Damaging Wind in Arkansas, May 13, 2003

Name: Damaging Wind in Arkansas, May 13, 2003
Start: 2003-05-13T19:05
End: 2003-05-13T19:05
Location: Arkansas

May 13, 2003 · NWS LZK · 1 event in 1 county or zone

1 thunderstorm wind, 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: 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 May 13, 2:45 PM CST, 4 hours 20 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, May 13, 2:45 PM CST, 4 hours 20 minutes before

AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LITTLE ROCK AR
345 PM CDT TUE MAY 13 2003

MCS ACROSS KANSAS AND OKLAHOMA IS NOW MOVING INTO NORTHWEST
ARKANSAS. LARGE AREA OF SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS ON KLZK RADAR
EXTENDS WEST OF A LINE FROM MOUNTAIN HOME TO FORT SMITH. THIS AREA
WILL SPREAD SOUTH AND EAST. THE RAIN IS MOST DOMINANT IN THE 60+ DEW
POINT AREA ACROSS EAST OKLAHOMA AND WEST ARKANSAS.

GFS SEEMS TO HAVE A GOOD HANDLE ON THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE MCS FOR
TONIGHT. DIVERGING HEIGHTS ARE NOTED ACROSS NORTH ARKANSAS AT 12Z
WEDNESDAY. 60+ DEW POINTS ARE SLOWLY MOVING INTO SOUTHWEST ARKANSAS
AT THIS TIME. A WARM FRONT STILL SOUTH OF ARKANSAS WILL MOVE NORTH
TONIGHT AND HELP TO DESTABILIZE THE ATMOSPHERE. THEREFORE WILL
CONTINUE LIKELY POPS FOR TONIGHT.

A COLD FRONT IN THE NORTHERN PLAINS WILL MOVE TO NEAR NORTHWEST
ARKANSAS BY 12Z WEDNESDAY AND MOVE SLOWLY INTO NORTH ARKANSAS.
SEVERAL SHORT WAVES MOVE ACROSS THE AREA THROUGH THE REST OF THE
WEEK CREATING CHANCES FOR SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS. THE LAST STRONG
SYSTEM IN THE LINE LOOKS TO MOVE ACROSS THE AREA SATURDAY NIGHT AND
SUNDAY. THE UPPER LOW MOVING ON TO THE WEST COAST TONIGHT WILL BE
MOVING ACROSS ARKANSAS ON SUNDAY. WITH THE NUMBER OF STORMS MOVING
ACROSS THE AREA THIS WEEK AND RELATIVELY SLOW MOVEMENT...WILL NEED
TO KEEP AN EYE ON EXCESSIVE RAINFALL AND POSSIBLE FLASH FLOODING.

TEMPERATURES WILL REMAIN IN THE 70S AND 80S THIS WEEK FOR HIGHS AND
50S AND 60S FOR LOWS. STAYED CLOSE TO THE GFS MOS.

HRO   59  79  55  78 /  60  60  60  40
LIT   64  84  65  83 /  60  60  60  40
HOT   64  85  65  83 /  60  60  60  40
PBF   65  86  65  85 /  60  60  60  40

.LZK...NONE.

51

Hazardous weather outlook, May 13, 1:35 PM CST, 5 hours 30 minutes before

ARZ003>007-012>016-021>025-030>034-037>047-052>057-062>069-141000-

HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK...UPDATED
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LITTLE ROCK AR
235 PM CDT TUE MAY 13 2003

THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR A LARGE PART OF ARKANSAS.

.DAY ONE...TODAY AND TONIGHT

THUNDERSTORMS DEVELOPED THIS MORNING IN CENTRAL KANSAS AND MOVED
INTO NORTHEAST OKLAHOMA THIS AFTERNOON. THE STORMS WILL CONTINUE
PUSHING THROUGH WESTERN ARKANSAS INTO THIS EVENING...AND SOME OF THE
STORMS MAY BE SEVERE. THE MAIN SEVERE WEATHER THREATS WILL BE LARGE
HAIL AND DAMAGING WINDS.

LATER TONIGHT...ANOTHER CLUSTER OF THUNDERSTORMS IS EXPECTED TO
DEVELOP NORTH AND WEST OF ARKANSAS...AND WILL PUSH INTO THE STATE
MAINLY AFTER MIDNIGHT. THERE WILL BE A CHANCE OF SEVERE STORMS
OVERNIGHT...MAINLY IN THE NORTHWEST HALF OF THE STATE.

.DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...WEDNESDAY THROUGH MONDAY

THUNDERSTORMS ARE LIKELY OVER MOST AREAS ON WEDNESDAY...WITH A
CHANCE OF THUNDERSTORMS WEDNESDAY NIGHT.

THERE WILL BE A CONTINUED CHANCE OF THUNDERSTORMS THROUGH SATURDAY.

.SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT...

SPOTTER ACTIVATION MAY BE REQUIRED THIS EVENING AND TONIGHT.

46

In the hours before

Local storm report, May 13, 3:18 PM CST, 3 hours 47 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LITTLE ROCK AR
418 PM CDT TUE MAY 13 2003

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

0355 PM    CLARKSVILLE               AR   WIND DAMAGE
05/13/03   JOHNSON                        LARGE LIMBS DOWN. REPORTED
                                          BY STORM SPOTTER

0410 PM    BOONEVILLE                AR   75 MPH TSTM WIND GUST.
05/13/03   LOGAN                          REPORTED BY STORM SPOTTER

28

Local storm report, May 13, 4:13 PM CST, 2 hours 52 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LITTLE ROCK AR
513 PM CDT TUE MAY 13 2003

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

0500 PM    1 S GREENBRIER            AR   70 MPH TSTM WIND GUST
05/13/03   FAULKNER                       REPORTED BY HAM RADIO
                                          OPERATOR

28

Local storm report, May 13, 4:23 PM CST, 2 hours 42 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LITTLE ROCK AR
523 PM CDT TUE MAY 13 2003

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

0450 PM    JERUSALEM                 AR   .75 INCH HAIL
05/13/03   CONWAY                         REPORTED BY EMERGENCY
                                          MANAGEMENT

0459 PM    2 S MORRILTON             AR   .75 INCH HAIL
05/13/03   CONWAY                         REPORTED BY STORM SPOTTER

0459 PM    2 S MORRILTON             AR   60 MPH TSTM WIND GUST
05/13/03   CONWAY                         REPORTED BY STORM SPOTTER

0500 PM    MORRILTON                 AR   WIND DAMAGE
05/13/03   CONWAY                         TREES DOWN. REPORTED BY
                                          LAW ENFORCEMENT

0508 PM    CONWAY                    AR   .75 INCH HAIL
05/13/03   FAULKNER                       ON WEST SIDE OF TOWN.
                                          REPORTED BY LAW
                                          ENFORCEMENT

0508 PM    CONWAY                    AR   WIND DAMAGE
05/13/03   FAULKNER                       TREES AND POWER LINES DOWN
                                          ON WEST SIDE OF TOWN.
                                          REPORTED BY LAW ENFORCEMENT

28

Local storm report, May 13, 4:46 PM CST, 2 hours 19 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LITTLE ROCK AR
546 PM CDT TUE MAY 13 2003

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

0535 PM    LITTLE ROCK               AR   60 MPH TSTM WIND GUST
05/13/03   PULASKI                        IN WEST LITTLE ROCK.
                                          REPORTED BY STORM
                                          SPOTTER

0540 PM    LITTLE ROCK               AR   WIND DAMAGE
05/13/03   PULASKI                        LARGE LIMBS DOWN IN WEST
                                          LITTLE ROCK. REPORTED BY
                                          STORM SPOTTER

28

Local storm report, May 13, 5:08 PM CST, 1 hour 57 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LITTLE ROCK AR
608 PM CDT TUE MAY 13 2003

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

0420 PM    RUSSELLVILLE              AR   WIND DAMAGE
05/13/03   POPE                           MANY TREES DOWN ON POWER
                                          LINES. MANY POWER OUTAGES
                                          AROUND RUSSELLVILLE.
                                          REPORTED BY UTILITY COMPANY

0425 PM    DARDANELLE                AR   WIND DAMAGE
05/13/03   YELL                           POWER LINES DOWN. REPORTED
                                          BY COOP OBSERVER

28

Local storm report, May 13, 6:21 PM CST, 44 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LITTLE ROCK, AR
721 PM CDT TUE MAY 13 2003

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

0634 PM    HATFIELD                  AR   .75 INCH HAIL
05/13/03   POLK                           REPORTED BY LAW
                                          ENFORCEMENT.

57

The radar

The Western Arkansas radar (KSRX), 147 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 01:05 UTC.

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

1 thunderstorm wind. Local standard time, as filed.

Thunderstorm Wind, Pike

When: May 13, 7:05 PM CST
Where: Pike County, 5 mi NE of Murfreesboro
Measured: 50 kt (58 mph) estimated gust
Reported by: LAW ENFORCEMENT
Coordinates: 34.117, -93.617

Trees and power lines 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

Every storm in Arkansas in 2003 Every state in 2003 This day in weather history Warnings in Arkansas, May 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: 5361080.