Hail in Arkansas, December 22, 2003

Name: Hail in Arkansas, December 22, 2003
Start: 2003-12-22T20:16
End: 2003-12-22T20:42
Location: Arkansas

December 22, 2003 · NWS TSA · 5 events in 1 county or zone

5 hail, as filed by the National Weather Service.

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: 5

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 Dec 22, 4:55 PM CST, 3 hours 21 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Dec 22, 4:55 PM CST, 3 hours 21 minutes before

EASTERN OKLAHOMA/NORTHWEST ARKANSAS FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TULSA OKLAHOMA
455 PM CST MON DEC 22 2003

.MESOSCALE UPDATE...
WHILE CONVECTION HAS INCREASED ACROSS THE AREA...CELL HAVE THUS FAR
REMAINED BELOW SEVERE LEVELS.  VILS IN THE LOW TO MID 30S AND 50 DBZ
CORES TO 20 TO 25 THOUSAND FEET ARE OUR INITIAL THRESHOLDS
UNTIL WE RECEIVE A REPORT.  SO FAR NOT EVEN A SMALL HAIL REPORT HAS
BEEN RECEIVED.

FORECAST ID= 08

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

Hazardous weather outlook, Dec 22, 3:45 PM CST, 4 hours 31 minutes before

HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TULSA OK
345 PM CST MON DEC 22 2003

ARZ001-002-010-011-019-020-029-OKZ049-053>076-231200-
ADAIR OK-BENTON AR-CARROLL AR-CHEROKEE OK-CHOCTAW OK-CRAIG OK-
CRAWFORD AR-CREEK OK-DELAWARE OK-FRANKLIN AR-HASKELL OK-LATIMER OK-
LE FLORE OK-MADISON AR-MAYES OK-MCINTOSH OK-MUSKOGEE OK-NOWATA OK-
OKFUSKEE OK-OKMULGEE OK-OSAGE OK-OTTAWA OK-PAWNEE OK-PITTSBURG OK-
PUSHMATAHA OK-ROGERS OK-SEBASTIAN AR-SEQUOYAH OK-TULSA OK-WAGONER OK-
WASHINGTON OK-WASHINGTON AR-

THIS OUTLOOK IS FOR NORTHWEST AND WEST CENTRAL ARKANSAS AS WELL AS
MUCH OF EASTERN OKLAHOMA.

.DAY ONE...THIS AFTERNOON AND TONIGHT

...SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH UNTIL 9 PM CST FOR MUCH OF EASTERN
OKLAHOMA...NORTHWEST AND WEST CENTRAL ARKANSAS...

SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS WILL INCREASE THROUGH THE REMAINDER OF
THIS AFTERNOON AS A COLD FRONT SWEEPS THROUGH THE AREA. STORMS THAT
DEVELOP WILL HAVE THE POTENTIAL TO PRODUCE SEVERE WEATHER MAINLY
ALONG AND SOUTH OF THE INTERSTATE 44 CORRIDOR. THE STRONGEST STORMS
WILL BE CAPABLE OF PRODUCING HAIL UP TO AN INCH IN DIAMETER AND WIND
GUSTS TO 65 MPH.  THUNDERSTORM CHANCES WILL DECREASE OVERNIGHT AS
THE COLD FRONT SHIFTS EAST HOWEVER WIDESPREAD RAIN SHOWERS WILL
CONTINUE INTO EARLY TUESDAY MORNING.

TECHNICAL DISCUSSION...SURFACE DEW POINTS HAVE RISEN INTO THE MID TO
UPPER 50S ACROSS THE REGION THIS AFTERNOON. WITH COOLING
TEMPERATURES ALOFT...LIFTED INDEX VALUES OF MINUS 2 TO MINUS 4
DEGREES HAVE BEEN OBSERVED FROM SOUTH CENTRAL THROUGH NORTHEAST
OKLAHOMA. THE SUB-CLOUD LAYER REMAINS RELATIVELY DRY...HOWEVER
STRONG DEEP LAYER SHEAR AND LAPSE RATES OF 7-8C/KM WILL SUSTAIN THE
STRONGER UPDRAFTS.  SHEAR VECTOR ORIENTATION SUGGESTS A LINEAR MCS
WITH EMBEDDED BOW ECHOS WHILE LOW WET BULB ZERO HEIGHTS /<8000FT
AGL/ SUPPORT HAIL OF SEVERE CRITERIA.

WARNING PROBABILITIES FOR SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS AND TORNADOES CAN BE
FOUND IN THE OUTLOOK SECTION AT: WWW.SRH.NOAA.GOV/TULSA. GIVEN
PROBABILITIES REPRESENT THE POTENTIAL FOR A WARNING TO BE ISSUED AT
YOUR LOCATION.

SPOTTER / EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT ACTION STATEMENT...
SPOTTER ACTIVATION WILL BE REQUIRED THIS AFTERNOON AND THIS EVENING
PRIMARILY SOUTH OF INTERSTATE 44.

.DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...TUESDAY THROUGH SUNDAY.
COOLER AND DRY WEATHER RETURNS FOR TUESDAY WITH TEMPERATURES
GRADUALLY WARMING TO ABOVE NORMAL READINGS BY THE WEEKEND.  RAIN
CHANCES RETURN BY SATURDAY AS THE NEXT COLD FRONT MOVES TOWARD THE
REGION.

WWW.SRH.NOAA.GOV/TULSA CONTAINS ADDITIONAL TABULAR AND
GRAPHICAL INFORMATION

In the hours before

Local storm report, Dec 22, 6:28 PM CST, 1 hour 48 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TULSA OK
628 PM CST MON DEC 22 2003

..TIME...   ...EVENT...     ...CITY LOCATION...      ...LAT.LON...
..DATE...   ....MAG....     ..COUNTY LOCATION...ST.. ...SOURCE....
            ..REMARKS..

0623 PM     HAIL             10 ENE CANADIAN         35.23N 95.49W
12/22/2003  0.75 INCH        PITTSBURG          OK   AMATEUR RADIO

&&

GW

Local storm report, Dec 22, 6:56 PM CST, 1 hour 20 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TULSA OK
656 PM CST MON DEC 22 2003

..TIME...   ...EVENT...     ...CITY LOCATION...      ...LAT.LON...
..DATE...   ....MAG....     ..COUNTY LOCATION...ST.. ...SOURCE....
            ..REMARKS..

0621 PM     HAIL             HARTSHORNE              34.84N 95.56W
12/22/2003  0.75 INCH        PITTSBURG          OK   LAW ENFORCEMENT

&&

GM

Local storm report, Dec 22, 7:07 PM CST, 1 hour 9 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TULSA OK
707 PM CST MON DEC 22 2003

..TIME...   ...EVENT...     ...CITY LOCATION...      ...LAT.LON...
..DATE...   ....MAG....     ..COUNTY LOCATION...ST.. ...SOURCE....
            ..REMARKS..

0647 PM     HAIL             3 E PORTER              35.87N 95.47W
12/22/2003  0.88 INCH        WAGONER            OK   PUBLIC

&&

GM

Special weather statement, Dec 22, 7:15 PM CST, 1 hour 1 minute before

SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TULSA OK
715 PM CST MON DEC 22 2003

OKZ057-058-062-063-068-069-230215-
OTTAWA OK-CRAIG OK-DELAWARE OK-MAYES OK-ADAIR OK-CHEROKEE OK-
715 PM CST MON DEC 22 2003

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN TULSA HAS ISSUED A
SIGNIFICANT WEATHER ALERT EFFECTIVE UNTIL 815 PM CST
FOR THE FOLLOWING COUNTIES:

IN NORTHEAST OKLAHOMA
     OTTAWA...CRAIG...DELAWARE...MAYES AND ADAIR

IN EAST CENTRAL OKLAHOMA
     CHEROKEE

AT 715 PM CST...DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED STRONG THUNDERSTORMS ALONG A
LINE EXTENDING FROM QUAPAW TO KETCHUM TO 4 MILES SOUTHWEST OF MURPHY
TO 8 MILES SOUTHWEST OF HULBERT...MOVING NORTHEAST AT 30 MPH. SOME
LOCATIONS THAT WILL BE AFFECTED BY THESE STORMS INCLUDE...PROCTOR...
BALLARD...WATTS...JAY...OAKS...LEACH...TWIN OAKS...KANSAS...
COLCORD...CHLOETA...ZENA...CLEORA...GROVE...BERNICE...TAHLEQUAH...
HULBERT...LOST CITY...PEGGS...SCRAPER...MIAMI...COMMERCE...AFTON...
FAIRLAND...NARCISSA...WYANDOTTE...OTTAWA...PEORIA...QUAPAW...
CARDIN...PICHER...KETCHUM...MURPHY...LOCUST GROVE...ROSE...SALINA...
SPAVINAW...STRANG...PENSACOLA...LANGLEY AND DISNEY.

THESE STORMS WILL BE CAPABLE OF PRODUCING SMALL HAIL AND WIND GUSTS
TO 40 MPH.

Special weather statement, Dec 22, 8:03 PM CST, 13 minutes before

SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TULSA OK
803 PM CST MON DEC 22 2003

OKZ068-070-072-074-230300-
CHEROKEE OK-MUSKOGEE OK-SEQUOYAH OK-HASKELL OK-
803 PM CST MON DEC 22 2003

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN TULSA HAS ISSUED A
SIGNIFICANT WEATHER ALERT EFFECTIVE UNTIL 900 PM CST
FOR THE FOLLOWING COUNTIES:

IN EAST CENTRAL OKLAHOMA
     CHEROKEE...MUSKOGEE AND SEQUOYAH

IN SOUTHEAST OKLAHOMA
     HASKELL

AT 803 PM CST...DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A STRONG THUNDERSTORM 6 MILES
SOUTHWEST OF WEBBERS FALLS...MOVING NORTHEAST AT 35 MPH. SOME
LOCATIONS THAT WILL BE AFFECTED BY THIS STORM INCLUDE...TAMAHA...
SALLISAW...MC KEY...VIAN...GORE...MARBLE CITY...BOX...COOKSON...PORUM
AND WEBBERS FALLS.

THIS STORM WILL BE CAPABLE OF PRODUCING SMALL HAIL AND WIND GUSTS TO
40 MPH.

Local storm report, Dec 22, 8:10 PM CST, 6 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TULSA OK
810 PM CST MON DEC 22 2003

..TIME...   ...EVENT...     ...CITY LOCATION...      ...LAT.LON...
..DATE...   ....MAG....     ..COUNTY LOCATION...ST.. ...SOURCE....
            ..REMARKS..

0715 PM     HAIL             PANAMA                  35.17N 94.67W
12/22/2003  0.88 INCH        LE FLORE           OK   PUBLIC

            LASTED ABOUT 10 MINUTES

&&

GM

The radar

The Western Arkansas radar (KSRX), 31 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 02:13 UTC.

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

5 hail. Local standard time, as filed.

Hail, Sebastian

When: December 22, 8:16 PM CST
Where: Sebastian County, Hartford
Measured: 0.88 in hail
Reported by: AMATEUR RADIO
Coordinates: 35.017, -94.383

Hail, Sebastian

When: December 22, 8:24 PM CST
Where: Sebastian County, 2 mi E of Hartford
Measured: 2 in hail
Reported by: AMATEUR RADIO
Coordinates: 35.017, -94.350

Hail, Sebastian

When: December 22, 8:25 PM CST
Where: Sebastian County, 5 mi NE of Mansfield
Measured: 0.88 in hail
Reported by: GENERAL PUBLIC
Coordinates: 35.117, -94.167

Hail, Sebastian

When: December 22, 8:32 PM CST
Where: Sebastian County, Huntington
Measured: 0.88 in hail
Reported by: AMATEUR RADIO
Coordinates: 35.083, -94.267

Hail, Sebastian

When: December 22, 8:42 PM CST
Where: Sebastian County, 2 mi N of Mansfield
Measured: 0.75 in hail
Reported by: AMATEUR RADIO
Coordinates: 35.100, -94.233

What these are

Hail: Hail three-quarters of an inch or larger, or smaller hail that caused damage, filed with the largest stone measured.

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

The same day elsewhere

Every storm in Arkansas in 2003 Every state in 2003 This day in weather history Warnings in Arkansas, December 2003

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: 5327938, 5327939, 5327940, 5327941, 5327942.