A frontal boundary was draped across the Middle Red River Valley of Northeast Texas, Southeast Oklahoma and Southwest Arkansas during the afternoon and evening hours of August 5th. scattered showers and thunderstorms developed across the Four State Region.
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 SHV wrote it up.
A frontal boundary was draped across the Middle Red River Valley of Northeast Texas, Southeast Oklahoma and Southwest Arkansas during the afternoon and evening hours of August 5th. Moderate instability was present across the region with temperatures near 100 degrees and with ample moisture in place...scattered showers and thunderstorms developed across the Four State Region.
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 Shreveport, LA wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Aug 5, 1:37 PM CST, 1 hour 23 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE SHREVEPORT LA 237 PM CDT SUN AUG 5 2012 .DISCUSSION... FRONTAL BOUNDARY CURRENTLY APPROACHING THE RED RIVER VALLEY WITH SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS DEVELOPING ACROSS CENTRAL AND SOUTHERN ARKANSAS. FRONT TO MAKE LITTLE SOUTHWARD PROGRESS AFTER SUNSET AND IS FORECAST TO LINGER ACROSS THE REGION THROUGH MUCH OF THE DAY MONDAY BEFORE DRIFTING SOUTH TO THE NORTHERN GULF COAST. MOISTURE ALONG AND SOUTH OF THE FRONT SHOULD BE ABUNDANT ENOUGH TO MAINTAIN A CHANCE OF SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS ACROSS THE REGION THROUGH MONDAY EVENING. ADDITIONALLY...UPPER-TROUGH TO ALLOW SUFFICIENT MIXING TO KEEP AFTERNOON HIGH TEMPERATURES SHY OF 100 DEGREES FOR THE NEXT COUPLE OF DAYS. FRONT FORECAST TO DRIFT FAR ENOUGH SOUTH TO ELIMINATE THE CHANCE OF PRECIPITATION BY THE MIDDLE OF THE WEEK. HOWEVER...UPPER TROUGH FORECAST TO RETROGRADE WESTWARD NEXT WEEKEND...ALLOWING FOR A RETURN CHANCE OF SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS EACH DAY. OTHERWISE...BECAUSE OF A RELAXED PRESSURE GRADIENT IN THE VICINITY OF THE FRONTAL BOUNDARY...LIGHT WINDS FORECAST TO PREVAIL THROUGH MUCH OF THE FORECAST PERIOD. /05/ && .AVIATION... VFR CONDITIONS SHOULD CONTINUE THROUGH THE TAF PERIOD. THE CONVECTION NEAR MLU AND OVER NE LA HAS DIMINISHED EARLY THIS AFTERNOON...WITH THE POTENTIAL FOR ISOLATED CONVECTION POSSIBLE THROUGH LATE AFTERNOON OVER THE SRN SECTIONS OF NCNTRL LA NEAR A WEAK SHEAR AXIS. HOWEVER...AN EXTENSIVE AREA OF ELEVATED CIGS SHOULD PERSIST THROUGH MUCH OF THE AFTERNOON OVER NCNTRL LA/SE AR...BUT SHOULD GRADUALLY THIN LATE. ELSEWHERE...A SCT CU FIELD HAS FORMED IN RESPONSE TO STRONG HEATING...WITH ISOLATED CONVECTION HAVING RECENTLY DEVELOPED OVER PORTIONS OF EXTREME SE OK/CNTRL AR...NEAR A WEAK SFC FRONTAL BNDRY EXTENDING FROM JUST S OF THE RED RIVER IN EXTREME N TX...INTO SE OK/WCNTRL AND CNTRL AR. THIS CONVECTION SHOULD CONTINUE TO EXPAND THROUGH THE AFTERNOON...SLOWLY SHIFTING S INTO SW AR BY LATE AFTERNOON. THERE IS STILL SOME UNCERTAINTY AS TO HOW FAR S INTO EXTREME NE TX/SW AR THIS CONVECTION WILL BUILD...BUT BELIEVE THAT THE TXK/ELD TERMINALS WILL NOT BE AFFECTED UNTIL AFTER 00Z...IF AT ALL. AMENDMENTS MAY BE NEEDED BASED ON THE CONVECTION COVERAGE/MOVEMENT LATER THIS AFTERNOON. BRIEF MVFR CONDITIONS AND WIND GUSTS IN EXCESS OF 35KTS WILL BE POSSIBLE IN THE STRONGER STORMS...BEFORE THEY DIMINISH BY MID/LATE EVENING WITH THE LOSS OF HEATING. EXTENSIVE ELEVATED CIGS SHOULD AGAIN DEVELOP LATE THIS AFTERNOON/EVENING FROM THIS CONVECTION...SPREADING ACROSS MUCH OF THE REGION OVERNIGHT. CAN/T RULE OUT ISOLATED ELEVATED -SHRA REDEVELOPING AFTER 09Z MONDAY OVER SW AR/EXTREME NRN LA/E TX...WHICH MAY LOWER CIGS TO AROUND 8-10KFT BY SUNRISE MONDAY...BUT THIS SHOULD DIMINISH BY MIDDAY AS IT SHIFTS SSE INTO NCNTRL LA. ONCE STRONGER HEATING IS ABLE TO COMMENCE BY LATE MORNING/MIDDAY...A SCT CU FIELD SHOULD DEVELOP AGAIN OVER MUCH OF THE AREA AS THE AC/CIRRUS SHIELD BEGINS TO THIN. ISOLATED CONVECTION AGAIN CAN/T BE RULED OUT MONDAY AFTERNOON NEAR THE STATIONARY FRONTAL BNDRY TO OUR N...AS WELL AS FARTHER S. VRB WINDS 6KTS OR LESS THIS AFTERNOON WILL BECOME GENERALLY LIGHT/VRB OR LIGHT SE AFTER 00Z. /15/ && .PRELIMINARY POINT TEMPS/POPS... SHV 76 96 76 96 76 / 30 30 40 20 10 MLU 74 95 74 96 74 / 30 40 40 30 10 DEQ 74 97 73 99 72 / 30 20 20 10 10 TXK 76 97 75 97 75 / 30 20 20 20 10 ELD 74 95 73 95 73 / 30 30 40 20 10 TYR 76 99 77 99 77 / 30 20 40 20 10 GGG 76 98 76 97 75 / 30 20 40 20 10 LFK 74 96 74 97 74 / 20 30 40 30 20 && .SHV WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... AR...NONE. LA...NONE. OK...NONE. TX...NONE. && 05/15
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE SHREVEPORT LA 1146 AM CDT SUN AUG 5 2012 ARZ050-051-059>061-070>073-LAZ001>006-010>014-017>022-OKZ077- TXZ096-097-108>112-124>126-136>138-149>153-165>167-061700- SEVIER-HOWARD-LITTLE RIVER-HEMPSTEAD-NEVADA-MILLER-LAFAYETTE- COLUMBIA-UNION AR-CADDO-BOSSIER-WEBSTER-CLAIBORNE-LINCOLN- UNION LA-DE SOTO-RED RIVER-BIENVILLE-JACKSON-OUACHITA-SABINE LA- NATCHITOCHES-WINN-GRANT-CALDWELL-LA SALLE-MCCURTAIN-BOWIE- FRANKLIN-TITUS-CAMP-MORRIS-CASS-WOOD-UPSHUR-MARION-SMITH-GREGG- HARRISON-CHEROKEE-RUSK-PANOLA-NACOGDOCHES-SHELBY-ANGELINA- SAN AUGUSTINE-SABINE TX- 1146 AM CDT SUN AUG 5 2012 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR PORTIONS OF SOUTH CENTRAL ARKANSAS...SOUTHWEST ARKANSAS...NORTH CENTRAL LOUISIANA... NORTHWEST LOUISIANA...SOUTHEAST OKLAHOMA...EAST TEXAS AND NORTHEAST TEXAS. .DAY ONE...THIS AFTERNOON AND TONIGHT... ISOLATED TO SCATTERED SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS WILL BE POSSIBLE ACROSS THE ENTIRE REGION THIS AFTERNOON WITH THE GREATEST COVERAGE EXPECTED OVER PARTS OF SOUTHERN ARKANSAS AND NORTHERN LOUISIANA. ALTHOUGH SEVERE WEATHER IS NOT ANTICIPATED...GUSTY WINDS AND FREQUENT LIGHTNING WILL BE POSSIBLE WITH ANY STORMS. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...MONDAY THROUGH SATURDAY... ISOLATED TO SCATTERED AFTERNOON SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS WILL BE POSSIBLE THROUGHOUT THE WORK WEEK AS A SERIES OF WEAK UPPER DISTURBANCES INTERACT WITH A STALLED FRONTAL BOUNDARY. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... ACTIVATION OF EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT PERSONNEL...AMATEUR RADIO OPERATORS...AND STORM SPOTTERS WILL NOT BE NEEDED THIS AFTERNOON OR TONIGHT.
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE SHREVEPORT LA
350 PM CDT SUN AUG 5 2012
OKZ077-052145-
MCCURTAIN-
350 PM CDT SUN AUG 5 2012
...SIGNIFICANT WEATHER ADVISORY...
THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN SHREVEPORT HAS ISSUED A SIGNIFICANT
WEATHER ADVISORY...EFFECTIVE UNTIL 445 PM CDT...FOR THE FOLLOWING
COUNTY...
IN SOUTHEAST OKLAHOMA...
MCCURTAIN...
INCLUDING THE FOLLOWING LOCATIONS...
BROKEN BOW...
AT 350 PM CDT...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE METEOROLOGISTS WERE
DETECTING A STRONG THUNDERSTORM 18 MILES NORTHWEST OF BROKEN BOW...OR
35 MILES SOUTHEAST OF CLAYTON...MOVING SOUTHEAST AT 20 MPH.
WINDS 40 TO 50 MPH ARE EXPECTED WITH THIS STORM. SHOULD THIS STORM
INTENSIFY...A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING WILL BE NEEDED.
15The Western Arkansas radar (KSRX), 126 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 20:57 UTC.
9 thunderstorm wind. Local standard time, as filed.
Several trees were reported downed near Hwy. 278 and Liberty Hill Road.
A large tree was downed blocking Gilson Avenue. Several other trees were also reported down across the county.
Trees and powerlines were downed in Blevins, Arkansas.
Numerous reports of trees downed near Prescott and across the north central part of Nevada County.
Several trees were downed across the county.
A large oak tree was downed in the Patmos community.
The window of a house in Magnolia was blown out from debris.
Trees were downed on Hwy. 29.
Trees were downed near Kiblah, Arkansas.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Arkansas in 2012Every state in 2012This day in weather historyWarnings in Arkansas, August 2012
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: 390388, 390390, 390393, 390396, 390397, 390398, 390399, 390404, 390406.