Tornado and Hail in Arkansas, May 6, 1998

Summary of events for May 6 1998:Numerous severe thunderstorms developed during the late afternoon and evening over eastern Oklahoma and then moved into westcentral and northwest Arkansas between 700 and 930 PM CDT. Many of these thunderstorms developed rotation with one storm ultimately producing a tornado.The storm that produced a tornado was the first to move into Arkansas. It first developed over Sequoyah County in Oklahoma and then moved into northern Crawford County around 715 PM CDT. From there, it developed very rapidly and began rotating, finally producing a tornado touchdown near Lake Fort Smith. Besides a tornado, this storm also produced hail to the size of golfballs. Another cluster of severe thunderstorms, with a history of brief tornado touchdowns and funnel clouds in Oklahoma, moved across northern Crawford County between 830 and 900 PM CDT. Finally, a severe thunderstorm with a long history of rotation and tornadoes moved across southern Sebastian County between 900 and 930 PM CDT. Thankfully, there were no known tornadoes in Sebastian County, but the storm produced hail as large as golfballs. The severe thunderstorms formed as a weak cold front shifted south over the area and a wave of low pressure approached from the west and southwest. An upper level disturbance helped to break a cap of warm air in the mid-levels which had held firm for most of the day.