The 2008 Super Tuesday Severe Weather Outbreak: An Arkansas Perspective

An outbreak of severe storms occurred on February 5 and 6, 2008 across much of the Mid-South and Ohio Valley. Over 100 tornadoes were reported during this event. Tornadoes associated with this outbreak were responsible for at least 59 fatalities, which made this event the deadliest in over 20 years. An analysis of this event will be presented, with a focus on the storms that occurred in Arkansas, where 13 fatalities were reported. Of particular interest was the long lived supercell that moved across much of northern Arkansas. This storm had one of the longest tornado tracks ever recorded in Arkansas. A comprehensive, multi-agency field analysis of the tornado track was performed, and data from which were compiled into geospatial formats.

Experiences from this event will be offered as best practices for future warning events associated with tornadic outbreaks.