Heavy rainfall, exceeding 3 to 6 inches across some areas, caused widespread minor river flooding across Arkansas.
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.
Heavy rainfall, exceeding 3 to 6 inches across some areas, caused widespread minor river flooding across Arkansas.
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 Mar 21, 5:44 AM CST, 46 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LITTLE ROCK AR 644 AM CDT WED MAR 21 2012 .AVIATION... WIDESPREAD LIGHT TO MODERATE SHOWERS WILL AFFECT ALL TERMINALS THIS MORNING AND AFTERNOON. MVFR CONDITIONS WILL ACCOMPANY THESE SHOWERS...WITH POSSIBLE IFR CONDITIONS IN HEAVIER SHOWERS. AS WITH THE 06Z PACKAGE I TRIED TO SHY AWAY FROM USING A LOT OF TEMPO GROUPS...AND DECIDED TO JUST PUT MOST ALL SITES DOWN IN MVFR FLIGHT CATEGORIES AND AMEND WHEN/IF NECESSARY. FLIGHT CATEGORIES WILL VARY CONSIDERABLY WITH SHOWERY NATURE OF PRECIP FIELD. EVENTUALLY FRONTAL BOUNDARY AND ASSOC PRECIPITATION WILL BEGIN TO LIFT NE LATE THIS AFTERNOON AND EVENING. HAVE MVFR CIGS AND PREDOMINANT -SHRA ENDING AT ALL SITES AFTER 00Z THIS EVENING. THIS MAY BE A BIT OPTIMISTIC BUT SHOULD NOT BE BY MUCH. && .PREV DISCUSSION... /ISSUED 504 AM CDT WED MAR 21 2012/ SHORT TERM...TODAY THROUGH SATURDAY NIGHT LARGE AREA OF RAINFALL MOVED SLOWLY EAST DURING THE EVENING INTO THE OVERNIGHT HOURS...BRINGING SEVERAL INCHES OF RAINFALL. WHILE THE HEAVIEST RAINFALL DURING THE AFTERNOON AND EVENING HOURS WAS ACROSS THE WEST...OVERNIGHT THE HEAVY BAND MOVED ACROSS THE CENTRAL THIRD...ROUGHLY ALONG THE HIGHWAY 167 AND 65 CORRIDORS. SEVERAL REPORTS OF HIGH WATER ON ROADWAYS/CREEKS OVERFLOWING HAVE COME IN...BUT OVERALL MUCH OF THE RAINFALL HAS SOAKED INTO THE GROUND. MODELS CONTINUE TO SHOW A BREAK IN THE RAINFALL FOR A FEW HOURS THIS MORNING ACROSS THE WEST...BEFORE NEXT BAND MOVES IN FROM TEXAS. THE HEAVY RAINFALL BAND THAT IS CURRENTLY OVER THE AREA WILL SLOWLY MOVE EAST...AS FRONT MOVES EAST. WHILE PRECIPITATION NOW IS ORIENTED NORTH/SOUTH...AS THE UPPER AND SURFACE LOWS MOVE NORTHEAST...THE RAINFALL AXIS WILL BECOME MORE NORTHWEST TO SOUTHEAST. THIS WILL KEEP MUCH OF THE STATE IN RAINFALL THROUGHOUT TODAY...WITH ANOTHER ONE TO TWO INCHES POSSIBLE...WITH LOCALLY HIGHER AMOUNTS. DUE TO THE SLOW MOVEMENT OF THE SYSTEM...THE EASTERN COUNTIES HAVE REMAINED DRY FOR THE MOST PART UNTIL THE LAST FEW HOURS...AND THIS WILL KEEP THE FLASH FLOOD RISK LOW OVER THE EAST. HAVE EXTENDED THE FLASH FLOOD WATCH ACROSS THE WEST THROUGH MIDNIGHT...DUE TO THE LARGE AMOUNTS ALREADY RECEIVED...MORE RAINFALL EXPECTED...AND THE HILLY TERRAIN...WHICH ONLY ADDS TO THE RISK. MUCH OF THE HEAVY PRECIPITATION WILL END ACROSS THE STATE THIS EVENING...AS THE COLD FRONT MOVES EAST OF THE MISSISSIPPI RIVER. WHILE SOME SHOWERS ARE EXPECTED WITH THE UPPER LOW MOVING ACROSS NORTHERN ARKANSAS THURSDAY INTO FRIDAY...THIS RAINFALL WILL GENERALLY BE LIGHT. TEMPERATURES WILL BE TRICKY TODAY...DUE TO THE CLOUD COVER AND RAINFALL. MUCH OF THE WESTERN HALF OF THE STATE WILL HAVE STEADY OR FALLING TEMPERATURES DURING THE AFTERNOON HOURS. THE REST OF THE SHORT TERM WILL HAVE HIGHS IN THE MID 60S TO THE MID 70S. DRY WEATHER WILL RETURN FOR SATURDAY...AND CONTINUE INTO THE LONG TERM. LONG TERM...SUNDAY THROUGH TUESDAY NO SIGNIFICANT CHANGES MADE TO THE EXTENDED FORECAST. MODELS CONTINUE TO SHOW A DRY LONG TERM PERIOD...WITH A STRONG UPPER RIDGE BUILDING OVER THE CENTRAL CONUS AND THE ONLY POSSIBILITY OF RAIN BEING LATE TUESDAY NIGHT AND INTO WEDNESDAY MORNING AS A WEAK FRONT MOVES INTO THE REGION. MONDAY WILL BE THE WARMEST AS THE RIDGE AXIS IS OVERHEAD. EXPECT UPPER 70S TO AROUND 80 LOOK TO BE THE NORM STATEWIDE. && .PRELIMINARY POINT TEMPS/POPS... BATESVILLE AR 70 52 68 51 / 80 70 30 30 CAMDEN AR 63 49 71 52 / 100 50 20 20 HARRISON AR 62 47 66 47 / 90 60 40 40 HOT SPRINGS AR 62 48 69 50 / 90 50 20 20 LITTLE ROCK AR 65 51 69 51 / 100 60 20 20 MONTICELLO AR 67 52 71 53 / 90 60 20 20 MOUNT IDA AR 61 47 68 49 / 80 50 20 20 MOUNTAIN HOME AR 65 49 67 48 / 100 70 30 50 NEWPORT AR 72 53 68 52 / 60 80 30 30 PINE BLUFF AR 66 52 70 52 / 90 60 20 20 RUSSELLVILLE AR 62 48 68 48 / 90 50 20 30 SEARCY AR 68 51 68 51 / 90 70 20 30 STUTTGART AR 69 52 69 52 / 80 70 20 20 && .LZK WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... FLASH FLOOD WATCH THROUGH LATE TONIGHT FOR BAXTER-BOONE-BRADLEY- CALHOUN-CLARK-CLEVELAND-CONWAY-DALLAS-DREW-FAULKNER-GARLAND- GRANT-HOT SPRING-JEFFERSON-JOHNSON-LINCOLN-LOGAN-MARION- MONTGOMERY-NEWTON-OUACHITA-PERRY-PIKE-POLK-POPE-PULASKI-SALINE- SCOTT-SEARCY-VAN BUREN-YELL. && AVIATION...64
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LITTLE ROCK AR 457 AM CDT WED MAR 21 2012 ARZ003>007-012>016-021>025-030>034-037>047-052>057-062>069-221000- 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- 457 AM CDT WED MAR 21 2012 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR A LARGE PART OF ARKANSAS. .DAY ONE...TODAY AND TONIGHT ADDITIONAL MODERATE TO HEAVY RAIN IS EXPECTED TODAY AND TONIGHT. EARLY ON THE PRIMARY FOCUS FOR HEAVY RAINS WILL BE ACROSS THE CENTRAL PART OF THE STATE FROM THE MISSOURI TO LOUISIANA BORDER. BY TONIGHT...THIS FOCUS FOR HEAVY RAIN WILL HAVE SHIFTED TO THE EASTERN PART OF THE STATE. SOME ISOLATED THUNDERSTORMS WILL BE MIXED IN WITH THE WIDESPREAD RAINFALL...BUT EXPECT ANY THREAT OF SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS IS FAIRLY LOW. RIVER AND FLASH FLOODING REMAIN A CONCERN. GROUNDS ARE NOW SATURATED AND IT WILL NO LONGER TAKE VERY HEAVY RAINFALL TO CREATE SIGNIFICANT RUNOFF AND THE POTENTIAL FOR LOCALIZED FLASH FLOODING. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...THURSDAY THROUGH TUESDAY BY THURSDAY MORNING HEAVY RAIN SHOULD BEGIN TO WIND DOWN...WITH THE ONLY NOTABLE CHANCE FOR CONTINUED HEAVY RAIN BEING IN THE NORTHEAST AS THE FRONT PUSHES OUT OF ARKANSAS. FROM THURSDAY EVENING ONWARD, DRIER AND MORE TAME WEATHER CONDITIONS ARE EXPECTED. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... SPOTTER ACTIVATION MAY BE NEEDED TODAY IF FLASH FLOODING BECOMES LIFE THREATENING ACROSS THE STATE. OTHERWISE SPOTTER ACTIVATION IS NOT ANTICIPATED AT THIS TIME. && VISIT NWS LITTLE ROCK ON THE WEB. GO TO HTTP://WEATHER.GOV AND CLICK ON CENTRAL ARKANSAS.
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LITTLE ROCK AR 208 AM CDT WED MAR 21 2012 ARZ055-056-063-210740- CLEVELAND AR-GRANT AR-JEFFERSON AR- 208 AM CDT WED MAR 21 2012 ...SIGNIFICANT WEATHER ADVISORY FOR SOUTHWESTERN JEFFERSON...EXTREME SOUTHEASTERN GRANT AND CENTRAL CLEVELAND COUNTIES UNTIL 245 AM CDT... AT 204 AM CDT...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR WAS TRACKING A STRONG THUNDERSTORM NEAR HEBRON...OR 9 MILES SOUTH OF RISON...MOVING NORTH AT 50 MPH. HAIL UP TO ONE-HALF INCH IN DIAMETER AND WIND GUSTS UP TO 50 MPH ARE EXPECTED WITH THIS STORM. * LOCATIONS IMPACTED INCLUDE... RISON... PINE BLUFF... WHITE HALL... WARBRITTON... TOLEDO... TIPTON... PINE BLUFF ARSENAL... MT ELBA... LAKE PINE BLUFF... KINGSLAND... KEDRON... HEBRON... CRANE LAKE... WATSON CHAPEL... SULPHUR SPRINGS... SAMPLES... ROB ROY... RANDALL... THIS INCLUDES INTERSTATE 530 BETWEEN MILE MARKERS 27 AND 46. THIS STORM MAY INTENSIFY...SO BE CERTAIN TO MONITOR LOCAL RADIO AND TV STATIONS...AS WELL AS LOCAL CABLE TV OUTLETS... FOR ADDITIONAL INFORMATION AND POSSIBLE WARNINGS FROM THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE. LAT...LON 3436 9217 3431 9191 3375 9212 3380 9233 TIME...MOT...LOC 0708Z 195DEG 45KT 3387 9219 58
PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LITTLE ROCK AR
439 AM CDT WED MAR 21 2012
..TIME... ...EVENT... ...CITY LOCATION... ...LAT.LON...
..DATE... ....MAG.... ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
..REMARKS..
0405 AM FLASH FLOOD NORTH LITTLE ROCK 34.79N 92.26W
03/21/2012 PULASKI AR LAW ENFORCEMENT
CRYSTAL HILL ROAD IS COVERED BY AT LEAST 6 INCHES OF
WATER.
0425 AM FLASH FLOOD GASSVILLE 36.28N 92.49W
03/21/2012 BAXTER AR TRAINED SPOTTER
CREEKS WERE OUT OF THEIR BANKS ALONG HIGHWAY 62...WITH
WATER COVERING SEVERAL COUNTY ROADS.
&&PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LITTLE ROCK AR
641 AM CDT WED MAR 21 2012
..TIME... ...EVENT... ...CITY LOCATION... ...LAT.LON...
..DATE... ....MAG.... ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
..REMARKS..
0639 AM HEAVY RAIN 2 NNE DAMASCUS 35.39N 92.39W
03/21/2012 M5.88 INCH VAN BUREN AR CO-OP OBSERVER
0639 AM HEAVY RAIN 2 N MOUNTAIN HOME 36.36N 92.38W
03/21/2012 M5.25 INCH BAXTER AR BROADCAST MEDIA
&&
227PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LITTLE ROCK AR
646 AM CDT WED MAR 21 2012
..TIME... ...EVENT... ...CITY LOCATION... ...LAT.LON...
..DATE... ....MAG.... ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
..REMARKS..
0643 AM FLASH FLOOD SHERWOOD 34.83N 92.21W
03/21/2012 PULASKI AR NWS EMPLOYEE
WATER COVERING KELLOGG ACRES ROAD.
&&PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LITTLE ROCK AR
702 AM CDT WED MAR 21 2012
..TIME... ...EVENT... ...CITY LOCATION... ...LAT.LON...
..DATE... ....MAG.... ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
..REMARKS..
0659 AM HEAVY RAIN 5 N NORTH LITTLE ROCK 34.86N 92.26W
03/21/2012 M4.88 INCH PULASKI AR OFFICIAL NWS OBS
RAINFALL WAS MEASURED AT WFO LITTLE ROCK. THIS IS A STORM
TOTAL SINCE 3 PM YESTERDAY.
0701 AM HEAVY RAIN 8 W CLINTON 35.58N 92.59W
03/21/2012 E5.75 INCH VAN BUREN AR CO-OP OBSERVER
&&
227PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LITTLE ROCK AR
722 AM CDT WED MAR 21 2012
..TIME... ...EVENT... ...CITY LOCATION... ...LAT.LON...
..DATE... ....MAG.... ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
..REMARKS..
0700 AM HEAVY RAIN DOWNTOWN LITTLE ROCK 34.73N 92.23W
03/21/2012 M4.25 INCH PULASKI AR OFFICIAL NWS OBS
MEASURED AT LIT ASOS.
0700 AM HEAVY RAIN MOUNTAIN HOME 36.34N 92.38W
03/21/2012 M3.98 INCH BAXTER AR OFFICIAL NWS OBS
MEASURED AT KBPK.
&&
227The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
9 flood. Local standard time, as filed.
Heavy rainfall caused the Fourche LaFave River near Houston to rise above flood stage for several days at the end of March. Portions of Arkansas 216 and Arkansas 300 were flooded.
Heavy rain caused the Saline River at Benton to rise above flood stage for almost a day in March.
Heavy rain at Batesville and upstream along the White River caused the White River at Batesville to crest just below moderate flood stage.
Heavy rain in late March pushed the Petit Jean River at Danville above flood stage for several days at the end of March.
Heavy rain at the end of March pushed the Ouachita River at Arkadelphia above flood stage for a couple of days. Arkansas 7 was flooded at the railroad trestle on the southeast side of Arkadelphia.
Heavy rain at the end of March pushed the Arkansas River at Morrilton above flood stage for several days.
Heavy rain in the second half of March pushed the Ouachita River at Camden above flood stage through the end of March. Arkansas 7 flooded between Camden and Harmony Grove.
Heavy rain in late March caused Toad Suck Lock and Dam along the Arkansas River to rise above flood stage for several hours on the 23rd.
Heavy rain and releases from upstream dams caused the White River at Clarendon to rise above flood stage in late March. The flooding continued through the end of the month.
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, March 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: 365041, 365047, 365048, 365042, 365046, 365044, 365056, 365043, 365054.