Flash Flood and Hail in Arkansas, May 12, 2002

Name: Flash Flood and Hail in Arkansas, May 12, 2002
Start: 2002-05-12T16:56
End: 2002-05-12T20:30
Location: Arkansas

May 12, 2002 · NWS TSA · 8 events in 5 counties and zones

4 thunderstorm wind, 3 hail, 1 flash flood, as filed by the National Weather Service.

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it; 1 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

Open the live radar over this ground

The toll

Deaths: 1
Injuries: 0
Property damage: None recorded
Crop damage: None recorded
Events: 8

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 Tulsa, OK wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at May 12, 2:25 PM CST, 2 hours 31 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, May 12, 2:25 PM CST, 2 hours 31 minutes before

EASTERN OKLAHOMA/NORTHWEST ARKANSAS FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TULSA OK
325 PM CDT SUN MAY 12 2002

COLD FRONT AT 20Z WAS LOCATED JUST SOUTH OF I-44.  BOUNDARY WAS
ROUGHLY ALONG A LINE FROM GROVE...TO THE EXTREME SOUTHEAST CORNER OF
TULSA COUNTY...THEN SOUTHWARD ACROSS OKMULGEE AND OKFUSKEE
COUNTIES.  FRONT HAS REMAINED VERY SLOW MOVING THROUGH THE DAY AND A
SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH CURRENTLY IN EFFECT ALONG AND AHEAD OF THE
FRONT.  WILL WATCH TRENDS TILL ZONES TIME...THEN MAY BE ABLE TO TRIM
JUST A FEW COUNTIES ON THE WESTERN FRINGE OF THE AREA FROM THE WATCH.
DO SEE ADDED DEVELOPMENT BACK TO THE NORTHWEST THOUGH...SO WILL
LIKELY LEAVE AS IS FOR NOW.

DO EXPECT THE FRONT TO DEVELOP A STRONGER PUSH TO THE SOUTHEAST
LATER TONIGHT AS SHORTWAVE NOW OVER CO/NM CONTINUES TO MOVE EASTWARD.
WILL CONFINE POPS TO THE FIRST PERIOD ONLY...WITH LIKELY POPS ALONG
AND AHEAD OF THE FRONT AND CHANCE POPS BEHIND THE FRONT.

ONCE THE FRONT CLEARS THE AREA SHOULD HAVE A FEW PLEASANT DAYS
THROUGH THE FIRST PART OF THE WEEK.  NEXT MENTION OF PRECIP WILL BE
THURSDAY/FRIDAY...THEN DRY ONCE AGAIN FOR THE UPCOMING WEEKEND.

FCSTID = 4
TUL   50  69  45  74 /  40   0   0   0
FSM   55  70  44  74 /  70  10   0   0
MLC   54  71  46  76 /  70   0   0   0
BVO   48  69  44  74 /  30   0   0   0
FYV   52  67  40  69 /  70  10   0   0
BYV   52  67  40  69 /  70  10   0   0
MIO   51  68  43  72 /  70   0   0   0
MKO   53  70  46  75 /  70   0   0   0
F10   53  70  46  75 /  70   0   0   0
HHW   58  73  47  78 /  70  10   0   0

.TSA...
AR...NONE.
OK...NONE.

In the hours before

Special weather statement, May 12, 12:15 PM CST, 4 hours 41 minutes before

ARZ001-002-010-011-019-020-029-OKZ049-053>076-131100-

EASTERN OKLAHOMA / NORTHWEST ARKANSAS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TULSA OK
115 PM CDT SUN MAY 12 2002

...SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS ARE POSSIBLE THIS AFTERNOON INTO TONIGHT
ACROSS MUCH OF EASTERN OKLAHOMA AND NORTHWEST ARKANSAS...

THUNDERSTORMS ARE EXPECTED TO DEVELOP ALONG THE COLD FRONT THIS
AFTERNOON. THE FRONT IS CURRENTLY LOCATED FROM MIAMI TO TULSA TO
BRISTOW AND WILL CONTINUE TO SLOWLY MOVE SOUTHEAST DURING THE
AFTERNOON AND EVENING HOURS.

THE COMBINATION OF THE COLD FRONT AND AN UPPER LEVEL STORM MOVING
INTO THE AREA FROM THE WEST WILL RESULT IN WIDESPREAD SHOWERS AND
THUNDERSTORMS TODAY AND TONIGHT.  A FEW OF THESE STORMS MAY BE
SEVERE WITH HAIL UP TO 1.75 INCHES IN DIAMETER AND DAMAGING WINDS UP
TO 65 MILES AN HOUR.

.SPOTTER ACTIVATION...
SPOTTER ACTIVATION WILL BE NEEDED THIS AFTERNOON INTO TONIGHT ACROSS
EASTERN OKLAHOMA AND NORTHWEST ARKANSAS.

.DISCUSSION...
THUNDERSTORMS SHOULD CONTINUE TO DEVELOP THIS AFTERNOON AS AN UPPER
LEVEL DISTURBANCE APPROACHES THE AREA.  THE ATMOSPHERE AHEAD OF THE
SURFACE COLD FRONT REMAINS MODERATELY UNSTABLE AND SHOULD CONTINUE
TO DESTABILIZE AS THE UPPER SYSTEM APPROACHES.  LARGE HAIL UP TO THE
SIZE OF GOLFBALLS WILL BE POSSIBLE WITH SOME OF THE STRONGER STORMS.
IF THE STORMS BECOME SURFACE BASED...DAMAGING WINDS MAY ALSO BE
POSSIBLE.  THE SEVERE WEATHER THREAT WILL LIKELY END BY MIDNIGHT AS
DRIER MORE STABLE AIR PUSHES SOUTH INTO THE AREA.

THREAT TABLE
VALID THROUGH 1200 UTC MONDAY

AREA 1...MUCH OF EASTERN OKLAHOMA AND NORTHWEST ARKANSAS
THUNDERSTORM PROBABILITY...90
SEVERE PROBABILITY IF STORMS OCCUR...70
SIGNIFICANT SEVERE PROBABILITY IF STORMS OCCUR...20

THREAT AREAS DEFINE THE GREATEST RISK. PROBABILITIES ARE IN PERCENT.
SIGNIFICANT SEVERE IS DEFINED AS F1 OR GREATER WIND/TORNADO DAMAGE
AND/OR GOLFBALL SIZE HAIL OR LARGER.

.OTHER HAZARDS...
LOCALLY HEAVY RAINS WILL BE POSSIBLE TODAY AND TONIGHT WITH A FEW
LOCATIONS LIKELY TO RECEIVE GREATER THAN 2 INCHES OF RAIN.

RELATED GRAPHICAL INFORMATION CAN BE FOUND AT:
WWW.SRH.NOAA.GOV/TULSA

Local storm report, May 12, 2:43 PM CST, 2 hours 13 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TULSA OK
343 PM CDT SUN MAY 12 2002

TIME(CDT)  .....CITY LOCATION.....STATE   ...EVENT/REMARKS...
           ....COUNTY LOCATION....

0311 PM    2 NORTH PETTIT            OK   .88 INCH HAIL 05/12/02
           CHEROKEE                       DIME TO NICKEL HAIL

Local storm report, May 12, 2:50 PM CST, 2 hours 6 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TULSA OK
350 PM CDT SUN MAY 12 2002

...CORRECTION FOR DATE GROUP...

TIME(CDT)  .....CITY LOCATION.....STATE   ...EVENT/REMARKS...
           ....COUNTY LOCATION....

0311 PM    2 NORTH PETTIT            OK   .88 INCH HAIL
05/12/02   CHEROKEE                       DIME TO NICKEL HAIL

Local storm report, May 12, 3:07 PM CST, 1 hour 49 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TULSA OK
407 PM CDT SUN MAY 12 2002

TIME(CDT)  .....CITY LOCATION.....STATE   ...EVENT/REMARKS...
           ....COUNTY LOCATION....

0400 PM    5 N CHOUTEAU              OK   .75 INCH HAIL
05/12/02   MAYES                          REPORTED BY EMA

0404 PM    PRYOR                     OK   1.75 INCH HAIL
05/12/02   MAYES                          REPORTED BY EMA

The radar

The Western Arkansas radar (KSRX), 74 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 22:54 UTC.

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

4 thunderstorm wind, 3 hail, 1 flash flood. Local standard time, as filed.

Hail, Washington

When: May 12, 4:56 PM CST
Where: Washington County, Lincoln
Measured: 0.75 in hail
Reported by: GENERAL PUBLIC
Coordinates: 35.950, -94.417

Thunderstorm Wind, Benton

When: May 12, 5:51 PM CST
Where: Benton County, 7 mi E of Lowell
Measured: 57 kt (66 mph)
Reported by: GENERAL PUBLIC
Coordinates: 36.250, -94.000

Thunderstorm Wind, Madison

When: May 12, 6:20 PM CST
Where: Madison County, 5 mi NE of Clifty
Measured: 61 kt (70 mph)
Reported by: GENERAL PUBLIC
Coordinates: 36.283, -93.733

Thunderstorm winds estimated at 70 miles an hour blew down trees.

Hail, Carroll

When: May 12, 6:20 PM CST
Where: Carroll County, Eureka Spgs
Measured: 0.88 in hail
Reported by: GENERAL PUBLIC
Coordinates: 36.400, -93.733

Thunderstorm Wind, Carroll

When: May 12, 6:20 PM CST
Where: Carroll County, Eureka Spgs
Measured: 61 kt (70 mph)
Reported by: LAW ENFORCEMENT
Coordinates: 36.400, -93.733

Thunderstorm winds estimated at 70 miles an hour blew down trees.

Flash Flood, Carroll

When: May 12, 6:30 PM CST to 8:30 PM CST
Where: Carroll County, North Central Portion
Deaths: 1 direct, 0 indirect
Reported by: EMERGENCY MANAGER
Coordinates: 36.341, -93.538 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

An estimated 3 inches of rain fell over the hilly part of Carroll county to the north of Berryville. This rain caused small streams and low water crossings to flood. A 25 year old man died as his truck was swept away by flood waters while trying to drive over a low water crossing over Clabber Creek on County Road 403 about 3 miles north of Berryville.

Hail, Carroll

When: May 12, 6:42 PM CST
Where: Carroll County, 2 mi W of Berryville
Measured: 0.75 in hail
Reported by: GENERAL PUBLIC
Coordinates: 36.367, -93.600

Thunderstorm Wind, Sebastian

When: May 12, 7:40 PM CST
Where: Sebastian County, Hartford
Measured: 61 kt (70 mph)
Reported by: GENERAL PUBLIC
Coordinates: 35.017, -94.383

Thunderstorm winds estimated at 70 miles an hour blew trees down.

The people who died

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, Carroll	2002-05-12	25	Male	Vehicle/Towed Trailer	Direct

What these are

Hail: Hail three-quarters of an inch or larger, or smaller hail that caused damage, filed with the largest stone measured.
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.
Flash Flood: Flooding that begins within six hours of the rain that causes it, or of a dam or levee failure or ice jam release, often with deadly speed.

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

The same day elsewhere

Every storm in Arkansas in 2002 Every state in 2002 This day in weather history Warnings in Arkansas, May 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: 5293793, 5293794, 5293795, 5293796, 5293797, 5293800, 5293798, 5293799.