Second storm wreaks havoc in Northwest Arkansas
DECATUR — For the second day in a row, the skies over Northwest Arkansas began to darken, giving way to much more powerful thunderstorms than the previous day.
Reeling from a strong supercell thunderstorm that gathered strength, forming hail over the Decatur and Gentry area and depositing it over Springdale the day before, April 28 saw almost the same scenario play out in the same area.
Unfortunately for the people of northwest Arkansas and eastern Oklahoma, the Storm Prediction Center in Norman called for much more intense conditions and even more powerful storms than the day before.
Tornado warnings began popping up across southeast Kansas and northeastern Oklahoma around 2 p.m. Two hours later, a pair of tornado warnings for Delaware and Adair counties in Oklahoma were issued by the National Weather Service office in Tulsa. About the same time in western Benton County the skies grew even darker and soon Mammatus clouds, which are rounded clouds that hang like a pouch under a parent cloud, formed to the west of Decatur.
The Mammatus is an interesting formation to watch and photograph. But their presence has a much more ominous purpose. These clouds mark the growing instability in the atmosphere which leads to severe thunderstorms and supercells.
The warning in Delaware County was extended into western Benton County around 6 p.m. A supercell thunderstorm inched its way closer to Decatur.
Wind gusts of over 30 miles an hour picked up from the south, feeding energy directly into the updraft of the supercell. As with the storm the day before, the hail was lifted into the upper parts of the storm, fell for a short distance and picked back up, each time getting a little bigger. When the storm could no longer support the larger stones, they finally fell to the ground. Fortunately, they were not as big as the day before, so very little damage occurred from this storm.
With the hail in the upper reaches of the storm, the lightning began to intensify, providing an outstanding light show. The core of the storm passed over Decatur on its way to Northwest Arkansas Regional Airport, Cave Springs and eventually into the Tontitown-Springdale area. By this time the storm began to lose its energy and the tornado warning was canceled.
What was left of this storm moved east, leaving the skies over Northwest Arkansas with a beautiful orange, yellow and burnt orange sunset, a calm ending for an afternoon of fury.
May is the busiest month for tornadoes. Some of the most deadly vortexes occurred during this month. It is always wise to have a plan in place and execute should a warning be issued in our area. Extra care needs to be taken during the pandemic. Go to the National Weather Service at www. weather.gov for the latest information on tornado safety in the pandemic.