A cold front approached the Mid-South during the afternoon and evening hours of July 23rd, 2014. Showers and thunderstorms developed along the front and eventually evolved into a mesoscale convective complex.
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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.
A cold front approached the Mid-South during the afternoon and evening hours of July 23rd, 2014. Showers and thunderstorms developed along the front and eventually evolved into a mesoscale convective complex. The complex brought severe storms into Northeast Arkansas which produced 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 Jul 23, 12:10 PM CST, 20 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MEMPHIS TN 110 PM CDT WED JUL 23 2014 .UPDATE... UPDATED FOR 18Z AVIATION DISCUSSION. && .PREV DISCUSSION... /ISSUED 1110 AM CDT WED JUL 23 2014/ DISCUSSION... THE MIDSOUTH IS BETWEEN TWO SYSTEMS TODAY. THERE IS THE WEAK UPPER LOW SITTING TO THE SOUTH NEAR NEW ORLEANS AND A COLD FRONT APPROACHING FROM THE NORTH. THE WEAK UPPER LOW IS THROWING SOME MOISTURE UP OVER NORTH MISSISSIPPI AND THIS SHOULD RESULT IN ISOLD- SCT SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS THIS AFTERNOON AS THE AIRMASS CONTINUES TO DESTABILIZE. MEANWHILE TO THE NORTH...A COLD FRONT IS PRESSING SOUTH. THIS FEATURE HAS KICKED OF AN AREA OF THUNDERSTORMS NEAR THE CONFLUENCE OF THE OH/MS RIVERS. THESE STORMS HAVE BEEN PROPAGATING SWWD THANKS TO THE DEEP NORTHEAST FLOW ALOFT. THIS TREND WILL PROBABLY CONTINUE AND ADDITIONAL ACTIVITY SHOULD DEVELOP ACROSS NORTHEAST ARKANSAS AND THE MO BOOTHEEL THIS AFTERNOON...PER 13Z HRRR. UPPED POPS SLIGHTLY...TO 50 PERCENT ACROSS MUCH OF THE NORTH WHILE DROPPING POPS BACK TO 20 PERCENT IN THE MEMPHIS METRO AREA. A FEW STRONG TO SEVERE STORMS ARE POSSIBLE LATER THIS AFTERNOON...ESPECIALLY ACROSS NORTHEAST ARKANSAS AND THE MO BOOTHEEL. DAMAGING WINDS WILL BE THE MAIN THREAT. UPDATE ALREADY OUT. SJM PREV DISCUSSION... /ISSUED 221 AM CDT WED JUL 23 2014/ AN UPPER LEVEL LOW LOCATED NEAR NEW ORLEANS WILL CONTINUE TO BRING CHANCES FOR SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS TO NORTHEAST MISSISSIPPI TODAY. ALTHOUGH...THE SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS HAVE DISSIPATED OVER THE LAST COUPLE OF HOURS. EXPECT REDEVELOPMENT TO OCCUR BY MID-MORNING WITH CHANCES INCREASING BY THE AFTERNOON HOURS. THE SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS MAY ALSO AFFECT PORTIONS OF WEST TENNESSEE NEAR THE TENNESSEE RIVER. MEANWHILE...A COLD FRONT WILL APPROACH THE MIDSOUTH TODAY. EXPECT SOME SHOWERS AND POSSIBLY A FEW THUNDERSTORMS AHEAD OF THE FRONT TO AFFECT NORTHEAST ARKANSAS AND THE MISSOURI BOOTHEEL THIS MORNING. CHANCES WILL INCREASE BY THIS AFTERNOON ACROSS THIS AREA AND INTO NORTHWEST TENNESSEE AS THE FRONT PUSHES INTO THE AREA. CAN/T RULE OUT A FEW STORMS BECOMING STRONG TO SEVERE THIS AFTERNOON INTO THIS EVENING. DAMAGING WINDS AND/OR LARGE HAIL WOULD BE THE MAIN THREATS FROM THESE STORMS. HIGHS WILL BE IN THE UPPER 80S TO LOWER 90S. THE COLD FRONT WILL CONTINUE TO PUSH THROUGH THE REST OF THE MIDSOUTH TONIGHT. CHANCES FOR SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS WILL SHIFT SOUTH TO SOUTHWEST TENNESSEE AND NORTH MISSISSIPPI BY THE LATE EVENING AND OVERNIGHT HOURS. THURSDAY INTO FRIDAY...PLEASANT WEATHER WILL OCCUR BEHIND THE FRONT AS SFC HIGH PRESSURE BUILDS INTO THE AREA FROM THE OHIO VALLEY BRINGING COOLER AND DRIER AIR INTO THE MIDSOUTH. HIGHS ON THURSDAY WILL BE IN THE LOWER TO MID 80S. LOWS THURSDAY NIGHT WILL BE IN THE UPPER 50S TO MID 60S. THE HIGH WILL QUICKLY SHIFT EAST BY FRIDAY BUT EVEN THOUGH WARMER TEMPERATURES ARE EXPECTED ON FRIDAY THE DRY AIR WILL REMAIN IN PLACE THUS NOT FEELING AS WARM. HOT AND HUMID CONDITIONS WILL RETURN ON SATURDAY AND WILL CONTINUE UNTIL ANOTHER COLD FRONT PUSHES THROUGH THE AREA SUNDAY INTO SUNDAY NIGHT. CHANCES FOR SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS WILL OCCUR AHEAD OF THE FRONT. BEAUTIFUL WEATHER WILL RETURN FOR THE BEGINNING AND MIDDLE PART OF NEXT WEEK AS SFC HIGH PRESSURE SETTLES OVER THE REGION BEHIND THE FRONT. HIGHS WILL BE IN THE LOWER TO MIDDLE 80S WITH LOWS LIKELY IN THE UPPER 50S TO MID 60S. && .AVIATION... 18Z TAF CYCLE VFR AND POSSIBLY MVFR CONDITIONS ARE EXPECTED THROUGHOUT THE FORECAST PERIOD. THUNDERSTORMS HAVE BEGUN TO MOVE INTO THE AREA AHEAD OF A COLD FRONT EXTENDING FROME QUEBEC INTO THE SOUTHERN PLAINS. THE HRRR MODEL HAS COVERAGE OF THESE STORMS DECREASING AS THEY ENTER INTO THE REGION. ADDED VCTS FOR KJBR AND KMKL THROUGH THIS EVENING. A LOW PRESSURE SYSTEM OVER THE NORTHERN GULF HAS CAUSED THUNDERSTORM ACTIVITY OVER NORTH MISSISSIPPI SO I ADDED VCTS AT KTUP. FOG IS POSSIBLE TONIGHT AT KTUP AND KMKL DUE TO LIGHT WINDS AND LOWER LEVEL MOISTURE. WINDS WILL BE SOUTH AHEAD OF THE FRONT AND WILL TURN TO THE NORTH AFTER THE FRONT PASSES EACH TAF SITE BEGINNING WITH KJBR AROUND 00Z. JPM3 && .MEG WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... AR...NONE. MO...NONE. MS...NONE. TN...NONE. &&
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MEMPHIS TN 321 AM CDT WED JUL 23 2014 ARZ008-009-017-018-026>028-035-036-048-049-058-MOZ113-115- MSZ001>017-020>024-TNZ001>004-019>022-048>055-088>092-241200- ALCORN-BENTON MS-BENTON TN-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- 321 AM CDT WED JUL 23 2014 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR PORTIONS OF EAST ARKANSAS... THE MISSOURI BOOTHEEL...NORTH MISSISSIPPI...AND WEST TENNESSEE. .DAY ONE...TODAY AND TONIGHT A COLD FRONT WILL MOVE INTO THE MIDSOUTH THIS AFTERNOON INTO TONIGHT. SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS WILL OCCUR AHEAD OF THE FRONT. SOME STORMS MAY BECOME STRONG TO POSSIBLY SEVERE. DAMAGING WINDS AND LARGE HAIL WOULD BE THE MAIN THREAT FROM THE STORMS. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...THURSDAY THROUGH TUESDAY THE PROBABILITY FOR WIDESPREAD HAZARDOUS WEATHER IS LOW. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... SPOTTER ACTIVATION MAY BE NEEDED THIS AFTERNOON INTO TONIGHT. KRM
The Memphis radar (KNQA), 127 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 18:29 UTC.
6 thunderstorm wind. Local standard time, as filed.
Straight line winds produced damage from northwest of Piggott to south of Rector. Numerous trees and power lines were knocked down. In addition, a roof turbine was blown off in Rector.
Straight line winds produced damage around the Paragould area. Two restaurant signs were knocked down onto Highway 412. Roof damage also occurred to a few homes north of the intersection of Highway 49 and Highway 412.
Straight line winds knocked down a couple of trees between Maynard and Pocahontas. One tree fell onto a house damaging the roof.
Straight line winds produced damage around the Jonesboro area. The ASOS at Jonesboro measured a 58 mph wind gust. Numerous trees and power lines were knocked down in Jonesboro.
Straight line winds knocked down a couple of trees in Trumann.
Straight line winds knocked a large limb down onto a shed and destroyed it near Weiner.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Arkansas in 2014Every state in 2014This day in weather historyWarnings in Arkansas, July 2014
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 2026-10-01. Each event’s entry at NCEI: 534625, 534626, 534628, 534627, 534629, 534630.