PUBLIC INFORMATION STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LITTLE ROCK AR
909 PM CST FRI NOV 16 2012

...WINTERS IN ARKANSAS...

THE CLIMATOLOGICAL WINTER SEASON IS DEFINED AS THE PERIOD FROM
DECEMBER 1ST-FEBRUARY 28TH. ARKANSAS HAS EXPERIENCED A WIDE VARIETY
OF WEATHER EXTREMES DURING THE WINTER MONTHS SINCE ITS RECORDED
WEATHER HISTORY BEGAN IN 1819...RANGING FROM DEEP SNOWS AND
TEMPERATURES BELOW ZERO...TO HEAVY RAINS...TO EXTREMELY DRY
CONDITIONS AND TEMPERATURES PUSHING 90 DEGREES.

SOME OF THE MORE NOTABLE WINTERS HAVE BEEN...

1822-1823
SNOW FELL AT THE FIRST OF DECEMBER AT LITTLE ROCK...AND BY THE 3RD
OF THE MONTH...THE TEMPERATURE HAD FALLEN TO -9. COLD WEATHER
CONTINUED THROUGH JANUARY AND FEBRUARY...WITH THE TEMPERATURE
FALLING TO SINGLE DIGIT LOWS ON FIVE DAYS IN JANUARY...AND AS LOW AS
-11 ON FEBRUARY 15TH. IN FACT...IN FEBRUARY ALONE...THERE WERE SIX
DAYS WITH SINGLE-DIGIT LOWS AND TWO DAYS WITH TEMPERATURES BELOW
ZERO. MANY LIVESTOCK PERISHED...AND ROADS WERE IMPASSABLE FOR MUCH
OF THE SEASON. ICE FORMED ON BOTH SIDES OF THE ARKANSAS RIVER AT
LITTLE ROCK...BUT THE RIVER DID NOT FREEZE...DUE TO A HIGH STAGE AT
THE TIME.

1831-1832
THERE WAS CONSIDERABLE SNOW AND ICE. SIX INCHES OF SNOW FELL AT
LITTLE ROCK ON DECEMBER 8TH. AT ONE TIME...THE ARKANSAS RIVER WAS
FROZEN OVER 20 MILES BELOW LITTLE ROCK...AND THE WHITE RIVER WAS
FROZEN OVER AT BATESVILLE. TOWARD THE END OF FEBRUARY...SIX INCHES
OF SNOW FELL AT LITTLE ROCK ON THE 23RD. ON THE 29TH...THE WHITE
RIVER AT BATESVILLE WAS REPORTED TO BE FROZEN OVER AGAIN.

1841-1842
THE WINTER WAS THE MILDEST IN SEVERAL YEARS. GARDENS WERE
REPORTED TO BE GREEN...AND PEACH TREES WERE IN BLOOM BY FEBRUARY
1ST.

1855-1856
THE WINTER WAS PARTICULARLY COLD...ESPECIALLY IN JANUARY AND EARLY
FEBRUARY. THE ARKANSAS RIVER WAS FROZEN OVER AT ONE POINT...AND AT
LITTLE ROCK...THE TEMPERATURE FELL TO -4 ON FEBRUARY 4TH.

1863-1864
THIS WAS LIKELY THE COLDEST PERIOD IN MANY YEARS. AT THE
END OF DECEMBER...TWO INCHES OF SNOW FELL AT LITTLE ROCK...WITH
TEMPERATURES IN THE TEENS. DURING THE FIRST WEEKS OF JANUARY...
TEMPERATURES AS LOW AS -10 TO -15 WERE REPORTED AT FORT SMITH AND
LITTLE ROCK.

1876-1877
SEVERAL SNOWSTORMS HIT THE STATE IN DECEMBER...WITH SEVERE
COLD FOLLOWING. TEMPERATURES ON CHRISTMAS MORNING WERE BELOW ZERO AT
HELENA. ON THE 28TH...MOUNT IDA FELL TO -8...AND MONTICELLO TO -1.
ON THE 30TH...LITTLE ROCK BOTTOMED OUT AT ZERO. THE HEAVIEST
SNOWSTORM DURING THIS PERIOD WAS THE ONE ON DECEMBER 31ST...WITH
EIGHT INCHES AT MOUNT IDA...AND 21 INCHES AT MONTICELLO.

THE COLD CONTINUED JANUARY OF 1877...WITH SNOW REMAINING ON THE
GROUND. ON THE 3RD...MOUNT IDA FELL TO 1 ABOVE ZERO...WHILE LITTLE
ROCK FELL TO -4. THERE WAS ANOTHER SNOWSTORM ON THE 7TH...WITH TWO
INCHES AT LITTLE ROCK...FOUR INCHES AT MOUNT IDA...AND ONE INCH AT
MONTICELLO. BY THE 8TH...TEMPERATURES WERE ONCE AGAIN IN THE SINGLE
DIGITS IN MUCH OF THE STATE.

1885-1886
JANUARY AND FEBRUARY SAW SIGNIFICANT COLD SPELLS IN ALL OF
ARKANSAS...AND HEAVY SNOWFALL IN PORTIONS OF THE STATE. THE COLDEST
PERIOD WAS JANUARY 8-11TH. WITH AN INCH OF SNOW ON THE
GROUND...LITTLE ROCK SAW FOUR DAYS WITH LOW TEMPERATURES AT OR BELOW
FIVE DEGREES...CULMINATING IN A -5 READING ON THE 9TH. ON THE SAME
DAY...DODD CITY IN MARION COUNTY FELL TO -13 DEGREES.

ANOTHER COLD PERIOD CAME IN EARLY FEBRUARY. IN A 2-DAY PERIOD FROM
THE 2ND-3RD...24 INCHES OF SNOW FELL AT JUDSONIA...22 INCHES AT
NEWPORT...14-15 INCHES FELL AT MORRILTON...AND TEN INCHES OF SNOW
FELL AT FORT SMITH. AT LITTLE ROCK...A MIX OF SNOW...SLEET...AND
RAIN FELL...WITH ONLY A TRACE OF ACCUMULATION. IN PARTS OF BENTON
COUNTY...THE SNOW WAS REPORTED TO BE AS DEEP AS 24 TO 30 INCHES.

1889-1890
LITTLE ROCK SAW THE DRIEST AND WARMEST DECEMBER ON RECORD.
ABSOLUTELY NO SNOW FELL DURING THE WINTER MONTHS...THE ONLY SUCH
OCCURRENCE SINCE RECORDS BEGAN.

1917-1918
DECEMBER AND JANUARY WERE SNOWY...AND JANUARY IN PARTICULAR WAS
SEVERELY COLD...DUE TO SEVERAL PERIODS OF ARCTIC AIR AND PROLONGED
SNOW COVER. SNOW COVERED ALMOST THE ENTIRE STATE FROM THE 10TH OF
JANUARY THROUGH THE END OF THE MONTH...AND WAS ON THE GROUND IN THE
NORTH INTO THE FIRST COUPLE OF WEEKS OF FEBRUARY. CALICO ROCK
RECORDED 48.0 INCHES OF SNOW. MONTHLY SNOWFALL TOTALS RANGED FROM
40-48 INCHES IN THE NORTHEAST...30-40 INCHES IN PORTIONS OF NORTHERN
AND NORTHEAST ARKANSAS....AND 20 TO 30 INCHES OVER CENTRAL ARKANSAS.
AT LITTLE ROCK...SNOW WAS ON THE GROUND FROM JANUARY 10TH UNTIL
FEBRUARY 8TH.

BY LATE FEBRUARY...THINGS HAD COMPLETELY REVERSED...AND THE MONTH
ENDED WITH TEMPERATURES IN THE 70S AND 80S. ON THE 25TH...LITTLE
ROCK TOPPED OUT AT 87 DEGREES...WITH PINE BLUFF REACHING 92.

1949-1950
THE WINTER WAS MARKED BY HEAVY RAINS...EXTREMELY WARM
TEMPERATURES...AND SEVERAL TORNADOES. ON JANUARY 4TH...AN ARCTIC
FRONT MOVED THROUGH THE STATE...AND DROPPED TEMPERATURES FROM THE
60S AND 70S...TO THE 20S AND CAUSING AN ICE STORM IN THE NORTH.

ON JANUARY 13TH...A TORNADO TOUCHED DOWN NEAR COVE...KILLING ONE.

BY JANUARY 14TH...RIVER FLOODING WAS BAD ENOUGH THAT THE ARKANSAS
NATIONAL GUARD WAS ACTIVATED TO HELP RESCUE PEOPLE. ON JANUARY
25TH...TEMPERATURES AROUND THE STATE WERE IN THE MID 70S TO MID 80S.
SEARCY REACHED 87 DEGREES THAT AFTERNOON...WHICH WAS A RECORD
JANUARY TEMPERATURE FOR THE STATE. ON THE 26TH...AN ARCTIC FRONT
MOVED THROUGH THE STATE...ENDING THE HEAT WAVE. TEMPERATURES WERE IN
THE 30S IN THE NORTH BEHIND THE FRONT...WHILE READINGS ELSEWHERE
WERE IN THE 70S AND 80S.

ON FEBRUARY 1ST...THE SECOND SEVERE ICE STORM IN ALMOST A MONTH HIT
NORTHERN ARKANSAS. ON FEBRUARY 12TH...TORNADOES HIT MOUNT HOLLY AND
NEAR SHERIDAN. BY MID FEBRUARY...THERE WAS ANOTHER ROUND OF RIVER
FLOODING AS HEAVY RAINS CONTINUED. DURING THE MONTH OF FEBRUARY...
AT TOTAL OF 20.72 INCHES OF RAIN FELL AT BEEBE.

1950-1951
THE MOST NOTABLE PERIOD DURING THIS WINTER SEASON WAS THE ICE STORM
AND SEVERE COLD WAVE JANUARY 31ST-FEBRUARY 2ND. THE ICE STORM WAS
SEVERE AND WIDESPREAD OVER MUCH OF THE CENTRAL UNITED STATES.
NORTHERN ARKANSAS WAS COVERED WITH HEAVY ICE...AND THE SOUTH SAW UP
TO SEVEN INCHES OF SNOW. THE ICE STORM SEVERELY DAMAGED FRUIT TREES
AND SHRUBS. MANY ROADS WERE IMPASSABLE...AND SCHOOLS WERE CLOSED UP
TO A WEEK. ELECTRICITY AND TELEPHONE SERVICE WERE DISRUPTED IN MANY
AREAS...AND THERE WAS CONSIDERABLE TIMBER DAMAGE. AFTER THE STORM
ENDED...RECORD COLD GRIPPED THE STATE...WITH TEMPERATURES AS COLD AS
-5 AS FAR SOUTH AS LITTLE ROCK. MAMMOTH SPRING FELL TO -24.

1982-1983
MOST PEOPLE WILL REMEMBER THE WINTER FOR THE INCREDIBLE AMOUNT OF
RAIN THAT FELL IN A 2-DAY PERIOD ON DECEMBER 2ND AND 3RD...AND FOR
THE TWO TORNADO OUTBREAKS DURING THE MONTH. ON THE 2ND...THE FIRST
MAJOR TORNADO OUTBREAK OCCURRED...WITH CENTRAL AND NORTHERN ARKANSAS
THE HARDEST HIT. THE SECOND OUTBREAK WAS DURING THE PERIOD DECEMBER
23RD-25TH...WITH 29 REPORTED TORNADOES ACROSS THE STATE. 14.06
INCHES OF RAIN FELL AT BIG FORK IN A 24-HOUR PERIOD ENDING ON THE
MORNING OF THE 3RD. 25.82 INCHES OF RAIN FELL AT DANVILLE DURING THE
MONTH.

1983-1984
DECEMBER AND JANUARY WERE A PARTICULARLY COLD COUPLE OF MONTHS IN
ARKANSAS WEATHER HISTORY. AT LITTLE ROCK...TEMPERATURES WERE BELOW
FREEZING FOR 12 STRAIGHT DAYS FROM DECEMBER 19TH-31ST. ICE FORMED ON
THE ARKANSAS RIVER...AND MOST OF THE STATE WAS CONTINUOUSLY BELOW
FREEZING. THE COLDEST PERIOD WAS ON DECEMBER 24TH AND 25TH...WITH
MANY LOWS BELOW ZERO...AND HIGHS IN THE SINGLE DIGITS AND TEENS.
MILWOOD LAKE FROZE OVER COMPLETELY. DURING THE COLDEST
PERIOD...STRONG WINDS PRODUCED WIND CHILL TEMPERATURES NEAR 60
DEGREES BELOW ZERO. THERE WAS WIDESPREAD AGRICULTURAL IMPACT...DUE
TO HEADS OF CATTLE FALLING THROUGH THE ICE AND DROWNING LOOKING FOR
WATER. ROADS SAW CONSIDERABLE DAMAGE DUE TO MELTING AND REFREEZING.

THE SECOND MAJOR COLD PERIOD CAME DURING JANUARY 19TH-22ND. MANY
LOWS IN THE NORTH WERE BELOW ZERO...WITH -16 AT YELLVILLE BEING THE
COLDEST. AT LITTLE ROCK...TEMPERATURES FELL INTO THE SINGLE DIGITS.

1987-1988
DECEMBER SAW A PARTICULARLY WET PERIOD DURING THE LATTER PORTION OF
THE MONTH. FROM THE 24TH-29TH...HEAVY RAINS CAUSED FLASH FLOODING...
ESPECIALLY AT WEST MEMPHIS...WHICH WAS RECOVERING FROM A TORNADO
THAT HIT THE CITY AND KILLED SIX PEOPLE ON THE 14TH. RIVER FLOODING
OCCURRED ALONG THE SALINE AND OUACHITA RIVERS. THE OUACHITA RIVER AT
CAMDEN CRESTED AT 42.5 FEET AT CAMDEN ON THE 29TH.

IN JANUARY...SEVERAL SNOWSTORMS HIT THE STATE...WITH THE MOST SEVERE
AND WIDESPREAD ONE ON THE 6TH AND 7TH. 12 TO 13 INCHES FELL IN THE
LITTLE ROCK AREA...AND MUCH OF CENTRAL ARKANSAS SAW 10 TO 15 INCH
TOTALS. THE MOST SNOW FELL IN THE HEBER SPRINGS AREA...WITH 16
INCHES. SEVERELY COLD AIR MOVED INTO THE STATE AFTER THE
SNOWSTORM...WITH SINGLE-DIGIT READINGS AT LITTLE ROCK FROM THE 8TH
THROUGH THE 11TH.


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