National Weather Service confirms 5 tornadoes in state from weekend storms

Arkansas Democrat-Gazette/MITCHELL PE MASILUN --3/26/2017--
A mobile home lies on its side after being blown over by a tornado that struck Friday night near Kato in Northern Pulaski County Sunday March 26, 2017.
Arkansas Democrat-Gazette/MITCHELL PE MASILUN --3/26/2017-- A mobile home lies on its side after being blown over by a tornado that struck Friday night near Kato in Northern Pulaski County Sunday March 26, 2017.

The National Weather Service has confirmed that five tornadoes touched down in Arkansas during the weekend.

Meteorologist Chris Buonanno said the most damaging tornado was an EF2 that touched down at the Pulaski-Faulkner county line Friday night, destroying several mobile homes and injuring six people. No injuries were reported from any of the other twisters.

That tornado had winds as high as 135 mph and touched down around 11:20 p.m. Friday.

A second EF2 tornado touched down near the Hot Spring-Saline county line, close to Lonsdale, Buonanno said. That same storm produced a third tornado — an EF1 — “very close” nearby.

The Lonsdale EF2 had winds as high as 135 mph and hit around 10:30 p.m. Friday near Gourdneck Valley Road. The EF1 touched down near the end of Steele Road slightly after the higher-level tornado.

The Lonsdale twisters knocked down trees, destroyed outbuildings and barns and ripped the roof off of a new house, the weather service said in a statement.

The meteorologist said the last two twisters, both EF0, came down near Fountain Lake in Garland County and southeast of Marmaduke in Greene County.

The Fountain Lake tornado reportedly had winds up to 85 mph and touched down around 10 p.m. Friday, damaging several trees.

The Marmaduke tornado hit around 1:30 a.m. Saturday. Buonanno said its winds were about 80 mph and it damaged a gas station, as well as the roofs of about 20 homes.

As of Monday afternoon, the National Weather Service was still surveying to see if any more tornadoes had occurred in the state.

Read Tuesday's Arkansas Democrat-Gazette for full details.

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