A strongly baroclinic, southwest-northeast oriented front pulled up stationary over eastern Oklahoma on Jan. 4-5.
Every event with a place to put it; 3 filed by county or forecast zone are drawn at its center, in a lighter ring. Tap one for its entry below.
Deaths and injuries are direct and indirect together, as the offices filed them. Damage is property and crops in the dollars of the year, not adjusted for inflation, and only where an office estimated it.
The episode as NWS TSA wrote it up.
A strongly baroclinic, southwest-northeast oriented front pulled up stationary over eastern Oklahoma on Jan. 4-5. A series of upper level disturbances in southwest flow aloft caused heavy rains to break out across the region. Rainfall totals of three to six inches were common. Fayetteville's Drake Field had a two-day rainfall total of 6.33 inches, coming on top of already-saturated grounds caused by heavy rains during the week before Christmas. Most creeks and rivers overflowed their banks, and numerous low-water bridges were covered with water. Unfortunately, this led to the death of Madison County's sheriff when he unsuccessfully tried to cross one such bridge near St. Paul in his patrol car on a routine patrol. His car overturned in the fast and high water, and he was unable to escape.
The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
3 flash flood. Local standard time, as filed.
Van drove into running water over Hwy. 45 south of Lincoln and became trapped. Occupants rescued safely. Many streets closed in Fayetteville area.
Many roads flooded in southern part of Sebastian County.
The Madison County sheriff died when his patrol car was swept off of a low-water bridge over the White River on County Road 112 near St. Paul around 7:00 am. The river was swollen by heavy rains during the night. The 24-hour rainfall ending at 7 AM for St. Paul was 3.39 inches.
As the offices recorded each death: direct deaths were caused by the weather itself, indirect ones by something it set in motion.
| Event | Date | Age | Sex | Where | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Flash Flood, Madison | 1998-01-05 | 58 | Male | In Water | Direct |
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Arkansas in 1998Every state in 1998This day in weather historyWarnings in Arkansas, January 1998
NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Storm Events Database, compiled from the National Weather Service’s monthly Storm Data. Complete through 2026-06; NCEI adds each month about 75 days after it ends and revises past years a few times a year. Rebuilt 2026-09-30. Each event’s entry at NCEI: 5631437, 5631438, 5631439.