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| Storm Reports |
| Are you interested in what happened during a recent event? Check out the
report below. |
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February 2008 Storm Report |
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| Short Weather Summary |
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| As was the case in January,
there was wintry precipitation in February and severe weather as well.
There were cases where freezing rain and hail occurred simultaneously in
the same area (on the 11th and the 21st)! Sadly, the month also featured
a couple of killer tornadoes (on the 5th)...with one of these tracking
122 miles (a record). |
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| There were nine record high temperatures
tied or broken at six sites in February on the 4th and 5th. Check
out the records below. |
| Site |
Record
High (Date of Occurrence) |
| El Dorado |
76T (02/04), 77 (02/05) |
| Fayetteville |
76 (02/04) |
| Fort Smith |
79 (02/04) |
| Little Rock |
78T (02/04), 75 (02/05) |
| North Little Rock |
76 (02/04), 74 (02/05) |
| Texarkana |
78T (02/04) |
| Note:
"T" means record was tied. |
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Record high temperatures (in the 70s) preceded a severe
weather event on the 5th. On that day, isolated tornadoes were spawned
during the afternoon and evening...with two killer tornadoes in the
northwest half of the state.
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In the picture: Two deadly tornadic supercells (storms with
rotating updrafts) moved across northern Arkansas on 02/05/2008. Storm #1
produced one long track tornado (122 miles). There was one tornado with Storm #2
as well. Fourteen people were killed (5 deaths in Pope County, 3 deaths in
Van Buren County, 2 deaths in Conway and Izard Counties and 1 death in Baxter
and Stone Counties). |
| One of these tornadoes tracked 122 miles...with extensive
damage from Atkins (Pope County) to Clinton (Van Buren County), Mountain
View (Stone County) and Highland (Sharp County). Thirteen people lost
their lives. It was the longest track tornado in Arkansas since at least
1950.
Another tornado was produced farther north (by a separate storm), and
tracked through the Gassville (Baxter County) area. One person was
killed.
This was the deadliest severe weather event in the state since March
1, 1997 when 25 people were killed. |
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Hail and Freezing Rain
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| After such a warm start in February, it cooled off
markedly behind a cold front which arrived on the 10th. Shallow cold air
followed the front, with high temperatures in the 30s across northern
Arkansas on the 11th. |
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| In the picture: A couple of miles southwest of Mountain View
(Stone County), hail accompanied thunderstorms and freezing rain glazed the
trees with ice during the evening of 02/11/2008. The same tornado in Clinton
(Van Buren County) tracked near this area as well. Click to enlarge. |
| A storm system/front arrived from the Plains during the
evening of the 11th, and sent moisture into areas with readings at or
below freezing. Areas of freezing rain developed across the northern
counties. In addition, scattered thunderstorms popped up...with hail
occurring.
In some places, severe weather and wintry precipitation occurred
simultaneously. At 930 pm CST on the 11th, there was penny size hail at
Mountain View (Stone County) and freezing rain in the area. |
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A few days later, the heaviest rain event in February
unfolded. A powerful storm system aloft moved from the southern Rockies
into the southern Plains on the 16th. The system dredged abundant
moisture northward from the Gulf Coast, with rain becoming widespread.
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In the picture: The pattern at 6 pm CST on 02/16/2008...with a
strong storm system ("L") aloft in the southern Plains and diffluent flow. Air
spreading out aloft (diffluence) was replaced by air below, with rising motion
pushing abundant moisture upward and creating widespread precipitation.
Temperatures in Arkansas were rather cool (mostly in the 40s/50s), which kept
severe weather to a minimum. Severe storms were more likely along the Gulf Coast
where it was warmer (60s/70s) and more unstable. |
| Widespread two to three inch rainfall amounts were common
in the western counties, with less than an inch along the Mississippi
River. Twenty four hour totals as of 6 am CST on the 17th included 2.43
inches at Hot Springs (Garland County), 2.41 inches at Fort Smith
(Sebastian County), 2.35 inches at Fayetteville (Washington County) and
2.34 inches at Mount Ida (Montgomery County). |
| Additional February Details |
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| For more details about
February, 2008...go to the "Temperatures and Precipitation"
section below. |
| Temperatures and Precipitation |
| Temperatures averaged pretty
close to normal in February. The month started off very warm, but it
cooled off between the 11th and 13th and again between the 21st and 24th. |
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Rainfall was generally at or above normal. However, well
below normal totals were noted mainly in parts of northern and eastern
Arkansas. |
| To right, a look at precipitation across the state. |
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| For a look at actual temperatures and precipitation
in Arkansas as measured by the cooperative observer network, click
here. |
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www.weather.gov
