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Monthly Storm Reports and Storm Data
Storm Reports
Are you interested in what happened during a recent event? Check out the report below.
 
Arkansas Yearly Climate Summary (2018)/Pg1
 
Links of Interest
Storms of 2018 in Arkansas (in PDF)
Note: This is a file with lists of significant events (tornadoes, damaging winds, hail, etc) during the year in Arkansas.
Significant Events in 2018 Across Arkansas (html)
Significant Events in 2018 Across the U.S. (html)
U.S. Billion Dollar Weather Events in 2018 (html)
Year 2018 (Arkansas) (text)
Year 2018 (Little Rock) (text) Year 2018 (North Little Rock) (text)
Year 2018 (Harrison) (text) Year 2018 (Pine Bluff) (text)

 

Some Quick Stats for Arkansas
 
2018 Statistics
Month Tornadoes Tornado Deaths Wind (Tstm and Non-Tstm) Deaths Flood/Flash Flood Deaths Lightning Deaths
Jan 4 (EF1: 4) 0 0 0 0
Feb 4 (EF0: 1, EF1: 2, EF2: 1) 1 0 0 0
Mar 1 (EF0: 1) 0 0 0 0
Apr 13 (EF0: 3, EF1: 7, EF2: 3) 0 0 0 0
May 2 (EF0: 1, EF1: 1) 0 0 0 0
Jun 2 (EF0: 2) 0 0 0 1
Jul 0 0 0 0 1
Aug 2 (EF0: 1, EF1: 1) 0 0 0 0
Sep 0 0 0 0 0
Oct 2 (EF1: 2) 0 0 0 0
Nov 3 (EF0: 1, EF1: 1, EF2: 1) 0 0 2 0
Dec 1 (EF1: 1) 0 0 0 0
Total 34 1 0 2 2
Note: The latest tornado (rated EF1) affected areas from Spring Hill to Hope (both in Hempstead County) early on December 1st. The strongest tornado (rated EF2/maximum winds around 120 mph) tracked almost 12 miles from near Rudy to southeast of Chester (both in Crawford County) on April 13th.

 

In 2018, above normal temperatures (in red) and above average precipitation (in green) occurred eight out of twelve months.
In the picture: In 2018, above normal temperatures (in red) and above average precipitation (in green) occurred eight out of twelve months.
 

Looking statewide, temperatures and precipitation were largely above average (eight out of twelve months). It was the wettest February on record in Arkansas, and a Top ten wet August/September/October (three month period) and December. It was the warmest May, tied for the warmest May/June/July (three month period), the third coldest April, and a Top 10 cold November. It was snowy with record cold in January, and there was a lot of hail in March.

 

2018 Extremes
Type of Extreme Extreme Reached/Date of Extreme
Hottest Temperature 109° at Booneville 3 SSE (Logan Co.) - July 21
Coldest Temperature -7° at Lead Hill (Boone Co.) - January 17/18
Most Rain (Year) 87.32" at Murfreesboro 1 W (Pike Co.)
Most Rain (Month) 18.04" at Pine Bluff Water Plant (Jefferson Co.) - September
Most Rain (Day) 8.27" at Murfreesboro 2.4 WNW (Pike Co.) - August 9
Least Rain (Year) 40.70" at Flippin (Marion Co.)
Least Rain (Month) 0.32" at Saint Francis (Clay Co.) - July
Most Snow (Year) 8.5" at Stuttgart (Arkansas Co.)
Most Snow (Month) 7.5" at Omaha 2 S (Boone Co.) - January
Most Snow (Day) 5.5" at Georgetown (White Co.) - November 15
Highest Snow Depth 7.0" at Omaha 2 S (Boone Co.) - January 16th

 

It was wet to very wet across much of Arkansas, especially across central and southern sections.
Precipitation  |  Departure From Normal  |  Percent of Normal
Alternate Precipitation Based on Observer Reports
In the pictures: It was wet to very wet across much of Arkansas, especially across central and southern sections.
 

Breaking it down site by site, precipitation totals ranged from around 40 inches in the far north to over 80 inches in parts of central and southern Arkansas. It was the third wettest year on record at Pine Bluff (Jefferson County), and the fourth wettest year at Little Rock (Pulaski County). Temperatures were mostly on the warm side by a few tenths of a degree to a degree and a half.

 

Precipitation in 2018
Site Amount Normal +/- % of Normal
Fayetteville (NW AR) 46.63 48.51 -2.15 96%
Harrison (NC AR) 47.78 44.14 +3.64 108%
Jonesboro (NE AR) 67.80 48.10 +19.70 141%
Fort Smith (WC AR) 54.17 45.46 +8.71 119%
Little Rock (C AR) 71.41 49.75 +21.66 144%
West Memphis (EC AR) 55.49 52.23 +3.26 106%
Texarkana (SW AR) 54.95 49.65 +5.30 111%
El Dorado (SC AR) 58.98 52.92 +6.06 111%
Pine Bluff (SE AR) 76.83 51.15 +25.68 150%
Note: The statewide average precipitation was 64.31 inches, or 14.70 inches above average. This was the 8th wettest year on record.

 

Average Temperatures in 2018
Site Avg Temp +/-
Fayetteville (NW AR) 57.8° +0.8°
Harrison (NC AR) 58.7° +0.8°
Jonesboro (NE AR) 61.0° +1.0°
Fort Smith (WC AR) 62.8° +1.1°
Little Rock (C AR) 62.4° -0.3°
West Memphis (EC AR) 62.5° +1.5°
Texarkana (SW AR) 64.4° +0.5°
El Dorado (SC AR) 64.8° +1.3°
Pine Bluff (SE AR) 63.2° +0.3°
Note: The statewide average temperature was 61.1 degrees, or 0.7 degree above average. This was the 36th warmest year on record.

 

There's More to the Story...
 
Now it's time to check out significant events in 2018 across Arkansas. To check out the rest of the story, click here.