Short Weather Summary

High pressure was the headliner in May. The high setup in the southeast United States, with below normal rainfall and more heat than usual. Storm systems were diverted around the high and away from Arkansas. This kept a lot of severe weather confined to the Plains, with the strongest tornado in almost a decade at Greensburg, Kansas.

Record Temperatures

There were a few record high temperatures tied or broken in May. The records occurred during the first half of the month, with four records at three sites. Check the records below...

Site	Record High (Date of Occurrence)
Fayetteville	89T (05/13)
Little Rock	90 (05/09)
North Little Rock	90 (05/06), 89T (05/07)
Note: "T" means record was tied.

The Pattern

Drought conditions worsened across the southeast United States due to a persistent area of high pressure. The high built over Arkansas in May, with less than two inches of rain (25 to 35 percent of normal) in several spots near the Mississippi River. In general, amounts were 35 to 75 percent of normal, with some surplus totals in the far west away from the high. Temperatures across the area were typically two to four degrees above normal.

In the picture: In May, 2007...there was high pressure ("H") and dry conditions in the southeast United States, with stormy weather surrounding low pressure ("L") in the Plains. The wind flow aloft around the high carried appreciable rainfall away from Arkansas into areas north and west of the state.

With the high overhead, storm systems to the west had difficulty reaching Arkansas. Systems tended to stall in the Rockies, and triggered severe storms in the Plains. There were numerous tornadoes, including an EF5 (the highest winds/the worst possible damage) at Greensburg, Kansas on May 4th. It was the strongest tornado since May 3, 1999 (in Oklahoma City, OK).
In the picture: The pattern on 05/06/2007. A storm system ("L") was stuck in the Rockies, and was blocked by a ridge of high pressure ("H") along the Gulf Coast. In between the two systems, there were strong southwest winds aloft...and southeast winds at ground level. This was creating a lot of shear in the Plains, and a favorable environment for tornadoes.

Severe storms did manage to affect the region on at least a couple of occasions. The system that was responsible for the Greensburg, Kansas tornado finally arrived in Arkansas on the 7th through the 11th. While there was some hail and strong to damaging winds across central and southern sections of the state, it turned into more of a heavy rain event. One to three inches of rain was common, with locally over four inches. The northeast was not so fortunate, with less than an inch of precipitation in areas like Jonesboro (Craighead County) and West Memphis (Crittenden County).

	On the 15th, a cold front pushed into the state from the northwest. Severe weather and some flash flooding were reported in the western counties. Behind the front, temperatures dropped a little below normal...which was a rare occurrence in May.
In the picture: The pattern at 12 am CDT on 05/15/2007. Thunderstorms were developing along a cold front in the Plains, with cooler air to follow.

Links of Interest

May 4-11, 2007 (severe weather/heavy rain)

May 15, 2007 (severe weather)