Remnant energy from a decayed MCV combined with diurnally driven instability sparked a bit of convection across northeast Arkansas in the late afternoon. A developing thunderstorm northeast of Blytheville became aligned with a small area of spin near the surface causing a landspout.
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The episode as NWS MEG wrote it up.
Remnant energy from a decayed MCV combined with diurnally driven instability sparked a bit of convection across northeast Arkansas in the late afternoon. A developing thunderstorm northeast of Blytheville became aligned with a small area of spin near the surface causing a landspout.
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 Apr 25, 1:44 PM CST, 2 hours 17 minutes earlier. Its key messages:
Area Forecast Discussion...UPDATED National Weather Service Memphis TN 244 PM CDT Fri Apr 25 2025 ...New DISCUSSION... .KEY MESSAGES... Updated at 244 PM CDT Fri Apr 25 2025 - Isolated showers and thunderstorms will continue Saturday afternoon, along with slightly above normal temperatures. A passing upper level disturbance will bring increased rain chances on Sunday. A few strong storms will be possible, though no organized severe weather is expected over the Midsouth this weekend. - Temperatures will warm into the 80s Monday and Tuesday, in advance of a midweek cold frontal passage and increased thunderstorms chances. - Minor flooding will continue along the Mississippi and Saint Francis Rivers through the weekend, with river levels continuing to slowly fall. && .DISCUSSION... (This evening through next Thursday) Issued at 244 PM CDT Fri Apr 25 2025 A relatively quiet mid-spring pattern will prevail over the Midsouth through the weekend. Scattered showers and isolated thunderstorms have developed this afternoon, aided by MLCAPE around 1000 J/kg in advance of a shortwave trough lifting through central MO. Convection over the Midsouth should end this evening, as the trough axis exits and the boundary layer stabilizes. A weak cold front will bring slightly drier air to the Midsouth on Saturday. This will limit rain chances, especially north of I-40. Rain chances will increase Saturday night and early Sunday, as a southern plains MCS tracks eastward along a relatively flat thickness ridge into the Midsouth. This MCS should decay Sunday morning, but may aid in the development of scattered showers and thunderstorms Sunday afternoon. The ridge will amplify considerably on Monday, in response to steep upstream height falls over the Rockies. By Monday afternoon, a northern branch component of a the western U.S. trough will eject into the upper Midwest, while a less progressive southern branch low digs into the desert Southwest. From Monday night through midday Wednesday, the main storm track will extend from the southern plains to the mid-MS River Valley. Across the Midsouth, instability and deep layer sheer will be sufficient to support scattered showers and thunderstorms, mainly in daytime. Showers and thunderstorms should be most numerous north of I-40. 12Z global model consensus depicts the southern branch low ejecting into the Central Plains and mid-MS River valley Wednesday night. In this scenario, peak thunderstorm chances for the Midsouth would occur Wednesday night into Thursday, aided by diffluent flow aloft and PWAT values around 1.75 inches. PWB && .AVIATION... (18Z TAFS) Issued at 1222 PM CDT Fri Apr 25 2025 Lingering showers at TUP will continue to push out of the airspace over the next few hours. Further west, additional TS development is anticipated this afternoon. 1215 PM radar imagery already depicts this trend with increasing coverage expected through sunset. Due to higher confidence regarding TS near TAF sites, opted to cover this activity with TEMPO groups. Tonight, a slow moving front will impact the Mid-South. As this boundary meanders south, fog will develop over portions of West TN and north MS. By mid-morning, degraded vsbys should end and CIGs will return to VFR. ANS && .MEG WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... AR...None. MO...None. MS...None. TN...None. && PUBLIC FORECAST...PWB AVIATION...ANS
Special Weather Statement
National Weather Service Memphis TN
442 PM CDT Fri Apr 25 2025
MSZ012-252215-
Panola MS-
442 PM CDT Fri Apr 25 2025
...A STRONG THUNDERSTORM WILL IMPACT NORTHERN PANOLA COUNTY THROUGH
515 PM CDT...
At 442 PM CDT, Doppler radar was tracking a strong thunderstorm near
Pleasant Grove, or 9 miles south of Senatobia, moving east at 5 mph.
HAZARD...Winds in excess of 30 mph and half inch hail.
SOURCE...Radar indicated.
IMPACT...Gusty winds could knock down tree limbs and blow around
unsecured objects. Minor hail damage to vegetation is
possible.
Locations impacted include...
Pleasant Grove, Sardis, Batesville, Horatio, McGhee, John W Kyle
State Park, Como, and Ballentine.
PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...
If outdoors, consider seeking shelter inside a building.
&&
LAT...LON 3440 9015 3455 9010 3453 8976 3427 8985
TIME...MOT...LOC 2142Z 285DEG 6KT 3448 9004
MAX HAIL SIZE...0.50 IN
MAX WIND GUST...30 MPH
AEHThe Memphis radar (KNQA), 70 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 22:02 UTC.
1 funnel cloud, 1 strong wind. Local standard time, as filed.
A brief landspout formed in an open field northeast of Blytheville. No damage was observed.
A brief landspout formed in an open field northeast of Blytheville. No damage was observed.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Arkansas in 2025Every state in 2025This day in weather historyWarnings in Arkansas, April 2025
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: 1254233, 1266777.