03/09/06 NOW: Ok, Ark, Tx, and Mississippi / Tenn Valley

[Bart_Comstock]

I thought I would go on ahead and start a new thread for a new day. Hope I made the title correctly.

The NWS has issued two new watches for Arkansas and Oklahoma ahead of several lines of storms. Tor. Watch #47 all of south and central Arkansas. Svr. t-storm watch #46 is for most of NE Oklahoma and NW Arkansas.

Also in Washington County Arkansas the NWS has issued a SVRT-storm Warning which means I get to sleep to the sound of thunder.

If you are in the Ft. Smith area get ready for some really good straight-line winds, complements of the well defined bow echo that is about to blow threw your area.

According to the local news the NWS actually suggested turning on the sirens ahead of the line due to the possibility of winds in excess of 80 mph. Also be careful because the line is moving about 45 mph to the east.

Also the cell, furthest to the south of the line, in West Central Leflore County is starting to get its act together and is beginning to rotate.

 

[Bart_Comstock]

LeFlore county Oklahoma is now under a Tor. Warning. The storm it moving due east at about 45 mph. It looks like Poteau and Wister are all in the direct path of this storm.

 

[Tony Laubach]

The extreme bottom cell of this line is starting to exhibit supercell structure and has what looks like a flying eagle signture. Its track looks to take it south of Fort Smith, AR. Currently am in Springdale, AR after a three hour nap; NWS WX Radio awakened me with the severe watch and have been awake since. Awaiting the northern parts of this line to pass on top of me or just to my immediate south in Fayetteville.

 

[Kevin Bowman]

Originally posted by Tony Laubach
The extreme bottom cell of this line is starting to exhibit supercell structure and has what looks like a flying eagle signture. Its track looks to take it south of Fort Smith, AR. Currently am in Springdale, AR after a three hour nap; NWS WX Radio awakened me with the severe watch and have been awake since. Awaiting the northern parts of this line to pass on top of me or just to my immediate south in Fayetteville.

That storm has very good rotation in it, it appers to be headed straight for ft smith

tornado warning just issued

 

[Tony Laubach]

Storms have weakened considerably in this line. Looks as if we may get some small hail and wind with the passage of the blob at the northern most edge of this line. Will continue to monitor and await its passage.

 

[Bart_Comstock]

For the most part, the northern half of this linear mess has become nothing but a much needed rain event with a nice light show to boast. I am looking out my window in North Bentonville, just off of Hwy 71 B, and it has become a sprinkling rave party.

There are however numerous reports of power outages to the south of Fayetteville staring from Greenland and southward along the leading edge of the storm
.

EDIT: Spoke too soon, it has started to poor here in Bentonville and the flash rate is also increasing.

 

[Ronnie Bradley]

Woke up to a light show here, along with some nickel sized hail which has sinced moved onward. The next batch of cells are heading toward me around 50+kts. White County is SVR warned for strong winds on the leading edge of gust front (Southern White County).
*update*
The cell in Northern Grant county has a bit of a pendant echo, velocity shows a bit of a couplet...

 

[beaudodson]

New TOR Watch just issued for all of my area. 92 mph shear marker entering the Missouri Bootheel. Severe thunderstorm warning in effect for the cell. Looks like a long day ahead.

 

[Scott Olson]

Tornado warnings coming in as line moves into MS. Plenty of SRH, but instability is confined more closely to the gulf. There has been a deep strengthning trend for the storms in LA in the last twenty minutes.

 

[brody_clifton]

As of 12:20PM CST, still no discrete cell development out ahead of the main squall line. However, the main line has increased in intensity last 45 minutes from the Arkansas city area (right on the Missippippi in SE AR) southwestward all the way down into southern LA. Also a separate strong line now in extreme southern IL. In between, in a semicircle west of Memphis, the line has broken into several lewps, and seems to be forming more into an MCS type system with an increasing rain shield.
On cell development ahead of the line ( the primary tornadic threat): Light 30db echoes are showing up about a county ahead of the line in far west central MS and numerous 30 db echoes have appeared south of Jackson in southern MS. Whether this activity will break the cap and become supercellular remains to be seen. 6 hour 15Z RUC forecast indicates a 90+kt 500 mb jet streak developing over eastern AR - perhaps that may lead to or enchance convection out ahead of the line in MS.

 

[Ronnie Bradley]

The lewp made it across my area around 11:00 am, with the individual storms racing NE around 65+ mph. Earlier this morning, a strong gust of winds snapped a power pole in my neighbourhood and I was without power for a good 4 hours. Kudos to Entergy for putting a new power pole in place and restoring the power in a timely fashion!
It looks as if the line is beginning to intensify, with multiple TOR's in MS, and now one in IL.
Meanwhile, a low is deepening over NW AR and some convection is beginning to initiate over NW AR and NE OK. A SVR is out for several counties in E OK.
I may see some more action later this afternoon as the low pulls across N AR.
*update*
Rather than putting up another post on this thread, I will just use this post for a storm shot. In this shot, what you see what looks like a funnel isn't one. This is a shelf cloud that pushed in ahead of a very fast NE moving bow echo that clipped my vicinity.
It is a bit underexposed but bear with me

 

[HAltschule]

As of 1:35pm EST, the Jackson, MS radar site shows one heck of a fierce squall line. It looks like most of the line has SRV winds over 50+ kts at the surface. It's one of the lines that would make me want to watch from behind a brick building instead of punching it. I'm sure we're in for 1 heck of an afternoon. WIsh I were there....

 

[Bart_Comstock]

The NWS has issued SVR T-Storm Watch #51, ahead of some storms that are starting to fire up in and around McAlester Oklahoma, as well in advance of some cells in SW Missouri. The watch covers all of NW Ark as well as Central Missouri, and far west Central Oklahoma.

 

[Tony Laubach]

Reports with this line are saying it moving northeast at 95mph! :shock: I obviously have given up on getting ahead of it as I am currently stopped in Forrest City, Arkansas to collect myself. Multiple towns along I-40 from Little Rock to here were without power after the squall passage. Fortunately I was able to find a gas station on the south side of I-40 which had power, otherwise I'd be sitting about 60 miles west of here.

Not sure what my plans are for the rest of today; I knew getting up this morning that I was likely going to BE chasing; I did just that. May shoot up to Memphis for lunch, then down to Jackson, Miss for dinner before turning around to begin my westward march into Dallas.

Maybe I'll get lucky to see some action later this evening, but with as fast as this system's moving, I figure to be done.

 

[Brandon Clement]

I'm at home just south of Jackson, Ms. We have a nasty squall line moving into the area. They have actually closed most of the schools in the area because they don't want the children in a school bus when the straight line winds come roaring through. The only other time I have seen them close schools was for hurricanes. I don't think that this system is worse than what we have seen before but oh well. I was hoping we could get some cells to fire in front of the line but all morning as soon as something looked like it would go up it would fall apart.

TD's were forecasted to be in the mid-low 60's with sunshine pushing temps into the upper 70's. The sun has failed to show up today leaving temps in the low 70's. The dewpoint made its way up to 62 shortly before lunch but since has actually dropped back down to 58 and the instability is just not here. I dont see anything more than a squall line buzzing through in the next hour or two. Unless a cell fires out in front I will just be viewing this one from my house.