Alert archive / Arkansas / Tornado Warnings in 1999

Tornado Warning 3, NWS Memphis, TN

January 17, 1999Craighead County, Poinsett County, Arkansas

NWS Memphis, TN issued this tornado warning at Jan 17, 1999, 4:17 PM CST for Craighead County, Poinsett County, Arkansas. It was in force for 43 min. 4 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, 4:17 PM CST (22:17 UTC)
Expired: Jan 17, 1999, 5:00 PM CST
In force: 43 min
Issued by: NWS Memphis, TN
Area: Whole counties

Counties Craighead County, AR, Poinsett County, AR

What was reported inside it

Time	Report	Where	Remark
Jan 17, 4:45 PM CST	Tornado F0	Weiner, AR	The tornado started just west of Weiner and tracked northeast staying north of Weiner. Several trees and power poles were knocked down.
Jan 17, 4:45 PM CST	Tornado F2	Lake City, AR	The tornado started just southwest of Lake City and tracked northeast reaching the northwest corner of Lake City and then continued northeast. Two homes were destroyed and five others were damaged in Lake City. An electrical substation was badly damaged. Seve
Jan 17, 4:55 PM CST	Hail 1	Lepanto, AR
Jan 17, 4:55 PM CST	Hail 1	Rivervale, AR	Hail ranged in size from dimes near Lepanto to quarters around Rivervale.

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, 10.3 hours before the alert went out and 116 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-p

Temperature in red, dew point in green, the mixed-layer parcel dashed.

Hodograph

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: 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

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

000 
TTAA00 KMEM 172216 RRA
TORMEM
ARC031-111-172300-

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
TORNADO WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MEMPHIS TN
417 PM CST SUN JAN 17 1999


THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN MEMPHIS HAS ISSUED A

* TORNADO WARNING FOR...
  CRAIGHEAD COUNTY IN NORTHEASTERN ARKANSAS
  POINSETT COUNTY IN NORTHEASTERN ARKANSAS

* UNTIL 500 PM CST

* AT 411 PM CST... DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A LINE OF SEVERE
  THUNDERSTORMS FROM JONESBORO..SOUTHWEST TOWARD NEWPORT. TORNADOES
  ARE POSSIBLE THROUGHOUT THIS LINE. THESE STORMS WERE MOVING
  NORTHEAST AT 30 MPH.

.THIS IS A DANGEROUS STORM. IF YOU ARE IN ITS PATH YOU SHOULD
PREPARE FOR DAMAGING WIND IN EXCESS OF 55 MPH...LARGE HAIL...AND
DEADLY LIGHTNING. PEOPLE OUTSIDE SHOULD MOVE TO A PLACE OF SAFETY...
PREFERABLY INSIDE A STRONG BUILDING BUT STAY AWAY FROM 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, Jan 17, 2:00 PM CST, 2 hours 17 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, 3:20 PM CST	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	MEG	Randolph	50 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, 4:19 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

Tornado Warnings in Arkansas, 1999 Every tornado warning in 1999 Tornadoes 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.