Heavy rain was noted in most of the area at the end of April 2017. The heavy rain led to major flooding in some areas.
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 rain was noted in most of the area at the end of April 2017. The heavy rain led to major flooding in some areas. Northeast Arkansas was especially hard hit.
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 Apr 26, 5:47 PM CST, 3 hours 49 minutes earlier.
Area Forecast Discussion National Weather Service Little Rock AR 647 PM CDT Wed Apr 26 2017 .AVIATION... Convection is beginning to die down with conditions beginning to improve as the line of showers and thunderstorms progresses east out of Arkansas. Overnight IFR/MVFR ceilings and visibilities will settle in across most terminals. Some gusty winds will be possible as well overnight. Widespread VFR conditions will return by mid morning. && .PREV DISCUSSION...(ISSUED 321 PM CDT Wed Apr 26 2017 ) SHORT TERM...Tonight Through Friday Biggest issue in the short term will be dealing with convection ahead of the cold front tonight, as well as remaining severe chances, and heavy rainfall possibilities. As of now, cold front is basically from near Harrison to between Mena and Poteau. Convection out ahead of the front has been severe in places, shifting from northern/western Arkansas this morning to southern Arkansas this afternoon. The south will be where the highest severe chances will be, as low pressure pushes northeast into Arkansas, and interacts with an instability axis over southern into southeastern Arkansas. Additional rainfall could be heavy at times, which could lead to localized flash flooding issues. Convection will push eastward through the evening, as the front moves on across the state. Front will shift eastward, stalling out briefly to the south of Arkansas. By Friday, the front will move back to the north, then stall out in the vicinity of western and northwest Arkansas. This will lead to issues into the weekend. More on that in the long term discussion... LONG TERM...Friday Night Through Wednesday After a drying out period during the end of the short term period, the long term is shaping up to be a very wet period, with perhaps some severe storms sprinkled in for good measure. First, the pattern. Broad troughing over the Rockies will yield southwesterly flow over the Mid and Lower Mississippi River Valley areas Friday night into Saturday. The trough will deepen Saturday as it transitions to a closed upper low, before ejecting northeast across the southern and central plains late Saturday night into Sunday morning. Meanwhile at the surface, a stalled frontal boundary will be positioned across northern Arkansas. This will act as a focus for showers and thunderstorms, and resulting heavy rains, Friday evening through early Sunday. Eventually, as the upper low ejects into the Saturday night, this front will shift east and exit the state. Until it does so however, copious amounts of Gulf moisture will stream northward into Arkansas to feed the convection that develops, which will result in heavy rains. Forecast PWAT values in some guidance are nearing or above all-time highs. Whether this is realized is irrelevant, as the pattern supports PWAT plumes that will be well above normal. Now, onto the nitty gritty. There are two hazards for this upcoming weekend. First, forecast rainfall amounts from Friday afternoon through Sunday are quite impressive. Some guidance indicates double digit rainfall totals could occur in portions of west central Arkansas during this period. While it's hard to say whether that will be realized or not, what we are confident in saying is that widespread rainfall amounts in excess of 4 inches appear to be a very good bet. This axis of heavy rain will likely be centered from around Johnson/Logan counties up through Sharp county, with the heaviest amounts predicted to be from perhaps Stone or Searcy county back to the west. This will generate some flash flooding and river flooding. The scope of the flooding will depend largely on exactly where that axis of heavy rain sets up and how wide it is, and obviously the end amounts. However it would probably be wise to pay attention to the forecasts over the next day or two as clarity in the details will offer a better idea of what to expect. The second hazard will be the severe storms aspect. Forecast soundings through this period, look sufficient for supercell thunderstorms. While several waves of convection are expected, the most likely periods for severe storms looks to be Friday evening and Friday night, and then again late Saturday night as the upper trough moves through the plains. Instability and shear all appear sufficient to produce at least some severe weather, with damaging winds and hail being the primary threats. Tornadoes will also be a possibility, but the nocturnal timing of storms makes this a difficult call. As with the flooding aspect, time will bring clarity to the details of this setup so individuals are encouraged to continue to monitor future forecasts. By midday Sunday the upper trough will be overhead, while the cold front and associated convection will be east of the state. A much needed dry spell is expected to round out the long term period. FIRE WEATHER... As conditions will be rather wet into next week, no significant fire weather issues are anticipated. && .LZK Watches/Warnings/Advisories... Lake Wind Advisory until 8 PM CDT this evening FOR 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. && Aviation...61
Hazardous Weather Outlook...Updated National Weather Service Little Rock AR 845 PM CDT Wed Apr 26 2017 ARZ003>007-012>016-021>025-030>034-037>047-052>057-062>069-271000- Boone-Marion-Baxter-Fulton-Sharp-Newton-Searcy-Stone-Izard- Independence-Johnson-Pope-Van Buren-Cleburne-Jackson-Logan-Conway- Faulkner-White-Woodruff-Scott-Yell-Perry-Polk-Montgomery-Garland- Saline-Pulaski-Lonoke-Prairie-Monroe-Pike-Clark-Hot Spring-Grant- Jefferson-Arkansas-Dallas-Cleveland-Lincoln-Desha-Ouachita- Calhoun-Bradley-Drew- 845 PM CDT Wed Apr 26 2017 This Hazardous Weather Outlook is for a Large Part of Arkansas. .DAY ONE...Tonight Rain will exit Arkansas to the east. Patchy fog is expected to develop. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...Thursday Through Tuesday A very unsettled pattern is expected Friday through Sunday. Severe weather and excessive rain appear likely at this time. On Friday, a front will be nearly stationary across northern or central Arkansas. North of the front, showers and thunderstorms will develop mainly north of Little Rock, especially during the overnight hours. Precipitation across the northern counties will be ongoing heading into Saturday. Later in the day, a storm system in the Plains will drag a cold front toward the state. Ahead of the front, a large area of showers and thunderstorms will sweep through the region Saturday night and Sunday. Tornadoes, damaging winds, and large hail will be possible with this long duration event. More than a half foot of rain could fall in the northwest half of Arkansas. If this pans out, widespread and life threatening flash flooding would occur. Also, area tributaries would flood, including the Black, Buffalo, Cache, Eleven Point, Fourche La Fave, Petit Jean, Spring, and White Rivers. Forecast details are still being worked out, including where the stationary front will set up on Friday, and the timing of the aforementioned bouts of precipitation. Please continue to monitor the latest forecasts from your National Weather Service concerning this potentially serious situation. .Spotter Information Statement... Spotter activation will likely be needed Friday through Sunday due to expected severe weather and high water. && Visit NWS Little Rock on the web. Go to http://weather.gov/lzk. 59/51/46
PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LITTLE ROCK AR
506 PM CDT WED APR 26 2017
..TIME... ...EVENT... ...CITY LOCATION... ...LAT.LON...
..DATE... ....MAG.... ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
..REMARKS..
0443 PM TSTM WND DMG BRINKLEY 34.88N 91.19W
04/26/2017 MONROE AR EMERGENCY MNGR
THERE WAS EXTENSIVE DAMAGE TO TREES AND POWER LINES AT
BRINKLEY.
&&
57PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LITTLE ROCK AR
513 PM CDT WED APR 26 2017
..TIME... ...EVENT... ...CITY LOCATION... ...LAT.LON...
..DATE... ....MAG.... ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
..REMARKS..
0448 PM TSTM WND DMG COTTON PLANT 35.01N 91.25W
04/26/2017 WOODRUFF AR EMERGENCY MNGR
REPORTS OF POWER LINES AND TREES DOWN IN SOUTHERN
WOODRUFF COUNTY SOUTH OF COUNTY ROAD 306.
&&
61PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LITTLE ROCK AR
516 PM CDT WED APR 26 2017
..TIME... ...EVENT... ...CITY LOCATION... ...LAT.LON...
..DATE... ....MAG.... ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
..REMARKS..
0453 PM TSTM WND DMG MCCRORY 35.26N 91.20W
04/26/2017 WOODRUFF AR EMERGENCY MNGR
REPORTS OF POWER LINES AND TREES DOWN ON HIGHWAY 269.
&&
61PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LITTLE ROCK AR
517 PM CDT WED APR 26 2017
..TIME... ...EVENT... ...CITY LOCATION... ...LAT.LON...
..DATE... ....MAG.... ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
..REMARKS..
0448 PM HAIL 3 S AUGUSTA 35.24N 91.36W
04/26/2017 E1.00 INCH WOODRUFF AR EMERGENCY MNGR
&&
61PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LITTLE ROCK AR
520 PM CDT WED APR 26 2017
..TIME... ...EVENT... ...CITY LOCATION... ...LAT.LON...
..DATE... ....MAG.... ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
..REMARKS..
0455 PM FLASH FLOOD PERRYVILLE 35.01N 92.80W
04/26/2017 PERRY AR PUBLIC
A ROAD WAS FLOODED...AND A CAR WAS STRANDED IN WATER.
&&
57PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LITTLE ROCK AR
602 PM CDT WED APR 26 2017
..TIME... ...EVENT... ...CITY LOCATION... ...LAT.LON...
..DATE... ....MAG.... ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
..REMARKS..
0535 PM HAIL 3 W WARREN 33.61N 92.12W
04/26/2017 E0.75 INCH BRADLEY AR STORM CHASER
&&
EVENT NUMBER LZK1700103
CAVANAUGHThe national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
10 flood. Local standard time, as filed.
Flooding was noted in Patterson on the Cache River after heavy rain fell. The flooding began late on 4/26/17.
Flooding was noted on the Fouche LaFave River at Houston. The flooding began early on 4/30/17.
Flooding was noted on the Buffalo River at St. Joe after heavy rain fell. The flooding began and ended on 4/30/17.
Flooding was noted in Hardy after heavy rain fell. The flooding began early on 4/30/17.
Flooding was noted on the Saline River at Benton after heavy rain fell. The flooding began early on 4/30/17.
Flooding was noted at the end of April on the Little Red River at Judsonia. Flooding began early on 4/30/17.
Flooding was noted on the White River at Batesville after heavy rain fell. The flooding began early on 4/30/17.
Flooding was noted on the White River at Calico Rock after heavy rain fell. The flooding began early on 4/30/17.
Flooding was noted on the Ouachita River at Arkadelphia after heavy rain fell. The flooding began on 4/30/17.
Flooding was noted on the White River at Newport after heavy rain fell. The flooding began on 4/30/17.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Arkansas in 2017Every state in 2017This day in weather historyWarnings in Arkansas, April 2017
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: 696177, 696136, 696195, 696175, 696201, 696152, 696197, 696196, 696202, 696198.