National Weather Service United States Department of Commerce
 
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TTAA00 KLIT 251200
ARZ003>008-012>017-021>025-030>034-037>047-052>057-062>069-252000-

Public Information Statement
National Weather Service Little Rock AR
600 AM CST Sun Feb 25 2024

...Severe Weather Awareness Week in Arkansas Begins Today...

The National Weather Service, in cooperation with the Arkansas 
Department of Emergency Management, has proclaimed the week of 
February 25th through March 2nd as Severe Weather Awareness Week 
in Arkansas. 

Citizens are urged to use this week to understand the hazards of 
severe weather, and to review the safety rules which they can use 
to protect themselves when severe weather occurs. 

A particular subject will be discussed each day. 

Monday...Flooding
Tuesday...Lightning
Wednesday...Tornadoes
Thursday...Severe Thunderstorms
Friday...Watches and Warnings
Saturday...Storm Reports

During Severe Weather Awareness Week, the National Weather Service 
is asking people to think about where they would go when severe 
weather threatens. So, if a Tornado Warning was issued, people 
should know where to go for safety without hesitation. 

In general, the safest place is a building on a permanent foundation 
on the lowest floor in an interior room. The idea is to put as many 
walls between yourself and the outdoors. 

Looking at the forecast, El Nino conditions are in place, meaning 
that water temperatures are warmer than normal along the equator in 
the Pacific Ocean. Research and local data indicates that tornadoes 
tend to be less frequent in Arkansas when El Nino is present. 

Later this year, there should be a transition to La Nina (cooler 
than normal water). When such a transition has occurred in previous 
years, numbers of tornadoes are generally less than the annual 
average of 37 tornadoes.

Years Transitioning from El Nino to La Nina...

Year         Tornadoes
1964            28
1973            50
1983            16
1995            24
1998            36
2010            33
2016            24

While the promise of a less active year is good news, it does not 
mean we will not experience significant severe weather. In 2010 (a 
year featuring a switch from El Nino to La Nina), there was a tornado
outbreak and a lot of rain on April 30th/May 1st. Eighteen tornadoes 
were counted (two of these were rated EF3), and 5 to 8 inches of
precipitation dumped from central into northeast sections of the 
state. 

&&

For a list of all the tornadoes and other significant weather events 
that occurred in 2023...

https://www.weather.gov/media/lzk/StormsOf2023.pdf

$$

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