Name: Damaging Wind in Arkansas, March 8, 2002
Start: 2002-03-08T21:45
End: 2002-03-08T21:45
Location: Arkansas

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it. 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

Open the live radar over this ground

The toll

Deaths: 0
Injuries: 0
Property damage: None recorded
Crop damage: None recorded
Events: 1

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 forecasters said that day

The local office's own words before the first event, 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 the first event at Mar 8, 3:55 PM CST, 5 hours 50 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Mar 8, 3:55 PM CST, 5 hours 50 minutes before

AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LITTLE ROCK AR
355 PM CST FRI MAR 8 2002

MODELS IN FAIR AGREEMENT TODAY. MOIST SOUTHERLY FLOW CONTINUED TO
FLOW INTO ARKANSAS TODAY. A FEW SHOWERS WERE NOTED ACROSS THE AREA
THIS AFTERNOON. FRONTAL SYSTEM OVER THE CENTRAL PLAINS WILL CONTINUE
TO MOVE TOWARD ARKANSAS TONIGHT. FRONT SHOULD ENTER THE NORTHWESTERN
SECTIONS AROUND 06Z AND SHOULD BE OVER EAST CENTRAL ARKANSAS BY 12Z
SATURDAY. SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS SHOULD MOVE OUT OF EASTERN
OKLAHOMA THIS EVENING AND INTO ARKANSAS. EXPECT THUNDERSTORM
ACTIVITY TO BECOME MORE WIDESPREAD AS THE AREA MOVES EASTWARD.
SQUALL LINE WILL BE POSSIBLE AS STORMS MOVE EASTWARD. AMOUNT OF
SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS TONIGHT STILL IN QUESTION...SINCE MUCH OF THE
UPPER LEVEL SUPPORT WILL BE WELL NORTH OF THE STATE. HOWEVER...
CONTINUED TO HIGHLIGHT THE POSSIBILITY OF SEVERE IN THE ZONES
OVERNIGHT. A CHANCE OF SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS TO CONTINUE OVER
CENTRAL AND EASTERN ARKANSAS FIRST THING SATURDAY MORNING...THEN
WILL BE PARTLY CLOUDY FOR THE REMAINDER OF THE DAY. SHOULD BE MOSTLY
CLEAR SATURDAY NIGHT AND MOSTLY SUNNY ON SUNDAY. NEW MODEL RUNS
BRING NEXT CHANCE FOR PRECIPITATION INTO FORECAST A LITTLE EARLIER
THAN PREVIOUS RUNS. WILL MENTION CHANCES FOR SHOWERS AND
THUNDERSTORMS MONDAY AFTERNOON THROUGH TUESDAY MORNING...THEN DRY
REST OF TUESDAY AND WEDNESDAY. NGM TEMPERATURES AND POPS GENERALLY
REASONABLE.
FCSTID = 22

HRO   39  47  24  53 /  70   0   0   0
LIT   52  61  29  54 /  80  30   0   0
HOT   51  60  29  56 /  80  30   0   0
PBF   55  62  31  57 /  80  40   0   0

.LZK...NONE.

The radar

The Western Arkansas radar (KSRX), 50 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 03:45 UTC.

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

1 thunderstorm wind. Local standard time, as filed.

Thunderstorm Wind, Scott

When: March 8, 9:45 PM CST
Where: Scott County, Waldron
Measured: 50 kt (58 mph)
Reported by: AMATEUR RADIO
Coordinates: 34.900, -94.083

Some trees were blown down.

What these are

Thunderstorm Wind: Winds from a thunderstorm of 50 knots (58 mph) or more, or lower winds that caused damage or casualties. Measured gusts are marked MG, estimated EG.

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

The same day elsewhere

More

Every storm in Arkansas in 2002 Every state in 2002 This day in weather history Warnings in Arkansas, March 2002

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: 5286741.