on the same UTC day.
| Issued | Product | Office | Counties | Lasted |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan 17, 2:57 PM CST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | MEG | Lawrence | 33 min |
| Jan 17, 3:37 PM CST | Tornado Warning | MEG | Craighead, Poinsett | 48 min |
| Jan 17, 3:53 PM CST | Tornado Warning | MEG | Randolph | 32 min |
| Jan 17, 4:17 PM CST | Tornado Warning | MEG | Craighead, Poinsett | 43 min |
| Jan 17, 4:19 PM CST | Tornado Warning | MEG | Greene | 51 min |
| Jan 17, 4:35 PM CST | Tornado Warning | MEG | Cross | 45 min |
| Jan 17, 4:51 PM CST | Tornado Warning | MEG | Mississippi | 49 min |
| Jan 17, 5:04 PM CST | Tornado Warning | MEG | Crittenden | 46 min |
Nearby
Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in Arkansas, 1999Every severe thunderstorm warning in 1999
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.