NWS Little Rock, AR - September, 2023 Monthly Summary

Storm Reports

Are you interested in what happened during a recent event? Check out the report below.

	September, 2023 Monthly Summary

Monthly Statistics

	Temperatures							Precipitation
Site	Max	Min	Avg	Norm	Dep	Hi	Lo	Sum	Norm	Dep
Fayetteville (NW AR)	86.7	59.2	73.0	69.0	+4.0	97	50	5.45	4.26	+1.19
Harrison (NC AR)	83.5	59.6	71.6	69.9	+1.7	93	50	5.65	4.06	+1.59
Jonesboro (NE AR)	88.4	63.6	76.0	73.2	+2.8	96	53	1.94	3.30	-1.36
Fort Smith (WC AR)	90.1	66.7	78.4	74.8	+3.6	102	60	3.40	4.04	-0.64
Little Rock (C AR)	91.1	67.0	79.1	74.0	+5.1	102	59	0.46	3.01	-2.55
Texarkana (SW AR)	88.9	66.8	77.8	75.4	+2.4	101	60	3.54	3.60	-0.06
El Dorado (SC AR)	88.1	65.1	76.6	75.8	+0.8	97	57	4.44	3.23	+1.21
Pine Bluff (SE AR)	92.4	65.9	79.2	74.7	+4.5	104	56	0.49	3.09	-2.60

Temperatures across the state during September were well above average while precipitation was well below average.

Record Temperatures

Temperature records broken in September. Check out the records below.

Site	Record High (Date of Occurrence)
Jacksonville/LR AFB	92T (9/26)
Batesville	94 (9/29), 95T (9/30)
Stuttgart	93T (9/29)
North Little Rock	92 (9/26)

Quick Event Summary


While there were a few periods of active weather, cool temperatures and heavy rainfall across parts of the state during the month, September will be remembered for being hot and dry with worsening drought conditions.

In the picture: Maps of Arkansas that show burn bans and wildfire danger as of September 1st.

Storms were noted at the beginning of the month with cool temperatures briefly seen before warming back up through the 6th. Widespread storms were noted on Labor Day with some areas receiving 1-3 inches of rain, many areas continued to miss out on beneficial rainfall.

A front moved through the state on September 6th after highs hit 100 or more in some areas. A few severe thunderstorms developed across central into southern Arkansas causing wind damage. The most notable severe weather occurred as a thunderstorm rapidly developed and collapsed over West Little Rock and produced a microburst that unleashed 70-80 mph winds along areas that were impacted by the March 31st tornado near I-430 and Rodney Parham. Power outages were in excess of 16,000 with numerous homes and businesses damaged as well as hundreds of downed trees.

Hot temperatures persisted across western Arkansas on the 7th when a few sites hit 100 again. A few storms developed across southern AR and moved into northern LA. Camden recorded a wind gust of 53 mph. More storms developed overnight into the early morning hours on the 8th across western Arkansas, moving S-SE. These storms brought locally heavy rain, a lot of lightning and some hail. The main story was damaging wind across portions of Crawford County and again from southern Montgomery County across Pike County. The most widespread damage was in Pike County where numerous state highways were blocked by downed power lines and trees. The rain and clouds kept temperatures cool across much of the state.

Link of Interest

Severe Storms September 6-8, 2023

It was a chilly morning across much of the state. Our coldest recorded temperature from our network of COOP observers was 49° at Marshall (Searcy County). Some other automated weather stations recorded lows in the upper 40s across portions of northern and western Arkansas. #arwx pic.twitter.com/lmtgwvvasr
— NWS Little Rock (@NWSLittleRock) September 15, 2023

In the picture: The morning of September 15th was quite cool across the state with locations across northern and western Arkansas seeing lows in the upper 40s.

Warm temperatures but below normal were observed through the 12th when a cold front moved across the state and brought some rain with it. Most locations picked up less than 0.25” but a few spots picked up locally higher amounts. This brought cooler temperatures to the area. Some rain persisted across southern AR from Sep 13-14. Dry air was in place through the 18th which helped overnight lows become fairly cool with daytime highs climbing to near to above average.

A weak storm system moved across the region from Sep 19-20 with rain observed across much of northern and western AR on the 20th. Some areas experienced heavy rain, but plenty of locations across the state missed out entirely.

A stronger storm system moved across the Central/Southern Plains on Saturday, Sep 23rd which caused widespread strong to severe storms across eastern OK, KS and southern MO. A few strong storms moved across western AR, but no reports of severe weather were received. Locally heavy rain occurred across the NW, but beneficial rain spread southeast across much of the state during the morning hours of the 24th.

Beyond the 24th, hot and dry conditions were seen nearly statewide.