FAYETTEVILLE -- The brunt of a tropical storm could reach this corner of Arkansas as soon as today and bring 3 inches of rain or more through Friday, forecasters said Tuesday.
Tropical Storm Bill hit the Texas coast Tuesday and is expected to move northeast for the next several days, prompting the National Weather Service to issue flood watches across a swath of land from north Texas to Illinois, including Northwest Arkansas.
Flood preparation
Before:
• Make emergency kit for essentials and form a family emergency plan.
• Seal basement walls and form barriers around the building.
During:
• Be aware of nearby streams and listen to TV or radio for flood warnings.
• If flooding is imminent, unplug appliances and move furniture to higher level.
• Avoid moving floodwater.
After:
• Avoid moving and stationary floodwater and keep on solid ground.
• Clean and dry everything that got wet.
• Be aware flooded buildings can be dangerously damaged, even if damage isn’t visible.
Source: Federal Emergency Management Agency
Tropical Storm Bill made landfall shortly before noon Tuesday along Matagorda Island northeast of Corpus Christi. The National Hurricane Center in Miami reported the storm had wind of 60 mph and was expected to bring up to 11 inches of rain in isolated areas near Dallas.
Federal Emergency Management Agency personnel sent to Texas and Oklahoma after severe flooding over Memorial Day weekend that killed more than 30 people will remain in the region to help clean up in the aftermath of Tropical Storm Bill, White House spok esman Josh Earnest said Tuesday, according to The Associated Press.
Flooding could strike Benton and Washington counties because the area hasn't dried out from an uncommonly wet May, said Mike Lacy, lead forecaster at the weather service's Tulsa, Okla., office.
"It looks like the main wave of rain that's directly associated with it will be moving in Wednesday night," Lacy said, adding rainfall could start as soon as early today from the storm's farthest reaches.
The weather service Tuesday forecast the tropical storm's path would take the heaviest cumulative rainfall through the crux of Arkansas, Missouri and Oklahoma along the Interstate 44 corridor, Lacy said. But heavy rain is expected outside that narrow band.
Northwest Arkansas could see 4 to 6 inches of rainfall in a line west from Mena to Clarksville, meteorologists at the National Weather Service in North Little Rock said.
"Regardless, probably widespread 3 to 7 inches of rain, and some isolated locations could get up to a foot, which is crazy," Lacy said. "I wouldn't let the guard down at all."
"There will be several waves of moisture with this," National Weather Service hydrologist Tabitha Clarke of North Little Rock said of the western half of the state. "We'll see several rounds of rain."
But a ridge of high pressure in the southeastern United States could push the storm system further west, and eastern Arkansas would likely see less than in inch of rain over the next few days.
The storm track's shift toward the west would be good news for those along the Arkansas and Red river.
Clarke said she expects the rainfall will still have an impact on flooding, but it could be "minor compared to major."
In early May, heavy rain fell on Fort Smith and the Arkansas River Valley, sending the Arkansas River above flood stage. Up to 15 inches of rain also fell in eastern Oklahoma and Texas, sending torrents of water into the Arkansas and Red river basins.
June typically gets about 5 inches of rain total to the area, according to the weather service. Bentonville got about 1 inch this month by Tuesday afternoon, while Fayetteville got 2 inches. The record is just more than 14 inches in 2000.
May dumped about a foot of water at the service's Bentonville and Fayetteville stations, roughly double normal. Almost two weeks of dry weather earlier this month wasn't enough to make up for the deluge on its way, Lacy said.
"There's going to be a lot of runoff," he said. "There's definitely going to be some life-threatening flooding that's going to occur (in some areas)."
Flooding in Northwest Arkansas is most likely alongside streams and rivers, according to the Federal Emergency Management Agency's flood hazard map. The agency recommends making an emergency kit for basic needs and deciding on a family evacuation and communication plan before floods. Running water just a few inches deep can sweep people off their feet and move vehicles.
"Just be cautious," said John Luther, director of Washington County Emergency Management. Pay attention to watches and warnings and avoid driving on flooded roadways, he said.
Luther and Benton County officials said they were keeping in continuous contact with the weather service's Tulsa offices and local fire and police departments and were prepared to deploy personnel and equipment if needed.
"Obviously, we're monitoring the weather and will be at a heightened level of preparedness," said Marshal Watson, Benton County's emergency services administrator. "We'll be ready to react to whatever situation may arise."
The weather service Tuesday expected sunny and warm weather to return Saturday, with temperatures reaching into the upper 80s.
"The weekend looks fairly quiet," Lacy said. With a high-pressure system setting up next week, the weather should stay quiet, he said.
The Arkansas River reached 46 feet in Pine Bluff two weeks ago, 4 feet above the flood stage and the fifth highest level the river has reached in the Jefferson County town.
On Tuesday, the river measured at 12.8 feet in Little Rock, down from the 23-foot mark it reached June 3.
Still, the river is flowing at 150,000 cubic feet per second -- three times the normal rate -- and the Army Corps of Engineers has continued to issue a small craft advisory for the entire river because of the rapid currents.
The Northwestern quarter of the state is under a flash flood watch, and the Weather Service issued a flood warning for the Arkansas River at Van Buren, where the river climbed to 22.49 feet Tuesday afternoon. Flood stage there is 22 feet.
The Arkansas River will see a rise of a foot or so over the next few days as corps officials release water from Oklahoma reservoirs into the Arkansas River system.
The releases are normal procedures and not reactionary methods because of the forecast for heavy rains, said Laurie Driver, a spokeswoman for the corps in Little Rock.
"We are operating as we would normally," she said. "We cannot react on forecasts. How much water will fall? Where will it fall? Which watersheds will it fall into? We take those into consideration and create several plans in case, but we don't react until the water hits the ground."
She said in the spring of 2011, initial forecasts showed heavy rain was headed for Beaver Rock Lake. Some criticized the corps for not releasing water from the lake into Table Rock Lake in anticipation of the storm as it was forecast. But the storm's track then shifted slightly to the east, pouring the heaviest amount of rainfall into Table Rock Lake, she said.
Information for this article was contributed by The Associated Press.
A Section on 06/17/2015