A warm front pushed through the Mid South during the day on May 20th, 2010. Numerous showers and thunderstorms developed well north of the front across northern parts of the Mid South during the early morning hours resulting in some flash flooding.
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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.
The episode as NWS MEG wrote it up.
A warm front pushed through the Mid South during the day on May 20th, 2010. Numerous showers and thunderstorms developed well north of the front across northern parts of the Mid South during the early morning hours resulting in some flash flooding.
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 May 20, 1:55 AM CST, 2 hours 7 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MEMPHIS TN
255 AM CDT THU MAY 20 2010
.DISCUSSION...
CLOUDS ARE INCREASING ACROSS THE FORECAST AREA EARLY THIS MORNING
WITH TEMPERATURES MAINLY IN THE 60S. A LARGE AREA OF SHOWERS AND
THUNDERSTORMS IS MOVING SLOWLY NORTHEAST ACROSS NORTHERN AND
CENTRAL ARKANSAS.
WARM FRONT CURRENTLY EXTENDS FROM WEST CENTRAL ARKANSAS THROUGH
CENTRAL MISSISSIPPI AND INTO SOUTH ALABAMA. THIS FRONT WILL MOVE
NORTH INTO THE FORECAST AREA LATER TODAY. SOUTH OF THE WARM FRONT
THE ATMOSPHERE WILL BECOME QUITE UNSTABLE AND AS A COLD FRONT
APPROACHES FROM THE WEST. SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS WILL BECOME
MORE NUMEROUS LATER TODAY AND TONIGHT. SOME OF THE THUNDERSTORMS
MAY BECOME SEVERE WITH LARGE HAIL AND DAMAGING WINDS BEING THE
MAIN THREAT WITH TORNADOES ALSO A POSSIBILITY. THERE ALSO REMAIN A
FLASH FLOOD THREAT MAINLY OVER NORTHERN SECTIONS OF THE FORECAST
AREA WHERE THE FLASH FLOOD WATCH IS IN EFFECT.
BY FRIDAY MORNING...THE COLD FRONT WILL BE MOVING THROUGH THE
FORECAST AREA WITH SCATTERED SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS AHEAD OF
THE FRONT. THE COLD FRONT SHOULD BE EAST OF THE REGION BY FRIDAY
NIGHT ENDING THE THREAT OF RAIN FOR THE FORECAST AREA.
A LARGE UPPER LEVEL RIDGE BEGINS TO BUILD OVER THE CENTRAL U.S. BY
SATURDAY. THIS WILL BEGIN A PERIOD OF DRY WEATHER OVER THE REGION
WITH AFTERNOON TEMPERATURES APPROACHING 90 DEGREES. THIS PERIOD OF
DRY WEATHER AND VERY WARM TEMPERATURES WILL LAST THROUGHOUT THE
WEEKEND AND INTO MONDAY AND TUESDAY.
AN UPPER LEVEL LOW IS EXPECTED TO DEVELOP OVER THE SOUTHEAST
ATLANTIC COAST EARLY NEXT WEEK AND WILL GRADUALLY MOVE WEST TRYING
TO UNDERCUT THE UPPER LEVEL RIDGE. AS A RESULT...THERE MAY BE SOME
ISOLATED THUNDERSTORMS ACROSS THE FORECAST AREA ON WEDNESDAY.
ARS
&&
AVIATION...
00Z TAF CYCLE
WARM FRONT LOCATED FROM LOUISIANA BACK TO THE ARKLATEX AND
OKLAHOMA WILL PROVIDE A FOCUS FOR SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS AT TAF
SITES...MAINLY AFTER 20/09Z WITH VFR CONDITIONS DROPPING TO MVFR
IN ACTIVITY. ADDED TEMPO GROUPS TO TIME THE ARRIVAL OF THE
SHOWERS/THUNDERSTORMS BUT KEPT VCTS PREVAILING FOR A MAJORITY OF
THE TIME DUE TO TIMING OF ADDITIONAL ROUNDS OF CONVECTIVE
ACTIVITY. AS THE WARM FRONT APPROACHES BOUNDARY LAYER WINDS ARE
ANTICIPATED TO BECOME SUPPORTIVE FOR LOW LEVEL WIND SHEAR AROUND
OR AFTER 20/04Z...AND ADDED TO MEM/MKL/JBR UNTIL ARRIVAL OF
SHOWERS/THUNDERSTORMS.
CJC
&&
.PRELIMINARY POINT TEMPS/POPS...
MEM 82 68 86 69 / 80 80 30 10
MKL 78 66 81 61 / 70 80 50 10
JBR 78 64 84 62 / 80 80 30 10
TUP 83 67 85 67 / 60 80 50 10
&&
.MEG WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES...
AR...FLASH FLOOD WATCH THROUGH FRIDAY MORNING FOR CLAY-CRAIGHEAD-
CRITTENDEN-CROSS-GREENE-LAWRENCE-MISSISSIPPI-POINSETT-
RANDOLPH-ST. FRANCIS.
MO...FLASH FLOOD WATCH THROUGH FRIDAY MORNING FOR DUNKLIN-PEMISCOT.
MS...NONE.
TN...FLASH FLOOD WATCH THROUGH FRIDAY MORNING FOR CARROLL-CHESTER-
CROCKETT-DECATUR-DYER-FAYETTE-GIBSON-HARDEMAN-HARDIN-
HAYWOOD-HENDERSON-HENRY-LAKE-LAUDERDALE-MADISON-MCNAIRY-
OBION-SHELBY-TIPTON-WEAKLEY.
&&HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MEMPHIS TN 330 AM CDT THU MAY 20 2010 ARZ008-009-017-018-026>028-035-036-048-049-058-MOZ113-115- MSZ001>017-020>024-TNZ001>004-019>021-048>055-088>092-211030- ALCORN-BENTON MS-CALHOUN-CARROLL-CHESTER-CHICKASAW-CLAY-COAHOMA- CRAIGHEAD-CRITTENDEN-CROCKETT-CROSS-DESOTO-DECATUR-DUNKLIN-DYER- FAYETTE-GIBSON-GREENE-HARDEMAN-HARDIN-HAYWOOD-HENDERSON-HENRY- ITAWAMBA-LAFAYETTE-LAKE-LAUDERDALE-LAWRENCE-LEE AR-LEE MS-MADISON- MARSHALL-MCNAIRY-MISSISSIPPI-MONROE-OBION-PANOLA-PEMISCOT- PHILLIPS-POINSETT-PONTOTOC-PRENTISS-QUITMAN-RANDOLPH-SHELBY- ST. FRANCIS-TALLAHATCHIE-TATE-TIPPAH-TIPTON-TISHOMINGO-TUNICA- UNION-WEAKLEY-YALOBUSHA- 330 AM CDT THU MAY 20 2010 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR PORTIONS OF EAST ARKANSAS... THE MISSOURI BOOTHEEL...NORTH MISSISSIPPI...AND WEST TENNESSEE. .DAY ONE...TODAY AND TONIGHT THERE IS A SLIGHT RISK OF SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS TODAY AND TONIGHT ACROSS THE ENTIRE AREA AS A COLD FRONT APPROACHES THE REGION. LARGE HAIL AND DAMAGING WINDS ARE THE MAIN THREATS WITH THESE THUNDERSTORMS ALTHOUGH TORNADOES ARE ALSO POSSIBLE. LOCALLY HEAVY RAINFALL AND FLASH FLOODING WILL ALSO BE POSSIBLE AND A FLASH FLOOD WATCH REMAINS IN EFFECT THROUGH FRIDAY MORNING NORTH OF A LINE FROM FORREST CITY ARKANSAS TO SAVANNAH TENNESSEE. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...FRIDAY THROUGH WEDNESDAY A FEW STRONG TO SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS MAY BE POSSIBLE FRIDAY EAST OF THE MISSISSIPPI RIVER. DAMAGING WINDS AND LARGE HAIL ARE POSSIBLE WITH THESE THUNDERSTORMS. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... SPOTTER ACTIVATION MAY BE REQUIRED TODAY AND TONIGHT.
The Memphis radar (KNQA), 116 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 10:02 UTC.
1 flash flood. Local standard time, as filed.
Heavy rain produced flash flooding across Lawrence County. Various back roads were flooded across the county.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Arkansas in 2010Every state in 2010This day in weather historyWarnings in Arkansas, May 2010
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: 230740.