Alert archive / Arkansas / Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in 2002

Severe Thunderstorm Warning 273, NWS Tulsa, OK

August 25, 2002Franklin County, Sebastian County, Arkansas

NWS Tulsa, OK issued this severe thunderstorm warning at Aug 25, 2002, 2:50 AM CDT for Franklin County, Sebastian County, Arkansas. It was in force for 40 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: Aug 25, 2002, 2:50 AM CDT (07:50 UTC)
Expired: Aug 25, 2002, 3:30 AM CDT
In force: 40 min
Issued by: NWS Tulsa, OK
Area: Counties, with a storm outline in the text

Counties Franklin County, AR, Sebastian County, AR

The radar

The Western Arkansas radar (KSRX), 26 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 07:51 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
Aug 25, 2:54 AM CDT	Thunderstorm Wind 61 E	Ft Smith, AR	Thunderstorm winds estimated at 70 miles an hour blew down trees in the north part of Fort Smith. The trees blocked several roads.
Aug 25, 2:55 AM CDT	Thunderstorm Wind 61 E	Charleston, AR	Thunderstorm winds estimated at 70 miles an hour blew down a few trees.
Aug 25, 3:00 AM CDT	Thunderstorm Wind 61 E	Charleston, AR	Thunderstorm winds estimated at 70 miles an hour damaged a few poultry houses.
Aug 25, 3:15 AM CDT	Thunderstorm Wind 61 E	Branch, AR	Thunderstorm winds estimated at 70 miles an hour blew down a few trees.

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 nearest sounding before it

Springfield, MO (KSGF), launched 00:00Z, 7.8 hours before the alert went out and 174 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: 60 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN: -160 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL: 1536 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear: 42 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity: 59 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity: 204 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 Tulsa, OK wrote its last area forecast discussion before this severe thunderstorm warning went out at Aug 24, 9:32 PM CDT, 5 hours 18 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Aug 24, 9:32 PM CDT, 5 hours 18 minutes before

EASTERN OKLAHOMA/NORTHWEST ARKANSAS FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TULSA OKLAHOMA
930 PM SAT AUG 24 2002

TRICKY FIRST PERIOD AS FAR AS POPS GO. SURFACE BOUNDARY THIS
EVENING EXTENDS FROM WEST CENTRAL TO SE OK. LOOKS LIKE THE MAIN
PLAYER FOR SRN ZONES TONIGHT MAY BE STORMS CURRENTLY ACROSS THE TX
PANHANDLE/NW OK THAT HAD DEVELOPED IN THE VICINITY OF THE BOUNDARY
AND ARE PUSHING TO THE EAST SOUTHEAST. OTHER STORMS...MORE ELEVATED
IN NATURE HAVE DEVELOPED ACROSS KANSAS AND MISSOURI THOUGH CURRENTLY
REMAIN NORTH OF THE FA. WILL LEAVE POPS AS THEY ARE GIVEN CURRENT
RADAR TRENDS AND PROXIMITY OF BOUNDARY. CURRENTLY ADVERTISED LOWS
LOOK REASONABLE. WILL NOT ISSUE AN UPDATE AT THIS TIME...THOUGH WILL
MONITOR TEMPERATURE AND CONVECTIVE TRENDS FOR POSSIBLE UPDATE
TOWARDS MIDNIGHT.

FORECAST ID= 23

.TSA...
AR...NONE.
OK...NONE.

In the hours before

Local storm report, Aug 25, 1:13 AM CDT, 1 hour 37 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TULSA OK
113 AM CDT SUN AUG 25 2002

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

1030 PM    SKEDEE                    OK   .88 INCH HAIL
08/24/02   PAWNEE                         REPORTED BY
                                          PUBLIC

1145 PM    OILTON                    OK   .88 INCH HAIL
08/24/02   CREEK                          REPORTED BY
                                          PUBLIC

1220 AM    OILTON                    OK   1.00 INCH HAIL
08/25/02   CREEK                          REPORTED BY
                                          SPOTTERS

1220 AM    6 ESE OILTON              OK   66 MPH TSTM WIND GUST
08/25/02   CREEK                          RECORDED BY OKLAHOMA
                                          MESONET

1240 AM    DRUMRIGHT                 OK   WIND DAMAGE
08/25/02   CREEK                          TREES BLOWN DOWN.
                                          REPORTED
                                          BY OKLAHOMA HIGHWAY
                                          PATROL

1258 AM    5 NW BRISTOW              OK   1.25 INCH HAIL
08/25/02   CREEK                          REPORTED BY
                                          SPOTTERS

Local storm report, Aug 25, 1:51 AM CDT, 59 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TULSA OK
151 AM CDT SUN AUG 25 2002

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

0128 AM    1 N DEPEW                 OK   1.75 INCH HAIL
08/25/02   CREEK                          REPORTED BY
                                          SPOTTERS

Local storm report, Aug 25, 2:42 AM CDT, 8 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TULSA OK
242 AM CDT SUN AUG 25 2002

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

0232 AM    ALMA                      AR   70 MPH TSTM WIND GUST
08/25/02   CRAWFORD                       REPORTED BY SPOTTERS

The office that day

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

Issued	Product	Office	Counties	Lasted
Aug 24, 10:09 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	TSA	Osage, Pawnee	81 min
Aug 24, 11:14 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	TSA	Rogers, Washington	46 min
Aug 24, 11:19 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	TSA	Creek	41 min
Aug 24, 11:59 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	TSA	Creek	46 min
Aug 25, 12:02 AM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	TSA	Mayes	43 min
Aug 25, 12:56 AM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	TSA	Creek	49 min
Aug 25, 1:32 AM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	TSA	Creek, Okfuskee	43 min
Aug 25, 2:02 AM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	TSA	Crawford	43 min
Aug 25, 2:17 AM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	TSA	Sebastian	43 min
Aug 25, 2:25 AM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	TSA	Franklin	35 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.