Flood — Pulaski, Arkansas

2009-12-24 to 2009-12-26 · near Crossroads, Pulaski, Arkansas

Event narrative

Flash flooding, which developed on the evening of the 23rd, became widespread areal flooding on the 24th and continued through Christmas. Numerous county roads were flooded. In the Jacksonville area, four houses had to be evacuated just north of town, and residents of the Taramount neighborhood had to reach their homes by traveling in boats and then walking the rest of the way. The Jacksonville Fire Department rescued people from cars floating on West Main Street. On Arkansas Highway 161 South, a home and some mobile homes were flooded. Flooding also occurred on Jacksonville Cutoff, where a used car lot and a self-storage warehouse were flooded. Many homes along Valentine Road were flooded as well. In Sherwood, flooding occurred in Indianhead Lake Estates, around Bronco Lane, Windchime, Silvercreek, Orchid Lane, in Gravel Ridge, and on Trammel Road from Landers Road to Roundtop Road. Five homes were evacuated off Stagecoach Road in southwest Little Rock. Arkansas Highway 338 was closed in southwest Little Rock. Pinnacle Mountain State Park was flooded.

Wider weather episode

A strong but slow-moving low pressure system began its approach to Arkansas on the 23rd. Ahead of this low, unseasonably large amounts of moisture were drawn northward from the Gulf of Mexico. The approach of the low set off heavy rain and thunderstorms on the 23rd and 24th. Rainfall amounts of 3 to 6 inches were common for the two-day period. In a broad swath from southwest Arkansas through the central part of the state into northeast Arkansas, many places picked up 7 to 10 inches of rain. Flash flooding resulted initially, followed by areal flooding and river flooding. After the low passed by, colder air spilled into Arkansas. Light snow fell across parts of northern and western Arkansas from late on the 24th into the early morning hours of Christmas Day. Most snowfall amounts were in the 1/2 to 1 inch range, with spotty totals up to 2 inches. Though the amounts were rather small, hazardous driving conditions resulted.

View location on OpenStreetMap → (34.8894, -92.6023)

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 201983. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.