A cold front sagged into the Mid-South and stalled across east-central Arkansas into northwest Mississippi. A strongly unstable airmass combined with enough wind shear to produce numerous thunderstorms.
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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 sagged into the Mid-South and stalled across east-central Arkansas into northwest Mississippi. A strongly unstable airmass combined with enough wind shear to produce numerous thunderstorms. One became severe and produced damaging winds in Helena - West Helena along with some flash flooding.
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 Jun 23, 11:28 AM CST, 1 hour 7 minutes earlier.
Area Forecast Discussion National Weather Service Memphis TN 1228 PM CDT Tue Jun 23 2020 .UPDATE... Updated for the 18Z Aviation Discussion && .PREV DISCUSSION... /issued 1025 AM CDT Tue Jun 23 2020/ UPDATE...Morning Update. DISCUSSION... Temperatures have warmed up quickly this morning under partly cloudy skies. Raised afternoon highs slightly. No rain/thunderstorms are ongoing across the Midsouth but storms are approaching from the West and may begin do develop ahead of the approaching storms as temperatures warm into the upper 80s. Most of North Mississippi and portions of East central Arkansas remain under a marginal risk for severe thunderstorms this afternoon. 30 PREV DISCUSSION... /issued 651 AM CDT Tue Jun 23 2020/ A warm and muggy night across the Mid-South at this hour. Temperatures are sitting at a balmy 73 degrees with dewpoint depressions two or less across the majority of the area. A few showers and thunderstorms were noted on KNQA 88-D radar. These showers and thunderstorms are located just ahead of a cold front analyzed from Marion, Illinois west southwest through the Poplar Bluff, Missouri. The aforementioned front is expected to sag south through the afternoon hours today. CAMs are not too excited about activity along the front as it moves through eastern Arkansas and west Tennessee. Convective activity will likely be inhibited this morning due to increasing heights downstream of a mature MCS over the north Texas. The front will likely stall somewhere near the Tennessee and Mississippi border by early afternoon and serve as a foci for convective initiation. Storms are expected to pop around 1PM. 20-25 knots of bulk shear combined with a moderately to strongly unstable airmass will allow for at least a few organized storms this afternoon. These storms will be capable of producing damaging winds and possibly a few instances of large hail. Although steering flow does not look particularly impressive, some enhancement in the wind fields will be possible if an MCV ejects into our area from the west. Will bump up wording and confidence to reflect the increased threat. The majority of activity will come to an end near sundown as the front pushes south of the area and instability wanes. Wednesday will be mostly dry across much of the Mid-South as the front remains stalled over north Mississippi. Renewed convective activity is expected along the boundary during the afternoon hours. With a moisture rich airmass in place and very little steering flow, there is some concern for flash flooding near the boundary. Will continue to mention the threat in the HWO for now. The front will remain over the same area through Thursday, with mainly diurnal convection expected once again. WPC has highlighted a Marginal Risk of excessive rainfall along and around the front through this period. By Friday, a lot of uncertainty gets added to the forecast. Synoptic models suggest that weak shortwave ridging will occur over the Mid-South as a trough begins to dig upstream of us. This would imply a mostly dry forecast for Friday with increasing heat. Beyond this period, the EURO is the preferred model of choice. Multiple waves are expected to traverse through the area Saturday afternoon through Sunday night with widespread showers and thunderstorms. The GFS suggests more scattered activity, but the EURO seems to be resolving the westerlies a bit better. Went ahead and increased POPs to at least 50 through this period. In the long term forecast, models are hinting at an Omega blocking pattern setting up over the U.S. to begin next week. This pattern would translate to increasing heat and humidity across the area. Stay tuned. AC3 && .AVIATION... 18Z TAF cycle VFR conditions will continue through the evening hours. Scattered thunderstorms have already develop across the southern half of the Mid-South and will continue into the early evening hours. Some low clouds will move into portions of north Mississippi early Wednesday morning producing IFR ceilings. Winds will be mainly from the south at around 5 knots during the forecast period across much of north Mississippi. Elsewhere, winds will be from the northwest at 5 to 10 knots for much of the forecast period. ARS && .MEG WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... AR...None. MO...None. MS...None. TN...None. &&
Hazardous Weather Outlook National Weather Service Memphis TN 511 AM CDT Tue Jun 23 2020 ARZ009-018-026>028-035-036-048-049-058-MOZ113-115-MSZ001>017- 020>024-TNZ001>004-019>022-048>055-088>092-241215- 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-Lee AR-Lee MS- Madison-Marshall-McNairy-Mississippi-Monroe-Obion-Panola-Pemiscot- Phillips-Poinsett-Pontotoc-Prentiss-Quitman-Shelby-St. Francis- Tallahatchie-Tate-Tippah-Tipton-Tishomingo-Tunica-Union-Weakley- Yalobusha- 511 AM CDT Tue Jun 23 2020 This hazardous weather outlook is for portions of East Arkansas... the Missouri Bootheel...North Mississippi...and West Tennessee. .DAY ONE...Today and Tonight A few strong to severe thunderstorms are possible this afternoon, mainly south of the Tennessee and Mississippi border. Damaging winds are the main threat, with secondary threats of large hail and locally heavy rainfall. .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. AC3
Special Weather Statement
National Weather Service Memphis TN
1245 PM CDT Tue Jun 23 2020
MSZ009-014-016-017-231815-
Itawamba MS-Union MS-Lee MS-Prentiss MS-
1245 PM CDT Tue Jun 23 2020
...A SIGNIFICANT WEATHER ADVISORY HAS BEEN ISSUED UNTIL 115 PM CDT
FOR...
Northern Itawamba County in northeastern Mississippi...
Eastern Union County in northeastern Mississippi...
Northern Lee County in northeastern Mississippi...
Southern Prentiss County in northeastern Mississippi...
At 1245 PM CDT...a strong thunderstorm producing winds at least 40
mph was located over Blair, or near Baldwyn, moving east at 45 mph.
Very heavy rain along with continuous cloud to ground lightning are
also possible with this thunderstorm.
People in northern Itawamba...eastern Union...northern Lee and
southern Prentiss Counties should monitor this storm closely.
LAT...LON 3422 8832 3440 8885 3458 8878 3449 8833
3446 8833 3446 8821
TIME...MOT...LOC 1745Z 288DEG 37KT 3448 8873Special Weather Statement
National Weather Service Memphis TN
1252 PM CDT Tue Jun 23 2020
ARZ049-058-231815-
Phillips AR-Lee AR-
1252 PM CDT Tue Jun 23 2020
...A SIGNIFICANT WEATHER ADVISORY HAS BEEN ISSUED UNTIL 115 PM CDT
FOR...
Northwestern Phillips County in eastern Arkansas...
South central Lee County in eastern Arkansas...
At 1252 PM CDT...a strong thunderstorm producing winds at least 40
mph was located over Marvell, moving east at 15 mph.
Very heavy rain along with continuous cloud to ground lightning are
also possible with this thunderstorm.
People in northwestern Phillips and south central Lee Counties should
monitor this storm closely.
LAT...LON 3471 9073 3445 9069 3446 9100 3447 9101
3447 9103 3461 9105 3464 9105
TIME...MOT...LOC 1752Z 263DEG 13KT 3456 9096The Memphis radar (KNQA), 111 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 18:36 UTC.
1 thunderstorm wind, 1 flash flood. Local standard time, as filed.
Trees and powerlines were knocked down on Springdale Road.
Vehicles were stranded in floodwaters. Water rescues were necessary.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Arkansas in 2020Every state in 2020This day in weather historyWarnings in Arkansas, June 2020
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: 906826, 906834.