The forecast for Wednesday afternoon spoke of a chance of thunderstorms, maybe 30 percent. So little thought of weather went into piling into the car for a journey from Little Rock to Bentonville. Hey, the sun was shining, the temperature was in the 80s, there was plenty of music on the iPod, and the gas tank was full. No worries, right?
The first wave of downpours arrived while buzzing along Interstate 40 between Mayflower and Conway. The sky turned dark, really dark, the wind picked up, and the rain came down in sheets that practically eliminated visibility. It quickly became white-knuckle time for unsuspecting drivers as they made their way through the deluge.
On the other side of Conway, the skies brightened a bit, as did the atmosphere in the car. The sun showed signs of reappearing.
Until the next deluge, practically identical to the first.
Three more followed as traffic wobbled west, encountering one storm after the next. The foul weather pursued those who curved northward on I-49. The tension didn't end until exiting the Bobby Hopper tunnel on the edge of Fayetteville.
The only good that came from this tense, challenging situation was that few motorists indulged in what's often seen on icy roads in Arkansas: the mistaken idea that four-wheel drive makes a vehicle impervious to poor driving conditions.
Few cars were seen barreling along in the passing lane at 80 mph. In fact, many pulled over, and quite a few others who bravely carried on turned on emergency flashers. They were barely visible through the rain, but it's encouraging to know that drivers were thinking of safety rather than shaving five minutes off the time it takes to get from here to there.
It's not often we look forward to the dry, sun-streaked days of Arkansas summers, but that afternoon was one of them.
Editorial on 05/26/2018