Alert archive / Arkansas / Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in 2002

Severe Thunderstorm Warning 72, NWS Memphis, TN

April 30, 2002Lawrence County, Randolph County, Arkansas

NWS Memphis, TN issued this severe thunderstorm warning at Apr 30, 2002, 11:41 AM CDT for Lawrence County, Randolph County, Arkansas. It was in force for 34 min. 2 reports came from inside the area while it was in force.

The area

The outline as issued, with what was reported inside it.

The facts

Issued: Apr 30, 2002, 11:41 AM CDT (16:41 UTC)
Expired: Apr 30, 2002, 12:15 PM CDT
In force: 34 min
Issued by: NWS Memphis, TN
Area: Counties, with a storm outline in the text

Counties Lawrence County, AR, Randolph County, AR

The radar

The Memphis radar (KNQA), 153 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 16:44 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.

What was reported inside it

Time	Report	Where	Remark
Apr 30, 12:10 PM CDT	Thunderstorm Wind 55 E	Walnut Ridge, AR	Several trees were blown down.
Apr 30, 12:25 PM CDT	Hail 0.75	Clover Bend, AR

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.

Did it verify

Not verified. The Iowa Environmental Mesonet's Cow found no qualifying storm report inside this severe thunderstorm warning while it was in force. That is not proof nothing happened: reports are thin where few people live.

Cow counts a report within 15 km of the polygon while the warning was in force: a tornado for a tornado warning; hail of 1 inch or more, a gust of 58 mph or more or wind damage for a severe thunderstorm warning; a flash flood report for a flash flood warning.

The watch it was issued in

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

Issued	Product	Office	Lasted
Apr 30, 9:30 AM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Watch	SPC	6 hr

The nearest sounding before it

Little Rock, AR (KLZK), launched 12:00Z, 4.7 hours before the alert went out and 190 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: 956 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN: -102 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL: 700 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear: 62 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity: 278 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity: 335 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter: 0.0
Supercell composite: 7.8

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

125 
WUUS54 KMEG 301641
SVRMEM
ARC075-121-301715-

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MEMPHIS TN
1141 AM CDT TUE APR 30 2002

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN MEMPHIS HAS ISSUED A

* SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING FOR...
  LAWRENCE COUNTY IN EASTERN ARKANSAS
  RANDOLPH COUNTY IN EASTERN ARKANSAS

* UNTIL 1215 PM CDT.

* AT 1138 AM CDT...WEATHER RADAR INDICATED A LINE OF SEVERE
  THUNDERSTORMS FROM 9 MILES WEST OF RAVENDEN TO SMITHVILLE...MOVING
  EAST AT 50 MPH.

* CITIES IN THE PATH OF THIS STORM THROUGH 1215 PM CDT INCLUDE...
  RAVENDEN...LYNN...
  RAVENDEN SPRINGS...POWHATAN...
  PORTIA...IMBODEN...
  POCAHONTAS...WALNUT RIDGE...
  OKEAN...

.REPORT SEVERE WEATHER TO THE NEAREST LAW ENFORCEMENT AGENCY. THEY
WILL RELAY YOUR REPORT TO THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE FORECAST
OFFICE IN MEMPHIS.

LAT...LON 3636 9151 3597 9135 3597 9084 3632 9082

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 Memphis, TN wrote its last area forecast discussion before this severe thunderstorm warning went out at Apr 30, 2:04 AM CDT, 9 hours 37 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Apr 30, 2:04 AM CDT, 9 hours 37 minutes before

AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MEMPHIS TN
204 AM CDT TUE APR 30 2002

A BROAD RIDGE OVER THE SOUTHERN STATES FROM COAST TO COAST WILL
GRADUALLY SHIFT EASTWARD THIS FORECAST PERIOD. SHORT WAVES AND
IMPULSES WILL RIDE OVER THE RIDGE ACROSS THE CENTRAL PLAINS TO THE
SOUTHEAST. AT THE SURFACE A STATIONARY FRONT DRAPED ACROSS THE
GULF COAST STATES WILL MOVE NORTHWARD AS A WARM FRONT AND BE NORTH
OF THE MID SOUTH BY TONIGHT. WITH SUFFICIENT LOW LEVEL MOISTURE IN
PLACE AND WITH THE HELP OF THE UPPER LEVEL DISTURBANCES THE FRONT
WILL BE THE FOCUS OF THUNDERSTORM ACTIVITY OVER THE MID SOUTH.
MEANWHILE A SURFACE LOW OVER WEST TEXAS THIS MORNING WILL MOVE
EASTWARD AND BE CENTERED OVER NORTHEAST ARKANSAS BY LATE WEDNESDAY.
THE RESULT WILL BE WARM HUMID WEATHER WITH SCATTERED THUNDERSTORMS
CONTINUING TONIGHT AND MAINLY NORTH PORTIONS OF THE MID SOUTH
WEDNESDAY.

.MEG...NONE.

The office that day

Everything else NWS Memphis, TN issued on the same UTC day.

Issued	Product	Office	Counties	Lasted
Apr 30, 9:14 AM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	MEG	St. Francis	31 min
Apr 30, 9:42 AM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	MEG	Crittenden, St. Francis	33 min
Apr 30, 11:16 AM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	MEG	Randolph	29 min
Apr 30, 11:59 AM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	MEG	Craighead	31 min
Apr 30, 12:10 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	MEG	Lawrence	35 min
Apr 30, 12:13 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	MEG	Greene	32 min
Apr 30, 12:25 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	MEG	Craighead, Poinsett	35 min
Apr 30, 12:54 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	MEG	Mississippi, Poinsett	36 min
Apr 30, 1:08 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	MEG	Cross	37 min
Apr 30, 1:45 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	MEG	Crittenden	30 min

Nearby

Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in Arkansas, 2002 Every 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; verification from NCEI's Storm Data; the sounding from the Mesonet's radiosonde archive; radar from the NEXRAD Level II archive.