Thunderstorm Wind in Lafayette County, Arkansas

Trees downed along Highway 29 south of Bradley.

Strong to severe thunderstorms developed during the afternoon and early evening on June 23rd within a zone of weak theta-e advection at 850 millibars, extending along the Middle Red River Valley and into the Ark-La-Tex. Rich boundary layer moisture as well as overall strong instability was in place across the area, along with effective deep-layer shear of 35-40 knots. Wind profiles indicated 850 millibar winds out of the south to southeast at around 25 knots, aiding in lift across the warm advection zone. As low-level winds veered and strengthened during the morning hours, forcing for ascent also increased. Slow-moving thunderstorms with heavy rainfall began to rapidly increase in this environment, extending well into the afternoon and early evening. Given the high precipitable water (PWAT) environment, localized strong downbursts also occurred with some of these storms. As a result, several damaging wind reports were recorded across parts of Southwest Arkansas.