Arkansas, 2008

Heat in Arkansas, July 28, 2008

July 28, 2008 · NWS MEG · 1 event in 1 county or zone

A heat wave produced temperatures above 100 degrees on July 29th and July 30th with upper 90 degree temperatures on July 27th, 28th, and 31st. The temperatures combined with high humidity produced heat index values of over 100 degrees during this time frame as well.

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

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The toll

Deaths
1
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 happened

The episode as NWS MEG wrote it up.

A heat wave produced temperatures above 100 degrees on July 29th and July 30th with upper 90 degree temperatures on July 27th, 28th, and 31st. The temperatures combined with high humidity produced heat index values of over 100 degrees during this time frame as well.

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 Memphis, TN wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Jul 28, 10:29 AM CST, 2 hours 31 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Jul 28, 10:29 AM CST, 2 hours 31 minutes before
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Hazardous weather outlook, Jul 28, 3:27 AM CST, 9 hours 33 minutes before
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The radar

The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

1 heat. Local standard time, as filed.

Heat, Crittenden

When
July 28, 1:00 PM CST to 5:00 PM CST
Where
Crittenden forecast zone
Deaths
0 direct, 1 indirect
Reported by
Newspaper
Coordinates
35.208, -90.309 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

A heat-related death occurred 10 miles west of West Memphis. A 16 month old was left in a vehicle for three hours and died as a result of temperatures exceeding 127 degrees in the vehicle.

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.

EventDateAgeSexWhereKind
Heat, Crittenden2008-07-280FemaleVehicle/Towed TrailerIndirect

What these are

Heat
Heat below excessive heat criteria that still caused deaths, injuries or significant impacts.

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

The same day elsewhere

More

Every storm in Arkansas in 2008Every state in 2008This day in weather historyWarnings in Arkansas, July 2008

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: 128171.