Thunderstorm Wind in Hempstead County, Arkansas

Tree downed on Highway 29 south of Hope.

Robust thunderstorm development began late in the evening on March 14th along a dryline from the Hot Springs region southward toward Texarkana. Upper air analysis suggested that low to mid-level winds were not quite as strong as compared to areas in Northern Arkansas. However, a strengthening low-level jet sampled by the KLZK (North Little Rock, Arkansas) and KSHV (Shreveport, Louisiana) radars both supported 0-1 km storm relative helicity (SRH) on the order of 200-300 m2/s2. Increasing low-level surface moisture and mixed layer CAPE were supportive of a more tornadic environment downstream of the developing convection. Discrete to semi-discrete supercells migrated into this air mass with damaging wind gusts and tornadoes eventually being reported across parts of Southwest Arkansas late into the evening hours.