Alert archive / Arkansas / Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in 2002

Severe Thunderstorm Warning 314, NWS Little Rock, AR

December 18, 2002Garland County, Arkansas

NWS Little Rock, AR issued this severe thunderstorm warning at Dec 18, 2002, 3:01 PM CST for Garland County, Arkansas. It was in force for 29 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
Dec 18, 2002, 3:01 PM CST (21:01 UTC)
Expired
Dec 18, 2002, 3:30 PM CST
In force
29 min
Issued by
NWS Little Rock, AR
Area
Counties, with a storm outline in the text

County Garland County, AR

The watch it was issued in

The SPC watch in force over the same counties when this warning went out.

IssuedProductOfficeLasted
Dec 18, 1:10 PM CSTTornado WatchSPC8 hr

The nearest sounding before it

Shreveport, LA (KSHV), launched 12:00Z, 9.0 hours before the alert went out and 240 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, Shreveport, LA at 12:00Z on 2002-12-18Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 193 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, Shreveport, LA at 12:00Z on 2002-12-18The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 345 square meters per square second.1939587897Sfc1 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
193 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-333 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
639 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
46 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
345 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
511 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.0
Supercell composite
0.0

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

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 Little Rock, AR wrote its last area forecast discussion before this severe thunderstorm warning went out at Dec 18, 10:33 AM CST, 4 hours 28 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Dec 18, 10:33 AM CST, 4 hours 28 minutes before
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LITTLE ROCK AR
1033 AM CST WED DEC 18 2002

AM SENDING OUT AN UPDATE TO ADJUST MAXES UP A LITTLE. ALSO ADJUSTED
THE HOURLY GRIDS TO BETTER FIT TEMPERATURE TRENDS. GRAPHICS AND
GRIDS OUT. TEXT PRODUCTS OUT SHORTLY.

FCSTID =   57

.LZK...TORNADO WATCH UNTIL 1 PM FOR ARZ003>007-012>015-021>023-
030>031-037>039.

..........PREV DISCUSSION 305 AM CST WED DEC 18 2002..........

FORECAST LOOKING A LITTLE OMINOUS DURING THE AFTERNOON HOURS TODAY
INTO TONIGHT. COLD FRONT WILL PUSH INTO THE STATE FROM THE
PLAINS...WITH UPPER TROUGH BECOMING MORE IN PHASE WITH FRONT
TONIGHT. AS THE PHASING OCCURS...THUNDERSTORM DEVELOPMENT WILL OCCUR
IN AN ALREADY WARM AND UNSTABLE ENVIRONMENT.

IN THE SHORT TERM...MOISTURE LOOKS RATHER SHALLOW IN FORECAST
SOUNDINGS AND SOME CAPPING ALOFT WILL PREVENT ANY SIGNIFICANT
THUNDERSTORM DEVELOPMENT FOR AWHILE. HOWEVER...HEADING INTO THE
AFTERNOON HOURS...CAPPING BECOMES MINIMAL AND MOISTURE DEEPENS. DATA
KEYING ON MAIN THUNDERSTORM DEVELOPMENT BY THIS EVENING IN ABOUT THE
SOUTHEAST HALF OF THE STATE.

QUITE A BIT OF WIND ENERGY TO PLAY WITH...AND SHEAR RATHER
SIGNIFICANT. GIVEN THIS...SPC NOTING THAT TORNADOES ARE POSSIBLE...
AND WOULD HAVE TO AGREE. THIS IS ESPECIALLY TRUE WITH THE STORMS
MOSTLY SURFACE BASED.

ANYWAY...HAVE MENTIONED THE POSSIBILITY OF SEVERE STORMS IN THE
FORECAST TODAY/TONIGHT WITH WELL ABOVE NORMAL TEMPERATURES AND
BREEZY CONDITIONS.

FRONT WILL PUSH EAST OF THE STATE ON THURSDAY. AFTER A LINGERING
CHANCE OF SHOWERS IN THE MORNING...LOOKS LIKE CLOUDS WILL BREAK UP
DURING THE AFTERNOON WITH COOLER/DRIER AIR SPREADING ACROSS THE
STATE FROM THE WEST.

LOOKING AHEAD...DRY AND COOLER ON FRIDAY. A WEAK SYSTEM WILL MOVE
MOSTLY TO THE NORTH OF ARKANSAS ON SATURDAY...BUT MENTIONED A SLIGHT
CHANCE OF SHOWERS AS IT GOES BY. MOSTLY SUNNY AND COOL ON
SUNDAY.

A MORE SIGNIFICANT SYSTEM WILL DEVELOP ALONG THE GULF COAST EARLY
NEXT WEEK. CLOUDS WILL INCREASE WITH A CHANCE OF RAIN
MONDAY/TUESDAY.

FCSTID =   46
HRO   64  42  57  34 /  50  40  10  10
LIT   70  50  64  40 /  50  60  30  10
HOT   69  48  63  39 /  50  40  10  10
PBF   72  52  66  41 /  30  80  30  10

.LZK...NONE.
Hazardous weather outlook, Dec 18, 1:20 PM CST, 1 hour 41 minutes before
ARZ003>007-012>016-021>025-030>034-037>047-052>057-062>069-191100-

HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK...UPDATED
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LITTLE ROCK AR
120 PM CST WED DEC 18 2002

THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR A LARGE PART OF ARKANSAS.

.DAY ONE...THIS AFTERNOON AND TONIGHT

THERE IS A MODERATE RISK OF SEVERE WEATHER FOR THIS AFTERNOON AND
EVENING ACROSS MOST OF WEST-CENTRAL...CENTRAL AND SOUTHERN ARKANSAS.
THERE IS A SLIGHT RISK OF SEVERE WEATHER ELSEWHERE THIS AFTERNOON
AND TONIGHT

THE OVERALL SEVERE WEATHER THREAT IS EXPECTED TO INCREASE DURING THE
AFTERNOON HOURS...AND WILL BE MAXIMIZED DURING THE LATE AFTERNOON
AND EARLY EVENING HOURS...ESPECIALLY ACROSS AREAS ALONG AND SOUTH OF
INTERSTATE 40.

AN UPPER LEVEL LOW WILL CONTINUE TO APPROACH ARKANSAS FROM THE
SOUTHWEST. THIS WILL RESULT IN ADDITIONAL STRONG TO SEVERE
THUNDERSTORM DEVELOPMENT OVER CENTRAL AND SOUTHERN ARKANSAS.
DAMAGING WINDS...LARGE HAIL...AND TORNADOES WILL BE POSSIBLE WITH
THESE STORMS. ISOLATED THUNDERSTORMS COULD DEVELOP AHEAD OF THE
LINE...AND ANY SUCH STORMS COULD PRODUCE TORNADOES AS WELL AS LARGE
HAIL AND DAMAGING WINDS. THESE THUNDERSTORMS WILL MOVE QUICKLY
NORTHEAST ACROSS EASTERN ARKANSAS DURING THE EVENING AND SHOULD BE
OUT OF THE STATE AROUND MIDNIGHT OR SHORTLY THEREAFTER. A CHANCE OF
RAIN AND WEAKER THUNDERSTORMS WILL CONTINUE FOR THE REST OF THE
NIGHT.

.DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...THURSDAY THROUGH TUESDAY

NO HAZARDOUS WEATHER IS EXPECTED AT THIS TIME.

.SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT...

SPOTTER ACTIVATION WILL BE LIKELY IN MOST OF ARKANSAS THIS AFTERNOON
OR THIS EVENING.

STAY TUNED TO NOAA WEATHER RADIO AND OTHER LOCAL MEDIA FOR FURTHER
DETAILS OR UPDATES.

FOR ADDITIONAL WEATHER INFORMATION...INCLUDING WARNINGS AND
STATEMENTS...VISIT THE LITTLE ROCK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE WEB SITE
AT HTTP://WWW.SRH.WEATHER.GOV/LZK

44

In the hours before

Local storm report, Dec 18, 9:52 AM CST, 5 hours 9 minutes before
PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LITTLE ROCK AR
952 AM CST WED DEC 18 2002

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

0935 AM    HARRISON                  AR   .75 INCH HAIL
12/18/02   BOONE                          DIME SIZE HAIL COVERING
                                          THE GROUND. REPORTED BY
                                          MEDIA.

28

The office that day

Everything else NWS Little Rock, AR issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Dec 18, 9:34 AM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningLZKBoone31 min
Dec 18, 1:33 PM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningLZKPerry32 min
Dec 18, 1:42 PM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningLZKGarland43 min
Dec 18, 2:08 PM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningLZKPerry, Saline27 min
Dec 18, 2:35 PM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningLZKPerry, Pulaski, Saline45 min
Dec 18, 3:06 PM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningLZKFaulkner39 min
Dec 18, 3:17 PM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningLZKPerry, Pulaski, Saline33 min
Dec 18, 3:21 PM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningLZKPerry, Pulaski, Saline29 min
Dec 18, 3:30 PM CSTTornado WarningLZKFaulkner30 min
Dec 18, 3:31 PM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningLZKClark, Garland, Hot Spring, Pike44 min
Dec 18, 3:44 PM CSTTornado WarningLZKGarland31 min
Dec 18, 3:47 PM CSTTornado WarningLZKHot Spring28 min
Dec 18, 3:51 PM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningLZKPulaski, Saline34 min
Dec 18, 3:51 PM CSTTornado WarningLZKCleburne, White29 min
Dec 18, 3:58 PM CSTTornado WarningLZKSaline47 min
Dec 18, 4:09 PM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningLZKFaulkner61 min
Dec 18, 4:15 PM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningLZKGrant45 min
Dec 18, 4:17 PM CSTTornado WarningLZKFaulkner, White43 min
Dec 18, 4:18 PM CSTTornado WarningLZKGarland27 min
Dec 18, 4:19 PM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningLZKArkansas, Jefferson31 min
Dec 18, 4:19 PM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningLZKFaulkner51 min
Dec 18, 4:24 PM CSTTornado WarningLZKPulaski46 min
Dec 18, 4:27 PM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningLZKIndependence43 min
Dec 18, 4:40 PM CSTTornado WarningLZKGrant, Jefferson30 min
Dec 18, 4:49 PM CSTTornado WarningLZKIndependence, Jackson31 min
Dec 18, 4:54 PM CSTFlash Flood WarningLZKGarland3 hr
Dec 18, 4:58 PM CSTTornado WarningLZKLonoke47 min
Dec 18, 5:02 PM CSTTornado WarningLZKLonoke, White43 min
Dec 18, 5:03 PM CSTTornado WarningLZKFaulkner47 min
Dec 18, 5:10 PM CSTFlash Flood WarningLZKSaline3 hr
Dec 18, 5:11 PM CSTTornado WarningLZKDrew44 min
Dec 18, 5:21 PM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningLZKClark, Pike44 min
Dec 18, 5:22 PM CSTTornado WarningLZKPrairie58 min
Dec 18, 5:29 PM CSTFlash Flood WarningLZKClark, Pike3 hr
Dec 18, 5:34 PM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningLZKOuachita46 min
Dec 18, 5:41 PM CSTTornado WarningLZKOuachita29 min
Dec 18, 5:46 PM CSTTornado WarningLZKJackson, White, Woodruff39 min
Dec 18, 5:50 PM CSTTornado WarningLZKDesha45 min
Dec 18, 5:51 PM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningLZKGarland, Hot Spring44 min
Dec 18, 5:53 PM CSTTornado WarningLZKMonroe27 min

Nearby

Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in Arkansas, 2002Every severe thunderstorm warning in 2002

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.