A large ridge of high pressure that had been over Arkansas shifted slightly to the east. This allowed somewhat more instability over the state, and when combined with unusually hot temperatures and plenty of humidity, led to the development of a few severe storms.
Every event with a place to put it. 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 LZK wrote it up.
A large ridge of high pressure that had been over Arkansas shifted slightly to the east. This allowed somewhat more instability over the state, and when combined with unusually hot temperatures and plenty of humidity, led to the development of a few severe storms.
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 Jul 29, 11:09 AM CST, 1 hour 21 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION...UPDATED NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LITTLE ROCK AR 1209 PM CDT FRI JUL 29 2011 .DISCUSSION... UPDATED FOR 18Z AVIATION DISCUSSION BELOW... && .AVIATION... MOIST UNSTABLE AIR MASS WILL TRIGGER SCATTERED TO WIDESPREAD SHRA/TSRA THROUGH MUCH OF THE AFTERNOON...WITH DIMINISHED VIS AND CIGS UNDER AND IN VICINITY OF THIS ACTIVITY. BY THIS EVENING...THE EXTENT OF THE SHRA/TSRA ACTIVITY WILL DISSIPATE...THOUGH MORNING FOG AND LOW CIGS WILL BE POSSIBLE...ESPECIALLY IN AREAS THAT SEE AMPLE RAINFALL. SCT SHRA/TSRA WILL AGAIN BE POSSIBLE FOR SAT...WITH SHRA MENTIONED AT ALL TERMINALS. && PREV DISCUSSION... /ISSUED 350 AM CDT FRI JUL 29 2011/ SHORT TERM...TODAY THROUGH MONDAY NIGHT SFC HIGH PRES WAS CENTERED OVR THE SERN PART OF THE NATION EARLY THIS MRNG...WITH S/SELY WIND FLOW NOTED ACRS THE FA. INCRSG WAA IS RESULTING IN LOW CLOUD FORMATION OVR PARTS OF ERN AR ATTM AND EXPECT THIS TREND TO CONT THRU THE MRNG HRS. MAIN FCST FOCUS FOR THE FIRST PART OF THE SHORT TERM WL BE CONVECTIVE TRENDS. EVEN THOUGH THERE ARE NO SIG FORCING FEATURES FOR STORMS TO INITIATE...LOOKS LIKE DAYTIME HEATING WL PROVIDE THE MAIN FOCUS FOR STORM FORMATION TODAY AND AGAIN ON SAT. ACTIVITY ACRS NRN PARTS OF AR WL ALSO BE AIDED BY A FNTL BNDRY THAT WL SAG SWD INTO SRN MO LATER TODAY/TNGT AND EVENTUALLY STALL OUT. MOS POPS HAVE CONTD TO INCRS OVR THE PAST SEVERAL RUNS FOR MOST AREAS. OPTED TO GO WITH LIKELY POPS FOR SERN AR THIS AFTN...WHERE LOW LVL RH WL BE MORE ABUNDANT. STILL CANNOT RULE OF A FEW SVR STORMS BOTH DAYS...WITH DAMAGING WINDS THE MAIN CONCERN. LOCALLY HVY RAINFALL WL ALSO BE LIKELY...WITH FCST PW VALUES IN EXCESS OF 2 INCHES OVR MUCH OF THE AREA. BY SUN AND MON...THE UPR RDG WL AGAIN RE-ESTABLISH ITSELF ACRS THE MID SOUTH. AS A RESULT...HIGH TEMPS ARE EXPECTED TO CLIMB ABV SEASONAL NORMS...WITH RAIN CHCS ONCE AGAIN ON THE DECREASE. CLOUDS AND RAIN CHCS WL KEEP HIGH TEMPS SEVERAL DEGREES LOWER THE TWO DAYS...WITH HEAT INDICES RMNG BLW ADVY CRITERIA. IT DOES APPEAR THAT HEADLINES WL BE NEEDED ONCE AGAIN FOR THE FA HEADING INTO SUN AND BEYOND. LONG TERM...TUESDAY THROUGH THURSDAY HOT AND DRY CONDITIONS RETURN FOR THE EXTENDED PERIOD. A LARGE AREA OF HIGH PRESSURE WILL BUILD OVER THE CENTER PART OF THE COUNTRY...CUTTING OFF ANY GULF MOISTURE AVAILABLE TO ARKANSAS. WILL NOT INCLUDE ANY PRECIPITATION THROUGH THE EXTENDED PERIOD. TEMPERATURES IN THE UPPER 90S TO AROUND 100 DEGREES WILL RETURN THROUGH THURSDAY. && .PRELIMINARY POINT TEMPS/POPS... BATESVILLE AR 92 73 94 74 / 50 30 40 20 CAMDEN AR 92 75 95 74 / 50 30 40 20 HARRISON AR 94 72 93 72 / 50 30 40 20 HOT SPRINGS AR 93 75 94 76 / 50 30 40 20 LITTLE ROCK AR 93 75 93 76 / 50 30 40 20 MONTICELLO AR 91 75 93 75 / 50 30 40 20 MOUNT IDA AR 93 73 95 74 / 50 30 40 20 MOUNTAIN HOME AR 92 72 94 73 / 50 30 40 20 NEWPORT AR 92 73 93 75 / 50 30 40 20 PINE BLUFF AR 91 74 92 75 / 50 30 40 20 RUSSELLVILLE AR 94 74 94 75 / 50 30 40 20 SEARCY AR 92 75 92 74 / 50 30 40 20 STUTTGART AR 91 76 92 76 / 50 30 40 20 && .LZK WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES...NONE. && AVIATION...62
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LITTLE ROCK AR 500 AM CDT FRI JUL 29 2011 ARZ003>007-012>016-021>025-030>034-037>047-052>057-062>069-301000- ARKANSAS-BAXTER-BOONE-BRADLEY-CALHOUN-CLARK-CLEBURNE-CLEVELAND- CONWAY-DALLAS-DESHA-DREW-FAULKNER-FULTON-GARLAND-GRANT-HOT SPRING- INDEPENDENCE-IZARD-JACKSON-JEFFERSON-JOHNSON-LINCOLN-LOGAN-LONOKE- MARION-MONROE-MONTGOMERY-NEWTON-OUACHITA-PERRY-PIKE-POLK-POPE- PRAIRIE-PULASKI-SALINE-SCOTT-SEARCY-SHARP-STONE-VAN BUREN-WHITE- WOODRUFF-YELL- 500 AM CDT FRI JUL 29 2011 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR A LARGE PART OF ARKANSAS. .DAY ONE...TODAY AND TONIGHT MORE CLOUDS ARE EXPECTED TODAY AS AN UPPER LEVEL SYSTEM MOVES THROUGH THE AREA. THIS WILL LEAD TO COOLER TEMPERATURES AND BETTER CHANCES OF SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS. A CHANCE OF PRECIPITATION IS EXPECTED IN ALL AREAS AND WILL BE MOST LIKELY SOUTHEAST. WIDESPREAD SEVERE WEATHER IS NOT EXPECTED...THOUGH A FEW STORMS COULD BECOME SEVERE THIS AFTERNOON. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...SATURDAY THROUGH WEDNESDAY COOLER TEMPERATURES AND MOSTLY CLOUDY TO CLOUDY CONDITIONS ARE EXPECTED SATURDAY AND SUNDAY AS A SYSTEM BRINGS AFTERNOON SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS. THE HOT AND HUMID WEATHER WILL RETURN MONDAY. ISOLATED TO SCATTERED SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS WILL BE POSSIBLE... MAINLY IN THE AFTERNOON TO EARLY EVENING HOURS...THROUGH MONDAY. THE BEST CHANCES FOR STORMS WILL BE SATURDAY. ISOLATED STRONG TO SEVERE STORMS ARE POSSIBLE IN THE AFTERNOON TO EVENING...BUT THE OVERALL THREAT OF SEVERE STORMS WILL BE LOW. THE MAIN THREAT OF ANY SEVERE STORM WILL BE DAMAGING WINDS. TUESDAY AND WEDNESDAY WILL BE DRY AND HOT. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... SPOTTER ACTIVATION IS NOT EXPECTED AT THIS TIME. && VISIT NWS LITTLE ROCK ON THE WEB. GO TO HTTP://WEATHER.GOV AND CLICK ON CENTRAL ARKANSAS. 51
The Little Rock radar (KLZK), 156 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 18:29 UTC.
6 thunderstorm wind, 3 hail, 1 flash flood. Local standard time, as filed.
Flash flooding occurred on Arkansas 56 east of Franklin toward Myron.
Several large trees were blown down around Plainview.
A shed was blown onto a fence.
Large limbs were blown down onto a recreational vehicle, causing significant damage to the RV.
Trees, power lines, and power poles were blown down in Sherwood. Several of the trees landed on houses.
Several large trees were blown down.
Near the junction of U.S. 79/287 and Arkansas 7, much of the roof of an old motel was blown off, as was part of the back wall of the building. Although the motel was unoccupied, many of the rooms were being used to store furnishings. The roofing material from the motel was blown behind the building, covering Dunning St. with debris, and knocking down power poles and transformers. Some of the debris blew across the street, damaging a vacant house. An occupied motel had some shingles removed from its roof. A number of trees were blown down in the area, including Carnes Park. Trees landed on residences on Mt. Holly Rd., Cherry St., and Cuba Cir. At the sheriff's office, a two-car carport was picked up and thrown, damaging an antique patrol car and some fences. At Camden Fairview High School, the roof was rolled up on an outbuilding.
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, July 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: 318509, 318513, 318510, 318512, 318518, 318520, 318517, 318521, 318515, 318537.