An upper level disturbance became trapped underneath an upper ridge on September 10th, 2013. Showers and thunderstorms developed due to the combination of the disturbance and diurnal heating.
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The episode as NWS MEG wrote it up.
An upper level disturbance became trapped underneath an upper ridge on September 10th, 2013. Showers and thunderstorms developed due to the combination of the disturbance and diurnal heating. One storm became severe producing damaging winds.
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 Sep 10, 12:01 PM CST, 2 hours 19 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MEMPHIS TN 101 PM CDT TUE SEP 10 2013 .UPDATE... UPDATED FOR 18Z AVIATION DISCUSSION. && .DISCUSSION... BROAD UPPER RIDGE PREVAILS ACROSS THE OHIO AND MISSISSIPPI RIVER VALLEYS. ANOTHER UNSEASONABLY HOT DAY ON TAP WITH HIGHS IN THE MID TO A FEW UPPER 90S. A WEAK DISTURBANCE REMAINS EMBEDDED IN THE UPPER RIDGE NEAR THE TN RIVER. THIS SUBTLE FEATURE IS CAUSING SCATTERED SHOWERS AND A FEW THUNDERSTORMS FROM NEAR THE TN RIVER INTO SW KY. THE AIRMASS NEAR THE TN RIVER IS QUITE MOIST...KOHX SOUNDING PW IS 2.10 INCHES....AND BECOMING INCREASINGLY UNSTABLE DUE TO SURFACE HEATING. EXPECT THAT THE BEST COVERAGE WILL BE NEAR THE TN RIVER AND HAVE INCREASED POPS INTO THE CHANCE CATEGORY THERE. WINDS ALOFT ARE WEAK SO ANY SHOWERS AND STORMS WILL DRIFT SLOWLY AND PROVIDE A PERIOD OF HEAVY RAIN. BUMPED UP TEMPS A DEGREE OR TWO. UPDATE ALREADY OUT. SJM && .PREV DISCUSSION... HOT AND HUMID CONDITIONS WILL CONTINUE ACROSS THE MIDSOUTH THROUGH THURSDAY NIGHT. AN UPPER RIDGE REMAINS CENTERED OVER THE TENNESSEE VALLEY THIS MORNING. THE RIDGE WILL CONTINUE TO BRING WELL ABOVE NORMAL TEMPERATURES TO THE MIDSOUTH. NORMALLY...WOULD ALSO EXPECT DRY CONDITIONS WITH THE RIDGE BUT A WEAK UPPER LEVEL DISTURBANCE HAS BECOME TRAPPED UNDERNEATH THE RIDGE. THE DISTURBANCE SET OFF THE SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS THAT OCCURRED YESTERDAY. CURRENTLY...THERE IS A FEW TINY SHOWERS OVER ITAWAMBA COUNTY. MODELS ALL PINPOINT SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS WILL BLOSSOM OVER THE CWA THIS MORNING FROM THIS DISTURBANCE. CONFIDENCE IS LOW ON IF THIS WILL OCCUR. THUS FOR NOW WILL CARRY 20 POPS BUT MAY NEED TO UPDATE LATER IF CONVECTION DOES INDEED DEVELOP FURTHER. EVENTUALLY...THE DISTURBANCE WILL WASH OUT BY EITHER TONIGHT OR WEDNESDAY. EXPECT HIGHS IN THE MID TO UPPER 90S EXCEPT WHERE CONVECTION OCCURS THAT SHOULD LEAD TO SLIGHTLY COOLER TEMPERATURES. HEAT INDICES WILL BE BETWEEN 100 AND 105 DEGREES THIS AFTERNOON AND AGAIN ON WEDNESDAY AFTERNOON IN LOCATIONS THAT DO NOT GET AFFECTED BY CONVECTION. A COLD FRONT WILL MOVE INTO THE MIDSOUTH THURSDAY NIGHT. EXPECT SOME SHOWER AND THUNDERSTORM ACTIVITY TO DEVELOP OUT AHEAD OF THE FRONT THAT WILL BEGIN PUSHING INTO NORTHEAST ARKANSAS...THE MISSOURI BOOTHEEL...AND NORTHWEST TENNESSEE LATE THURSDAY AFTERNOON. CONVECTION WILL GRADUALLY DIMINISH IN THE LATE EVENING TO OVERNIGHT HOURS DUE TO THE LOSS OF DAYTIME HEATING. SOME REDEVELOPMENT MAY OCCUR FRIDAY MORNING ALONG THE FRONT ACROSS NORTH MISSISSIPPI. THE BIGGEST CHANGE BEHIND THE FRONT WILL BE WINDS TURNING AROUND TO THE NORTHEAST USHERING IN MUCH DRIER AIR. EXPECT WARM DAYS FOLLOWED BY COOL NIGHTS. HIGHS WILL BE IN THE 80S WITH LOWS MAINLY IN THE 50S. UPPER RIDGE BEGINS TO BUILD BACK OVER THE MIDSOUTH BY SATURDAY NIGHT. ALTHOUGH SFC WINDS WILL REMAIN FROM THE EAST OR NORTHEAST THROUGH SUNDAY NIGHT DUE TO THE ORIENTATION OF THE SFC HIGH. THUS EXPECT TEMPERATURES TO BEGIN TO CLIMB BACK INTO THE UPPER 80S BY THE LATTER PART OF THE WEEKEND BUT IT AT LEAST THERE WILL BE NO HUMIDITY. HOWEVER BY MONDAY...WINDS WILL BEGIN TO TURN AROUND TO THE SOUTH AND THE HUMIDITY WILL BEGIN TO RETURN. THE NEW 00Z ECMWF ALSO BRINGS A COLD FRONT INTO THE AREA ON MONDAY. REGARDLESS IF THERE IS A FRONT THERE STILL MAY BE SOME DIURNAL CONVECTION THAT DAY SO WILL CONTINUE WITH 20 POPS ACROSS THE FORECAST AREA. KRM && .AVIATION... 18Z TAF CYCLE VFR CONDITIONS TO PREVAIL OVER THE NEXT 24 HOURS. WINDS WILL REMAIN LIGHT AND MOSTLY FROM THE SOUTH. SOME AFTERNOON SHOWERS/THUNDERSTORMS DEVELOPING NEAR TAF SITES MKL...MEM...AND TUP. ADDED VCTS AS THE COVERAGE SHOULD BE SPARSE. SHOWERS WILL DIMINISH AFTER SUNSET. SOME FOG EXPECTED AT MKL AND TUP...BUT NOT EXPECTED TO LOWER VISBYS BELOW VFR CRITERIA. AC3 && .PRELIMINARY POINT TEMPS/POPS... MEM 96 77 96 76 / 20 10 20 10 MKL 94 71 94 69 / 30 10 20 10 JBR 97 72 98 72 / 20 10 20 10 TUP 94 72 94 71 / 20 10 20 10 && .MEG WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... AR...NONE. MO...NONE. MS...NONE. TN...NONE. &&
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MEMPHIS TN 345 AM CDT TUE SEP 10 2013 ARZ008-009-017-018-026>028-035-036-048-049-058-MOZ113-115- MSZ001>017-020>024-TNZ001>004-019>021-048>055-088>092-111200- 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- 345 AM CDT TUE SEP 10 2013 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR PORTIONS OF EAST ARKANSAS... THE MISSOURI BOOTHEEL...NORTH MISSISSIPPI...AND WEST TENNESSEE. .DAY ONE...TODAY AND TONIGHT NO HAZARDOUS WEATHER IS EXPECTED AT THIS TIME. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...WEDNESDAY THROUGH MONDAY THE PROBABILITY FOR WIDESPREAD HAZARDOUS WEATHER IS LOW. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... SPOTTER ACTIVATION IS NOT ANTICIPATED AT THIS TIME. KRM
The Memphis radar (KNQA), 18 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 20:19 UTC.
1 thunderstorm wind. Local standard time, as filed.
Straight line winds knocked down several trees in the Bartlett area.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Tennessee in 2013Every state in 2013This day in weather historyWarnings in Tennessee, September 2013
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: 474701.