Above normal rainfall by the end of April ended the drought across Phillips County.
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.
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.
Above normal rainfall by the end of April ended the drought across Phillips County.
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 Mar 31, 10:41 PM CST, 1 hour 19 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MEMPHIS TN 1141 PM CDT THU MAR 31 2011 .UPDATE... UPDATED TO ADD 06Z AVIATION DISCUSSION. && .PREV DISCUSSION... /ISSUED 909 PM CDT THU MAR 31 2011/ UPDATE... GOES WATER VAPOR SHOWED AN ELONGATED UPPER LEVEL VORT MAX OVER THE MIDSOUTH... EMBEDDED IN NORTHWEST FLOW. KNQA RADAR SHOWED SCATTERED LIGHT RAIN SHOWERS PERSISTED OVER MUCH OF THE MIDSOUTH. FASTER MOVING SHOWERS WERE NOTED OVER NW MS...NEAR AN UPPER JET EXIT REGION. FORECAST WAS UPDATED EARLIER THIS EVENING TO REMOVE MENTION OF THUNDER AND TO MAKE MINOR CHANGES TO CLOUD COVER. NO ADDITIONAL CHANGES PLANNED AT THIS TIME. PWB PREV DISCUSSION... /ISSUED 635 PM CDT THU MAR 31 2011/ UPDATE... UPDATED TO ADD 00Z AVIATION DISCUSSION. PREV DISCUSSION... /ISSUED 339 PM CDT THU MAR 31 2011/ DISCUSSION... BELOW NORMAL TEMPERATURES COMING TO AN END... THE MIDSOUTH WILL STAY IN NORTHWEST FLOW ALOFT THROUGH THE EARLY PART OF THE WEEKEND. AS A RESULT...SEVERAL SHORTWAVES WILL MOVE THROUGH THE AREA AND SET OFF SCATTERED SHOWERS FROM TIME TO TIME. THE FIRST SHORTWAVE IS CURRENTLY MOVING THROUGH ARKANSAS AND WILL MOVE INTO THE MIDSOUTH EARLY THIS EVENING. CURRENT RADAR IMAGES SHOW AN AREA OF LIGHT RAIN ACROSS MUCH OF WEST ARKANSAS. CAN/T RULE OUT A FEW THUNDERSTORMS AS THERE IS A LITTLE BIT OF ELEVATED INSTABILITY. SHORTWAVE SHOULD EXIT THE CWA BY 12Z. LOWS WILL BE IN THE LOWER 40S. FRIDAY INTO FRIDAY NIGHT...A WEAK FRONT WITH ANOTHER SHORTWAVE WILL MOVE INTO THE CWA. THE COMBINATION OF THE TWO WILL SET OFF ADDITIONAL SHOWERS BEGINNING SHORTLY BEFORE 18Z ACROSS NORTHWEST TENNESSEE...THE MISSOURI BOOTHEEL...AND NORTHEAST ARKANSAS. ACTIVITY WILL SPREAD SOUTH AND EAST AHEAD OF THE FRONT DURING THE AFTERNOON INTO THE EARLY EVENING HOURS. HOWEVER THE SHOWERS SHOULD BE ISOLATED TO SCATTERED IN COVERAGE. AGAIN...CAN/T RULE OUT AN ISOLATED THUNDERSTORM BUT FOR THE MOST PART EXPECT MAINLY SHOWERS. HIGHS WILL BE A TAD WARMER THANKS TO THE BRIEF TURN AROUND TO SOUTHERLY WINDS AHEAD OF THE FRONT. READINGS WILL BE IN THE LOWER 60S TO UPPER 60S. LOWS WILL BE IN THE 40S. SATURDAY...SFC HIGH PRESSURE WILL BRIEFLY MOVE INTO THE AREA AS AN UPPER RIDGE BEGINS TO BUILD OVER THE CENTRAL UNITED STATES. THIS WILL ALLOW SLIGHTLY WARMER TEMPERATURES ON SATURDAY WITH MOSTLY SUNNY SKIES. HIGHS WILL BE IN THE UPPER 60S TO THE LOWER 70S. SATURDAY NIGHT...A WARM FRONT WILL BEGIN LIFTING NORTH FROM THE GULF COAST AHEAD OF A DEVELOPING LOW PRESSURE SYSTEM OVER THE CENTRAL PLAINS. WINDS WILL TURN AROUND TO THE SOUTH AND BEGIN TO PUMP WARM MOIST AIR INTO THE CWA FROM THE GULF OF MEXICO. A FEW SHOWERS MAY DEVELOP ALONG AND NORTH OF THE WARM FRONT...MAINLY ACROSS NORTHEAST ARKANSAS...THE MISSOURI BOOTHEEL...AND NORTHWEST TENNESSEE. LOWS WILL BE IN THE MID 40S TO THE MID 50S. SUNDAY...WARM FRONT SURGES NORTH OF THE CWA AS UPPER RIDGE CONTINUES TO BUILD OVER THE AREA. AS A RESULT...TEMPERATURES WILL JUMP UP DRAMATICALLY. HIGHS WILL BE IN THE MID 70S TO LOWER 80S. SKIES WILL BE MOSTLY SUNNY. SUNDAY NIGHT THROUGH TUESDAY...SEVERE WEATHER OUTBREAK WILL BE POSSIBLE. HOWEVER IT SHOULD BE NOTED THAT THERE ARE DIFFERENCES BETWEEN THE MODEL SOLUTIONS. SOUTHERLY WINDS WILL CONTINUE TO PUMP WARM MOIST AIR INTO THE MIDSOUTH FROM THE GULF OF MEXICO AS A LOW PRESSURE SYSTEM DEVELOPS OVER THE PLAINS AND BEGINS TO MOVE EASTWARD. BY THE TIME THE SYSTEM MOVES INTO THE AREA...A VERY UNSTABLE AIRMASS WILL BE IN PLACE. THE 12Z NAM AND 12Z GFS HAVE COME IN A LITTLE SLOWER WITH TIMING AND ARE IN GOOD AGREEMENT. MEX GUIDANCE AS A RESULT GIVES MEMPHIS A HIGH OF 87 ON SUNDAY. IF THE NAM AND GFS SOLUTION PANS OUT...EXPECT A FEW ISOLATED TO SCATTERED SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS ACROSS THE AREA LATE SUNDAY NIGHT INTO MONDAY BUT FOR THE MOST PART JUST EXPECT MOSTLY CLEAR TO PARTLY CLOUDY SKIES. BY MONDAY AFTERNOON...DEWPOINTS WILL BE IN THE MID 60S TO UPPER 60S. LI/S WILL BE -4 TO -6 ACROSS THE AREA WITH CAPE VALUES NEAR 2500 J/KG. HELICITY VALUES WILL BE THROUGH THE ROOF AS THE SFC LOW IS EXPECTED TO TRACK FROM NORTHWEST ARKANSAS INTO SOUTHERN ILLINOIS. IF CURRENT MODEL TIMING HOLDS...EXPECT DISCRETE SUPERCELLS TO BEGIN FORMING OUT AHEAD OF THE COLD FRONT AND LOW PRESSURE CENTER MONDAY AFTERNOON INTO EARLY MONDAY EVENING ACROSS ARKANSAS MOVING EAST INTO THE MIDSOUTH. THEREAFTER...A SQUALL LINE WILL DEVELOP AHEAD OF THE COLD FRONT AND BEGIN PUSHING INTO EASTERN ARKANSAS SHORTLY BEFORE 6Z. THE LINE WILL CONTINUE TO PUSH EAST DURING THE OVERNIGHT INTO THE MORNING HOURS OF TUESDAY. COLD FRONT WILL PUSH EAST OF THE CWA BY 18Z TUESDAY. LINGERING LIGHT RAIN OR DRIZZLE MAY OCCUR ON THE BACK SIDE OF THE FRONT. COLDER TEMPERATURES WILL FILTER INTO THE AREA BEHIND THE FRONT. SHOULD BE NOTED THAT THE 12Z CANADIAN IS EVEN SLOWER THAN THE GFS AND NAM AS IT DEVELOPS AN UPPER LEVEL LOW. IF THE CANADIAN SOLUTION IS CORRECT...IT MAY BE MORE OF A HEAVY RAIN/FLASH FLOODING THREAT THAN SEVERE. ALSO THE 12Z UKMET AND 12Z ECMWF ARE A LOT FASTER WITH TIMING THAN THE OTHER MODELS AS BOTH MODELS DO NOT DIG THE UPPER LEVEL TROF AS DEEP. HOWEVER...SEVERE WEATHER WOULD STILL BE POSSIBLE BUT THE THREAT MAY JUST BE WITH THE SQUALL LINE AND IT WOULD OCCUR EARLIER ON MONDAY IF THOSE SOLUTIONS ARE CORRECT. FOR NOW WILL LEAN THE NAM/GFS SINCE THE GFS HAS SEEN THE MOST CONSISTENCY WITH THE SYSTEM. STAY TUNED. TUESDAY NIGHT THROUGH THURSDAY...HIGH PRESSURE WILL GRADUALLY BUILD INTO THE AREA. COOLER WEATHER WILL PREVAIL TROUGH AT LEAST WEDNESDAY NIGHT WHEN THE HIGH BEGINS PUSHING TO THE EAST. HIGHS WILL BE IN THE LOWER TO MID 60S WITH LOWS IN THE 40S. BY THURSDAY...WINDS WILL TURN AROUND TO THE SOUTH AGAIN AND BRING HIGHS BACK INTO THE LOWER 70S. KRM && .AVIATION... 06Z TAF CYCLE AN UPPER LEVEL TROUGH AXIS CONTINUES TO PRODUCE SCATTERED LIGHT RAIN SHOWERS ACROSS THE MID SOUTH AS OF 06Z AVIATION DISCUSSION...ESPECIALLY AT MKL/TUP. BASED ON LATEST SHORT TERM TRENDS AND SOME LOW LEVEL DRY AIR IN PLACE...CONFIDENCE IS TOO LOW TO KEEP MVFR CEILINGS IN TAFS. AS A RESULT...VFR CONDITIONS EXPECTED THROUGHOUT THE 06Z TAF PERIOD. LIGHT NORTHWEST WINDS WILL INCREASE TO AROUND 10-11 KTS AFTER 01/15Z THEN BECOME LIGHT BY 02/00Z. CJC && .PRELIMINARY POINT TEMPS/POPS... MEM 43 66 44 71 / 60 20 0 0 MKL 40 63 42 69 / 30 30 10 0 JBR 40 62 41 68 / 40 20 0 0 TUP 42 67 45 72 / 60 10 20 0 && .MEG WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... AR...NONE. MO...NONE. MS...NONE. TN...NONE. &&
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MEMPHIS TN 542 PM CDT THU MAR 31 2011 ARZ008-009-017-018-026>028-035-036-048-049-058-MOZ113-115- MSZ001>017-020>024-TNZ001>004-019>021-048>055-088>092-011100- 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- 542 PM CDT THU MAR 31 2011 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR PORTIONS OF EAST ARKANSAS... THE MISSOURI BOOTHEEL...NORTH MISSISSIPPI...AND WEST TENNESSEE. .DAY ONE...TONIGHT NO HAZARDOUS WEATHER IS EXPECTED AT THIS TIME. RIVER FLOODING WILL CONTINUE ALONG THE MISSISSIPPI RIVER. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...FRIDAY THROUGH WEDNESDAY A SIGNIFICANT UPPER LEVEL DISTURBANCE AND STRONG COLD FRONT WILL MOVE ACROSS THE MID SOUTH STARTING LATE SUNDAY NIGHT THROUGH TUESDAY MORNING. MODERATE INSTABILITY AND STRONG WIND SHEAR MAY RESULT IN SEVERE WEATHER DURING THIS PERIOD. THERE WILL BE THE POTENTIAL FOR LARGE HAIL...DAMAGING WINDS AND A FEW TORNADOES. HEAVY RAIN IS ALSO POSSIBLE WITH THIS SYSTEM LEADING TO POTENTIAL FLASH FLOODING. THIS STORM SYSTEM IS STILL SEVERAL DAYS AWAY...HOWEVER THERE IS GROWING CONFIDENCE THAT THE ENTIRE MIDSOUTH WILL BE QUITE FAVORABLE FOR ALL ASPECTS OF SEVERE WEATHER. STAY TUNED FOR FURTHER FORECAST DETAILS AND CHANGES CONCERNING AREAS OF GREATEST THREAT...AND MORE SPECIFIED TIMING. RIVER FLOODING WILL CONTINUE ALONG THE MISSISSIPPI RIVER. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... ACTIVATION OF STORM SPOTTERS...EMERGENCY MANAGERS...AND LAW ENFORCEMENT OFFICIALS MAY BE NEEDED LATE SUNDAY NIGHT THROUGH TUESDAY MORNING. JAB
The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
1 drought. Local standard time, as filed.
The severe (D2) drought conditions ended across the area.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Arkansas in 2011Every state in 2011This day in weather historyWarnings in Arkansas, April 2011
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: 303695.