Alert archive / Arkansas / Tornado Warnings in 2009

Tornado Warning 47, NWS Little Rock, AR

October 29, 2009Ouachita County, Arkansas

NWS Little Rock, AR issued this tornado warning at Oct 29, 2009, 6:00 PM CDT for Ouachita County, Arkansas. It was in force for 45 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: Oct 29, 2009, 6:00 PM CDT (23:00 UTC)
Expired: Oct 29, 2009, 6:45 PM CDT
In force: 45 min
Issued by: NWS Little Rock, AR
Area: Storm-based polygon

County Ouachita County, AR

The radar

The Little Rock radar (KLZK), 150 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 22:59 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 watch it was issued in

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

Issued	Product	Office	Lasted
Oct 29, 1:51 PM CDT	Tornado Watch	SPC	7 hr

The nearest sounding before it

Shreveport, LA (KSHV), launched 12:00Z, 11.0 hours before the alert went out and 148 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: 387 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN: -88 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL: 453 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear: 35 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity: 350 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity: 422 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter: 0.0
Supercell composite: 2.7

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

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 Little Rock, AR wrote its last area forecast discussion before this tornado warning went out at Oct 29, 2:27 PM CDT, 3 hours 33 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Oct 29, 2:27 PM CDT, 3 hours 33 minutes before

AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LITTLE ROCK AR
227 PM CDT THU OCT 29 2009

.SHORT TERM...TONIGHT THROUGH SUNDAY NIGHT
COLD FRONT CURRENTLY MAKING ITS WAY ACROSS EASTERN OKLAHOMA...WITH
SHOWERS/STORMS FIRING ALONG AND AHEAD OF IT. AT THE SAME TIME...
WARM SECTOR HAS BEEN EXPANDING OVER THE FORECAST AREA AS THE WARM
FRONT HAS ADVANCED NORTHWARD THIS AFTERNOON. INCREASING
INSTABILITY OVER SOUTHERN ARKANSAS HAS ALLOWED SHOWERS/STORMS TO
BECOME ACTIVE OVER THAT AREA AS WELL.

IT/S QUESTIONABLE HOW FAR NORTH STRONG STORM THREAT WILL MAKE
IT...AS 18Z SOUNDING FROM KLZK CONTINUES TO SHOW A LOW LEVEL
CAPPING INVERSION. BUT WITH INCREASED WARM ADVECTION IN THE LOW
LEVELS...THIS WILL CONTINUE TO ERODE BEFORE SUNDOWN. AT THIS
POINT...THINK THE SEVERE THREAT WILL MOSTLY BE SOUTH OF I-40...
AND LARGELY ISOLATED AT BEST...GIVEN LITTLE OPPORTUNITY FOR
SIGNIFICANT SURFACE-BASED DESTABILIZATION. THREAT SHOULD WIND DOWN
SHORTLY AFTER SUNSET.

BIG FOCUS WILL BE HEAVY RAINFALL THREAT. SLOW MOVING FRONT AND THE
SYSTEMS AHEAD OF IT WILL DUMP AS MUCH AS FIVE TO SEVEN INCHES OF
RAINFALL OVER MUCH OF CENTRAL AND EASTERN ARKANSAS...WITH TWO TO
FOUR INCH AMOUNTS POSSIBLE OVER THE WEST. WILL CONTINUE THE FLASH
FLOOD WATCH THROUGH FRIDAY NIGHT...THOUGH PARTS OF IT MAY BE
DROPPED EARLIER...AS MODELS INDICATING THINGS WILL BE WINDING DOWN
ACROSS THE WEST BY LATE FRIDAY AFTERNOON/EARLY FRIDAY EVENING.

UPPER LOW WILL PUSH REMAINING MOISTURE EAST OF THE REGION FRIDAY
NIGHT/EARLY SATURDAY...WITH DRY WEATHER RETURNING BY SATURDAY
AFTERNOON. HIGH PRESSURE WILL PUSH IN BEHIND THE FRONT...WITH
TEMPERATURES MODERATING THROUGH SUNDAY.
&&

.LONG TERM...MONDAY THROUGH THURSDAY
A ZONAL FLOW WILL DEVELOP EARLY IN THE PERIOD ACROSS MUCH OF THE
U.S. SURFACE HIGH PRESSURE WILL BUILD THROUGH THE MID SOUTH... WILL
PROMOTE DRY CONDITIONS.
&&

.PRELIMINARY POINT TEMPS/POPS...
BATESVILLE AR     54  54  41  59 / 100 100  60  20
CAMDEN AR         57  58  41  66 / 100 100  50  20
HARRISON AR       49  53  39  58 / 100  60  30  10
HOT SPRINGS AR    56  58  40  63 / 100  90  40  20
LITTLE ROCK   AR  57  59  42  63 / 100 100  50  20
MONTICELLO AR     56  59  43  63 / 100 100  70  20
MOUNT IDA AR      51  57  37  62 / 100  80  30  20
MOUNTAIN HOME AR  52  57  38  59 / 100  80  40  20
NEWPORT AR        55  56  43  60 / 100 100  70  20
PINE BLUFF AR     58  60  43  63 / 100 100  60  20
RUSSELLVILLE AR   54  57  37  60 / 100  80  30  20
SEARCY AR         58  57  40  60 / 100 100  60  20
STUTTGART AR      57  59  44  61 / 100 100  70  20
&&

.LZK WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES...
FLASH FLOOD WATCH THROUGH SATURDAY MORNING FOR ARKANSAS-BAXTER-
BOONE-BRADLEY-CALHOUN-CLARK-CLEBURNE-CLEVELAND-CONWAY-DALLAS-
DESHA-DREW-FAULKNER-FULTON-GARLAND-GRANT-HOT SPRING-INDEPENDENCE-
IZARD-JACKSON-JEFFERSON-JOHNSON-LINCOLN-LOGAN-LONOKE-MARION-
MONROE-MONTGOMERY-NEWTON-OUACHITA-PERRY-PIKE-POLK-POPE-PRAIRIE-
PULASKI-SALINE-SCOTT-SEARCY-SHARP-STONE-VAN BUREN-WHITE-WOODRUFF-
YELL.
&&

SHORT TERM...57 / LONG TERM...55

Hazardous weather outlook, Oct 29, 3:32 PM CDT, 2 hours 28 minutes before

HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LITTLE ROCK AR
332 PM CDT THU OCT 29 2009

ARZ003>007-012>016-021>025-030>034-037>047-052>057-062>069-301000-
ARKANSAS-BAXTER-BOONE-BRADLEY-CALHOUN-CLARK-CLEBURNE-CLEVELAND-
CONWAY-DALLAS-DESHA-DREW-FAULKNER-FULTON-GARLAND-GRANT-HOT SPRING-
INDEPENDENCE-IZARD-JACKSON-JEFFERSON-JOHNSON-LINCOLN-LOGAN-LONOKE-
MARION-MONROE-MONTGOMERY-NEWTON-OUACHITA-PERRY-PIKE-POLK-POPE-
PRAIRIE-PULASKI-SALINE-SCOTT-SEARCY-SHARP-STONE-VAN BUREN-WHITE-
WOODRUFF-YELL-
332 PM CDT THU OCT 29 2009

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

.DAY ONE...THIS AFTERNOON AND TONIGHT

SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS WILL CONTINUE TO INCREASE AND OVERSPREAD
THE AREA THIS AFTERNOON AS LOW PRESSURE MOVES SLOWLY TOWARDS
ARKANSAS FROM THE SOUTHERN PLAINS. INITIALLY...THE ACTIVITY WILL BE
ASSOCIATED WITH A WARM FRONT LIFTING NORTHWARD ACROSS ARKANSAS.
LOCALLY HEAVY RAINFALL WILL BE POSSIBLE THIS AFTERNOON THROUGH
TONIGHT. AS A RESULT...A FLASH FLOOD WATCH REMAINS IN AFFECT FOR THE
AREA THIS AFTERNOON AND TONIGHT. A TORNADO WATCH IS IN EFFECT
THROUGH 9 PM FOR MUCH OF CENTRAL AND SOUTH ARKANSAS. DAMAGING WINDS
AND TORNADOES WILL BE POSSIBLE THROUGH THIS EVENING.

A FEW STRONG OR SEVERE STORMS WILL BE POSSIBLE TODAY...WITH HAIL AND
DAMAGING WINDS THE MAIN CONCERNS.

BY TONIGHT...THE LOW PRESSURE SYSTEM WILL BEGIN LIFTING TO THE NORTH
OF ARKANSAS. MEANWHILE...A COLD FRONT TRAILING SOUTHWARD FROM THE
LOW...WILL PUSH INTO WESTERN ARKANSAS THIS EVENING AND EVENTUALLY
INTO THE CENTRAL PART OF THE STATE LATE TONIGHT. A LINE OF STORMS IS
FORECAST TO FORM ALONG THE FRONT AS IT TRACKS EASTWARD TONIGHT.

SEVERE STORMS WILL BE POSSIBLE AS THE FRONT MOVES ACROSS THE WESTERN
PART OF THE STATE TONIGHT. DAMAGING WINDS WILL BE THE MAIN THREAT
FROM THIS LINE OF STORMS. WITH THE GROUND WELL SATURATED...IT WILL
NOT TAKE MUCH WIND TO BRING DOWN TREES. ISOLATED TORNADOES CANNOT BE
RULED OUT AS WELL.

.DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...FRIDAY THROUGH WEDNESDAY

THE AFOREMENTIONED COLD FRONT WILL CONTINUE WORKING ACROSS THE
EASTERN PART OF ARKANSAS ON FRIDAY...WITH SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS
PERSISTING. ELSEHWERE...WIDESPREAD RAIN WILL LINGER FOR MUCH OF THE
DAY BEHIND THE FRONT.

ANY ADDITIONAL HEAVY RAINFALL WILL ONLY INCREASE THE THREAT OF FLASH
FLOODING AND RIVER FLOODING. THE FLASH FLOOD WATCH WILL REMAIN IN
EFFECT THROUGH FRIDAY NIGHT FOR MUCH OF ARKANSAS. RAINFALL TOTALS
ACROSS THE WATCH AREA ARE EXPECTED TO RANGE BETWEEN 2 AND 4
INCHES...WITH PARTS OF CENTRAL AND EASTERN ARKANSAS POSSIBLY SEEING
UPWARDS OF 6 INCHES OR MORE BEFORE THE RAIN TAPERS OFF FRIDAY NIGHT.

THE STORM SYSTEM WILL DEPART TO THE EAST OF THE REGION BY SATURDAY.
HIGH PRESSURE WILL FOLLOW...BRINGING SOME MUCH NEEDED DRIER
CONDITIONS TO THE MID SOUTH FOR THE UPCOMING WEEKEND AND THE FIRST
HALF OF NEXT WEEK.

.SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT...

SPOTTER ACTIVATION COULD BE NEEDED LATER TODAY AND TONIGHT.

&&

VISIT NWS LITTLE ROCK ON THE WEB. GO TO HTTP://WEATHER.GOV AND
CLICK ON CENTRAL ARKANSAS.

44

In the hours before

Local storm report, Oct 29, 3:29 PM CDT, 2 hours 31 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LITTLE ROCK AR
329 PM CDT THU OCT 29 2009

..TIME...   ...EVENT...      ...CITY LOCATION...     ...LAT.LON...
..DATE...   ....MAG....      ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
            ..REMARKS..

0322 PM     TSTM WND DMG     LOUANN                  33.39N 92.79W
10/29/2009                   OUACHITA           AR   LAW ENFORCEMENT

            POWER LINES WERE BLOWN DOWN ALONG HIGHWAY 7 JUST NORTH OF
            THE UNION COUNTY LINE

&&

57

Local storm report, Oct 29, 3:33 PM CDT, 2 hours 27 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LITTLE ROCK AR
333 PM CDT THU OCT 29 2009

..TIME...   ...EVENT...      ...CITY LOCATION...     ...LAT.LON...
..DATE...   ....MAG....      ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
            ..REMARKS..

0322 PM     TSTM WND DMG     LOUANN                  33.39N 92.79W
10/29/2009                   OUACHITA           AR   LAW ENFORCEMENT

            TREES WERE BLOWN DOWN NEAR THE JUNCTION OF HIGHWAYS 7 AND
            376.

&&

57

Local storm report, Oct 29, 3:37 PM CDT, 2 hours 23 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LITTLE ROCK AR
337 PM CDT THU OCT 29 2009

..TIME...   ...EVENT...      ...CITY LOCATION...     ...LAT.LON...
..DATE...   ....MAG....      ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
            ..REMARKS..

0325 PM     TSTM WND DMG     FRENCHPORT              33.47N 92.78W
10/29/2009                   OUACHITA           AR   LAW ENFORCEMENT

            TREES WERE BLOWN DOWN...WITH SOME PROPERTY DAMAGE
            REPORTED.

&&

57

Local storm report, Oct 29, 3:48 PM CDT, 2 hours 12 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LITTLE ROCK AR
348 PM CDT THU OCT 29 2009

..TIME...   ...EVENT...      ...CITY LOCATION...     ...LAT.LON...
..DATE...   ....MAG....      ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
            ..REMARKS..

0342 PM     TORNADO          EAST CAMDEN             33.61N 92.74W
10/29/2009                   OUACHITA           AR   LAW ENFORCEMENT

            A TORNADO WAS REPORTED AT EAST CAMDEN AT 342 PM. TREES
            WERE BLOWN DOWN...WITH HIGHWAY 278/274 REPORTED TO BE
            IMPASSABLE.

&&

57

Local storm report, Oct 29, 3:59 PM CDT, 2 hours 1 minute before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LITTLE ROCK AR
359 PM CDT THU OCT 29 2009

..TIME...   ...EVENT...      ...CITY LOCATION...     ...LAT.LON...
..DATE...   ....MAG....      ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
            ..REMARKS..

0340 PM     TSTM WND DMG     EAST CAMDEN             33.61N 92.74W
10/29/2009                   OUACHITA           AR   LAW ENFORCEMENT

            TREES WERE BLOWN DOWN ON THE CAMPUS OF SOUTH ARKANSAS
            TECH.

&&

57

Local storm report, Oct 29, 5:56 PM CDT, 4 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LITTLE ROCK AR
556 PM CDT THU OCT 29 2009

..TIME...   ...EVENT...      ...CITY LOCATION...     ...LAT.LON...
..DATE...   ....MAG....      ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
            ..REMARKS..

0502 PM     TSTM WND DMG     PRAGUE                  34.28N 92.28W
10/29/2009                   GRANT              AR   TRAINED SPOTTER

            TREES AND POWER LINES KNOCKED DOWN ON HWY 270.

&&

225

The office that day

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

Issued	Product	Office	Counties	Lasted
Oct 29, 8:38 AM CDT	River Flood Warning	LZK	Perry	5 days
Oct 29, 9:07 AM CDT	River Flood Warning	LZK	Clark, Hot Spring	49 hr
Oct 29, 9:27 AM CDT	River Flood Warning	LZK	Saline	47 hr
Oct 29, 9:27 AM CDT	River Flood Warning	LZK	Ashley, Bradley, Cleveland, Drew	8 days
Oct 29, 10:20 AM CDT	River Flood Warning	LZK	Randolph	16 days
Oct 29, 10:24 AM CDT	River Flood Warning	LZK	Fulton, Sharp	48 hr
Oct 29, 10:33 AM CDT	River Flood Warning	LZK	Lawrence, Randolph	69 hr
Oct 29, 10:40 AM CDT	River Flood Warning	LZK	Randolph	66 hr
Oct 29, 11:18 AM CDT	River Flood Warning	LZK	Independence	66 hr
Oct 29, 11:28 AM CDT	River Flood Warning	LZK	Prairie, White, Woodruff	21 days
Oct 29, 11:28 AM CDT	River Flood Warning	LZK	Prairie	21 days
Oct 29, 11:33 AM CDT	River Flood Warning	LZK	White	65 hr
Oct 29, 2:08 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	LZK	Bradley, Calhoun, Cleveland, Dallas, Ouachita	37 min
Oct 29, 2:42 PM CDT	River Flood Warning	LZK	Yell	3 days
Oct 29, 3:10 PM CDT	Tornado Warning	LZK	Calhoun, Ouachita	50 min
Oct 29, 3:45 PM CDT	Tornado Warning	LZK	Jefferson	45 min
Oct 29, 3:52 PM CDT	Tornado Warning	LZK	Calhoun, Cleveland, Dallas, Grant, Ouachita	38 min
Oct 29, 4:15 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	LZK	Polk, Scott	45 min
Oct 29, 4:33 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	LZK	Cleveland, Dallas, Grant, Jefferson	42 min
Oct 29, 5:26 PM CDT	Flash Flood Warning	LZK	Calhoun, Clark, Cleveland, Dallas, Grant, Hot Spring and 2 more	4 hr
Oct 29, 5:26 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	LZK	Johnson, Logan, Scott, Yell	49 min
Oct 29, 5:39 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	LZK	Grant, Jefferson, Lonoke, Prairie, Pulaski, Saline	51 min
Oct 29, 5:53 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	LZK	Polk	52 min
Oct 29, 6:02 PM CDT	Tornado Warning	LZK	Lonoke, Pulaski	26 min
Oct 29, 6:18 PM CDT	Flash Flood Warning	LZK	Polk, Scott	3 hr
Oct 29, 6:19 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	LZK	Johnson, Newton, Pope	41 min
Oct 29, 6:30 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	LZK	Logan, Polk, Scott, Yell	45 min
Oct 29, 6:30 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	LZK	Lonoke, Prairie, White, Woodruff	45 min
Oct 29, 6:35 PM CDT	Tornado Warning	LZK	Cleveland, Dallas, Ouachita	40 min
Oct 29, 6:53 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	LZK	Ouachita	37 min

Nearby

Tornado Warnings in Arkansas, 2009 Every tornado warning in 2009 Tornadoes in 2009

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.