Alert archive / Arkansas / Tornado Warnings in 1999

Tornado Warning 14, NWS Tulsa, OK

April 3, 1999Crawford County, Washington County, Arkansas

NWS Tulsa, OK issued this tornado warning at Apr 3, 1999, 3:37 AM CST for Crawford County, Washington County, Arkansas. It was in force for 23 min. No storm report in the archive falls inside the area while it was in force.

The area

The outline the Iowa Environmental Mesonet reconstructed for it; the warning itself named whole counties.

The facts

Issued
Apr 3, 1999, 3:37 AM CST (09:37 UTC)
Expired
Apr 3, 1999, 4:00 AM CST
In force
23 min
Issued by
NWS Tulsa, OK
Area
Whole counties; the outline is the Mesonet’s reconstruction

Counties Crawford County, AR, Washington County, AR

The radar

The Western Arkansas radar (KSRX), 53 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 09:39 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 00:00Z, 9.6 hours before the alert went out and 134 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 1999-04-03Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 862 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 00:00Z on 1999-04-03The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 135 square meters per square second.19395878Sfc1 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
862 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-76 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
1523 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
32 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
135 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
272 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.2
Supercell composite
4.4

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

999 
WFUS54 KTSA 030938 RRA
TORTUL
ARC033-143-031000-

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
TORNADO WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TULSA OK
337 AM CST SAT APR 3 1999

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN TULSA HAS ISSUED A

* TORNADO WARNING FOR
  NORTHEAST CRAWFORD COUNTY IN NORTHWEST ARKANSAS
  SOUTHEAST WASHINGTON COUNTY IN NORTHWEST ARKANSAS

* UNTIL 400 AM CST

* AT 337 AM CST...RADAR INDICATED A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WITH STRONG
  ROTATION 2 MILES EAST OF CHESTER. MOVING NORTHEAST AT 20 MPH...THIS
  DANGEROUS STORM COULD PRODUCE A TORNADO AT ANY TIME.

* SOME LOCATIONS NEAR THE PATH OF THIS STORM INCLUDE...  CHESTER...
  MOUNTAINBURG AND WINSLOW

IN ADDITION TO THE THREAT OF A TORNADO...LARGE HAIL AND DAMAGING
STRAIGHT LINE WINDS CAN BE EXPECTED WITH THIS STORM. GO TO A SAFE
PLACE NOW

LAT...LON 3569 9428 3556 9413 3573 9393 3594 9397

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.

NWS Tulsa, OK wrote its last area forecast discussion before this tornado warning went out at Apr 3, 12:53 AM CST, 2 hours 44 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Apr 3, 12:53 AM CST, 2 hours 44 minutes before
EASTERN OKLAHOMA/NORTHWEST ARKANSAS FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TULSA OK
1253 AM CST SAT APR 3 1999

JUST UPDATED ZONES TO ADD NEW WW HEADLINE TO APPROPRIATE ZONES.  ALSO
INCREASED OVERNIGHT LOWS AND INCREASED POPS IN THE ZONES WITH THE
WATCH GIVEN SOLID NATURE OF THE LINE WHICH WILL APPROACH FROM THE
WEST BEFORE SUNRISE. LATEST SURFACE ANALYSIS SHOWS LARGEST PRESSURE
FALLS AND THE LOWEST LIFTED INDICES SOUTH ALONG THE RED
RIVER...THOUGH MODERATE INSTABILITIES AND PRESSURE FALLS EXTEND
NORTHEASTWARD ALL THE WAY INTO CENTRAL MO.

MORE BETWEEN 400 AND 500 AM.

FCSTID = 22

.TUL...
OK...SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH UNTIL 600 AM CST SATURDAY FOR ZONES
OKZ054>056...OKTZ059>061...OKZ064>066.

AR...NONE.

In the hours before

Local storm report, Apr 3, 3:16 AM CST, 21 minutes before
PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TULSA OK
416 AM CST SAT APR 03 1999

TIME(CST)  .....CITY LOCATION..... STATE  ...EVENT/REMARKS...
           ....COUNTY LOCATION....

0306 AM 4   BRISTOW                   OK   60 MPH TSTM GUST
04/03/99   CREEK
Local storm report, Apr 3, 3:18 AM CST, 19 minutes before
PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TULSA OK
418 AM CST SAT APR 03 1999

TIME(CST)  .....CITY LOCATION..... STATE  ...EVENT/REMARKS...
           ....COUNTY LOCATION....

0306 AM :   MANNFORD                  OK   60 MPH TSTM GUST
04/03/99   CREEK

0306 AM    MANNFORD                  OK   .75 INCH HAIL
04/03/99   CREEK
Local storm report, Apr 3, 3:21 AM CST, 16 minutes before
STORM REPORT CORRECTED                ...CORRECTED FOR TIME...
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TULSA, OK
321 AM CST SAT APR 03 1999

TIME(CST)  .....CITY LOCATION..... STATE  ...EVENT/REMARKS...
           ....COUNTY LOCATION....

0306 AM    MANNFORD                  OK   60 MPH TSTM GUST
04/03/99   CREEK

0306 AM    MANNFORD                  OK   .75 INCH HAIL
04/03/99   CREEK

The office that day

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

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Apr 3, 2:47 AM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningTSACrawford, Franklin, Sebastian43 min
Apr 3, 3:10 AM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningTSACrawford, Madison, Washington65 min
Apr 3, 3:53 AM CSTTornado WarningTSAMadison52 min
Apr 3, 4:44 AM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningTSAMadison31 min
Apr 3, 6:39 AM CSTFlash Flood WarningTSACrawford, Madison, Washington2 hr
Apr 3, 6:39 AM CSTFlash Flood WarningTSACrawford, Madison, Washington66 min
Apr 3, 6:59 AM CSTFlash Flood WarningTSASebastian3 hr
Apr 3, 7:42 AM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningTSASebastian48 min
Apr 3, 7:47 AM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningTSAFranklin43 min
Apr 3, 1:35 PM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningTSACarroll40 min
Apr 3, 1:55 PM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningTSAMadison35 min

Nearby

Tornado Warnings in Arkansas, 1999Every tornado warning in 1999Tornadoes 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; the sounding from the Mesonet's radiosonde archive; radar from the NEXRAD Level II archive.