Tag: Arkansas

Elsewhere in Weather News: May 3rd, 2014

Matthieu Leave a comment

Severe Weather, including Tornadoes Rip through United States

It’s been a rough week in the south-central United States for tornadoes. Monday and Tuesday warranted two consecutive high risk outlooks by the SPC for central Arkansas and Mississippi/Alabama, respectively. The system did continue on further to the Carolinas, but conditions weren’t as ripe for tornadoes. As of Friday evening, NWS had confirmed 67 tornadoes from the outbreak and from these, 11 were of EF-3 strength or higher.

Sunday was predicted to be a big day tornado-wise across Arkansas but cloudy conditions in the morning prevented much daytime heating from occurring. A mesoscale convective system (MCS) had also passed through the region the night prior which could have further disturbed the environment. With that said, the environment did manage to sustain a violent supercell in central Arkansas on Sunday which spawned the EF-4 Mayflower/Vilonia tornado. The tornado was on the ground for a length of 66.5km, at its peak produced winds of 300km/h and had a width of 1.2km. Unfortunately 15 people perished from this tornado.

Velocity data of the Mayflower/Vilonia supercell before it hit Mayflower on Sunday. Notice the intense couplet (red and blues are close), a sign of strong rotation. (Source: Radarscope)
Velocity data of the Mayflower/Vilonia supercell before it hit Mayflower on Sunday. Notice the intense couplet (red and blues are close), a sign of strong rotation. (Source: Radarscope)

Monday was a threatening day with numerous supercells lined up from southern Tennessee all the way down to southern Mississippi, all a posing threat to drop a tornado because of the volatile environment. The Louisville, MS tornado was one of the most significant one spawned on this day, with an EF-4 rating. It tore through the town killing 9 people and injuring several more. The tornado was on the ground for about an hour, traveling 57km. Another town that took a direct hit on that day was Tupelo, MS. The tornado, which had an EF-3 rating, passed through the northern part of the city taking the life of one person.

Supercells across the US South on Monday, notice the overshooting tops associated with the powerful updrafts. (Source: NOAA)
Supercells across the US South on Monday, notice the overshooting tops associated with the powerful updrafts. (Source: NOAA)

Tornadoes were not the only thing that this system produced on Tuesday night as the MCS stalled out over the Pensacola area of Florida producing flash flood conditions across the region. Interstates were underwater, roads got washed out and parking lots full of cars could be seen underwater. Record-breaking amounts were recorded from this event (provided by Jeff Masters blog):

  • 144mm of rain in one hour
  • 520mm of rain for the event

This weekend the pattern is much calmer across the Southern US and Plains as the atmosphere recharges for the next trough coming ashore next week.

Elsewhere in Weather News: October 20th, 2012

Matthieu Leave a comment

Severe Weather Outbreak in Dixie Alley

This past Wednesday evening a severe weather outbreak comprised of severe winds and strong tornadoes occurred in the southern United States, causing damage to rural areas of Northern Mississippi. This was brought on by the same system we experienced over the past couple of days. The polar jet stream along with a strong low level jet overhead and plenty of moisture from the Gulf of Mexico combined to create conditions ripe for tornadoes in Dixie Alley.

Trough

500mb heights/temperatures with trough (arrow) and circled area where the tornado outbreak occurred. (Source: Twisterdata)

The strongest, a half-mile tornado, rated EF-3 by the National Weather Service, touched down near Jackson Mississippi and caused quite a bit of damage, tearing up large trees and wrecking mobile houses. As the tornado trekked for 26 kilometers, nine people taking cover inside mobile houses were injured but thankfully no fatalities occurred during this event. As the night wore on, more tornadoes touched down in Mississippi and Arkansas, doing damage to rural homes and cutting off power to residents.

Tornado damage

Tornado damage in Leake County, MS. (Source: WLBT)

A few colder days will follow the trough this weekend and a return flow will set up, bringing warm and humid weather back to the region. Weather models are showing another large trough will likely develop late next week, bringing the potential for more dynamic weather. Of course, it is not uncommon to have severe weather in the southern US during the spring and fall, when the polar jet is in the vicinity.

Elsewhere in the world the weather has remained relatively calm, except for this unusual tornado in France.

Video of the tornado in Marseille, France. (Taner Ozdil)

Tornadoes in France are not rare but are not a common sight in October.