Arkansas, 1998

High Wind in Arkansas, March 27, 1998

March 27, 1998 · NWS TSA · 7 events in 7 counties and zones

A powerful spring storm moved quickly across Kansas and Missouri on March 27. High winds from the south developed across northwestern Arkansas during the late morning and early afternoon in advance of, but not directly associated with, a band of showers.

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it; 4 filed by county or forecast zone are drawn at its center, in a lighter ring. Tap one for its entry below.

  • Tornadoes
  • Tropical storms and surge
  • Floods
  • Wind
  • Hail
  • Winter weather
  • Heat and drought
  • Cold
  • Fire, smoke and dust
  • Marine and coastal
  • Other

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The toll

Deaths
0
Injuries
0
Property damage
$5,000
Crop damage
None recorded
Events
7

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.

What happened

The episode as NWS TSA wrote it up.

A powerful spring storm moved quickly across Kansas and Missouri on March 27. High winds from the south developed across northwestern Arkansas during the late morning and early afternoon in advance of, but not directly associated with, a band of showers. (The showers themselves were non-severe and did not produce cloud-to-ground lightning until they got into central Arkansas.) For up to three hours in advance of the showers, widespread gradient winds were sustained above 30 miles an hour with frequent gusts over 40 miles an hour. Gusts of 50 to 60 miles an hour were not uncommon. Fayetteville's Drake Field had a peak gust for the day of 45 miles an hour, and the Fort Smith Regional Airport had a peak gust for the day of 49 miles an hour. Power lines were blown down in Benton County around 11:00 am. A large tree was blown over in front of a house on Dyer Street in Springdale around 11:30 am.

The radar

The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

7 high wind. Local standard time, as filed.

High Wind, Benton

When
March 27, 8:00 AM CST to 3:00 PM CST
Where
Benton forecast zone
Property damage
$5,000
Coordinates
36.339, -94.256 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

High Wind, Carroll

When
March 27, 8:00 AM CST to 3:00 PM CST
Where
Carroll forecast zone
Coordinates
36.341, -93.538 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

High Wind, Crawford

When
March 27, 8:00 AM CST to 3:00 PM CST
Where
Crawford forecast zone

High Wind, Madison

When
March 27, 8:00 AM CST to 3:00 PM CST
Where
Madison forecast zone
Coordinates
36.011, -93.725 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

High Wind, Sebastian

When
March 27, 8:00 AM CST to 3:00 PM CST
Where
Sebastian forecast zone

High Wind, Washington

When
March 27, 8:00 AM CST to 3:00 PM CST
Where
Washington forecast zone
Property damage
$100
Coordinates
35.979, -94.216 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

High Wind, Franklin

When
March 27, 8:00 AM CST to 3:00 PM CST
Where
Franklin forecast zone

What these are

High Wind
Sustained non-thunderstorm winds of 40 mph or more for an hour, or gusts of 58 mph or more.

After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.

The same day elsewhere

More

Every storm in Arkansas in 1998Every state in 1998This day in weather historyWarnings in Arkansas, March 1998

Sources

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 2026-09-24. Each event’s entry at NCEI: 5634995, 5634996, 5634997, 5634998, 5634999, 5635000, 5635001.