A strong cold front is moving into Central Arkansas this afternoon, which will fire off some thunderstorms followed by a shot of the coldest air of the season. As of Noon Sunday, the front was already located across Northwest Arkansas between Ft. Smith and Clarksville. Temperatures behind the front are generally in the 50s, with 70s ahead of the front.
Thunderstorms will increase in coverage during the afternoon hours along the front. Some storms may be strong. Hail will be the main threat as the storms begin to intensify during the mid afternoon, with strong wind gusts becoming more likely as the storms begin to organize into a line. There may also be a very brief tornado threat during the mid to late afternoon hours, however this threat is likely to be short lived as individual storms merge into a line. The Storm Prediction Center has issued a Tornado Watch until 9 p.m. for Central and Northeast Arkansas just to be on the safe side.
The front will move through Central Arkansas between about 5 PM and 8 PM this evening, then continue to push across Southeast Arkansas overnight. The storm threat will end as soon as the front moves through, with colder air quickly pouring in behind the front. Temperatures will dip into the 30s by Monday morning. Some lingering showers Monday morning may briefly turn over to some snow flurries before drier air comes in, but no accumulations or travel problems are expected.
