 |
| Storm Reports |
| Are you interested in what happened during a recent event? Check out the report below. |
|
|
 |
June 2009 Storm Report |
 |
| |
| Short Weather Summary |
| |
| It felt a lot like Summer (hot/dry) as high pressure built over Arkansas during the last two weeks of June. Before the high arrived, there was widespread wind damage on the 12th and some flooding on the 14th. The month ended with a hail event on the 30th. |
| |
| There were was record low temperature in early June (on the 5th), and two record high temperatures later in the month (on the 26th and 27th). Check out the records below. |
| Site |
Record Low (Date of Occurrence) |
| North Little Rock |
57 (06/05) |
| Site |
Record High (Date of Occurrence) |
| North Little Rock |
97T (06/26), 98T (06/27) |
 |
High pressure built over the region in the latter half of June. Under the high, temperatures were above normal...and precipitation was spotty. |
| In the picture: The satellite showed high pressure ("H") building northward from the Gulf Coast at 800 am CDT on 06/16/2009. Temperatures at 700 mb (roughly 10,000 feet) were exceeding 10 degrees C, which was making it difficult for air parcels to ascend (to make clouds/storms) and capping the atmosphere. Large clusters of storms were tracking around the periphery of the high from the central Plains into the mid-Mississippi and Ohio Valleys and Great Lakes region. |
| By the time the month ended, portions of southern and western Arkansas received less than 25 percent of normal rainfall. At Texarkana (Miller County), there was only 0.83 inches of rain (18 percent of normal). |
 |
| In the picture: Percent of normal rainfall in June, 2009. |
| Rainfall in June, 2009 |
| Site |
Amount |
Normal |
+/- |
% of Normal |
| Fayetteville (NW AR) |
2.53 |
5.26 |
-2.73 |
48% |
| Harrison (NC AR) |
6.04 |
4.34 |
+1.70 |
139% |
| Jonesboro (NE AR) |
6.45 |
3.29 |
+3.16 |
196% |
| Fort Smith (WC AR) |
2.09 |
4.28 |
-2.19 |
49% |
| Little Rock (C AR) |
3.08 |
3.95 |
-0.87 |
78% |
| West Memphis (EC AR) |
2.22 |
4.45 |
-2.23 |
50% |
| Texarkana (SW AR) |
0.83 |
4.60 |
-3.77 |
18% |
| El Dorado (SC AR) |
2.66 |
5.18 |
-2.52 |
51% |
| Monticello (SE AR) |
1.57 |
3.82 |
-2.27 |
41% |
| It was a complete turnaround from the previous month. In May, there was heavy rain across the southern half of the state. Some spots had amounts over 15 inches (200 to 300 percent of normal or more). |
| Rainfall in May, 2009 |
| Site |
Amount |
Normal |
+/- |
% of Normal |
| Fayetteville (NW AR) |
7.95 |
5.06 |
+2.89 |
157% |
| Harrison (NC AR) |
6.91 |
5.01 |
+1.90 |
138% |
| Jonesboro (NE AR) |
8.35 |
4.92 |
+3.43 |
170% |
| Fort Smith (WC AR) |
8.91 |
5.29 |
+3.62 |
168% |
| Little Rock (C AR) |
13.06 |
5.05 |
+8.01 |
259% |
| West Memphis (EC AR) |
8.05 |
5.06 |
+2.99 |
159% |
| Texarkana (SW AR) |
10.96 |
4.29 |
+6.67 |
255% |
| El Dorado (SC AR) |
10.00 |
5.49 |
+4.51 |
182% |
| Monticello (SE AR) |
11.43 |
4.77 |
+6.66 |
240% |
| One of the hottest days of the month was the 23rd. High pressure shifted to the west, and this allowed a weak cold front to drift into the state from the north. Moisture/higher dewpoints pooled around the front, and created heat index values over 110 degrees in places. |
| Maximum Heat Index Values on 06/23/2009 |
| Site |
Value |
| Fayetteville (NW AR) |
102° |
| Harrison (NC AR) |
104° |
| Jonesboro (NE AR) |
110° |
| Fort Smith (WC AR) |
105° |
| Little Rock (C AR) |
110° |
| West Memphis (EC AR) |
111° |
| Texarkana (SW AR) |
105° |
| El Dorado (SC AR) |
108° |
| Monticello (SE AR) |
107° |
| Severe Storms |
| |
|
|
When the high was not as dominant, the weather became active at times. On the 12th, a bow echo (backward "C" shaped line of storms) swept through Arkansas...and produced 60 to 80 mph winds. There were locally higher gusts (more than hurricane force). |
| In the picture: The WSR-88D (Doppler Weather Radar) showed an MCS (Mesoscale Convective System...or a large cluster of thunderstorms) surging from western into central Arkansas at 118 pm CDT on 06/12/2009. |
| There were numerous trees and powerlines downed, and spotty structural damage. At least 70,000 homes were left without power. There were two weak tornadoes spawned during the event, and these were the only tornadoes noted during the month. |
| Early on the 14th, two to four inches of rain and locally more fell from just south of Mountain Home (Baxter County) to around Batesville (Independence County) and Newport (Jackson County). |
 |
| In the picture: The WSR-88D (Doppler Weather Radar) showed a narrow band of heavy rain and some amounts over four inches through the Newport (Jackson County) area during the early morning of 06/14/2009. |
| At Newport (Jackson County), 4.92 inches of rain fell in the 24 hour period ending at 7 am CDT on the 14th. Street flooding occurred in town, with sandbagging necessary. At the mouth of the Buffalo River around Buffalo City (Baxter County), more than 4 inches of rain caused the river to rise quickly. Several people in the area were stranded and had to be rescued. |
 |
On the 30th (between 430 pm and 600 pm CDT), quarter to baseball size hail damaged cars, broke windows and destroyed crops in Lonoke and Pulaski Counties (central Arkansas). |
| In the picture: Quarter size hail covered the ground at the National Weather Service in North Little Rock (Pulaski County) during the afternoon of 06/30/2009. Click to enlarge. |
| In the Tropics |
| |
| The 2009 Hurricane Season started slowly, with no tropical systems noted. |
| Additional June Details |
| |
| For more details about June, 2009...go to the "Temperatures and Precipitation" section below. |
| Temperatures and Precipitation |
| Temperatures were generally above normal in June. Readings at Little Rock are shown to right. |
 |
 |
Rainfall was at or above normal across portions of northern and eastern Arkansas, and below normal in the southwest. Amounts at Little Rock are shown to left. |
| To right, a look at precipitation across the state. |
 |
| For a look at actual temperatures and precipitation in Arkansas as measured by the cooperative observer network, click here. |
|
|
