Thunderstorm Wind in Columbia County, Arkansas

A strong downburst with estimated maximum winds near 110 mph was confirmed by a NWS Storm Survey team and drone video just southeast of Lake Columbia in Western Columbia County. Hundreds of trees were snapped and uprooted, all lying in a north-northeasterly direction along County Roads 27 and 53, Highway 344, and County Road 33. One home suffered moderate damage when two pine trees were uprooted and fell along the front and backside of the home, crushing their front porch and temporarily trapping 2 residents inside. One manufactured home and the Lakeside Water Association office along Highway 344 also suffered minor roof damage.

A warm and unstable air mass was in place across the Ark-La-Tex region on April 2nd ahead of an approaching cold front. With MLCAPE values near 2000 J/kg, along with strong effective bulk shear and steep mid-level lapse rates, isolated strong to severe thunderstorms rapidly developed and intensified along the front as it moved along the Interstate 30 corridor of Southwest Arkansas during the afternoon and evening hours. Multiple hazards were reported with these storms, which included two separate EF-1 tornadoes in Lafayette County along with a strong downburst in Columbia County.