Wet and Cool Friday

A wet and relatively cool mid-Summer afternoon across Central Arkansas Friday with widespread rain and much below normal high temperatures. A large area of rain is overspreading the State this afternoon and this evening, with little in the way of any thunder.

Most of the rain has been light, but a few areas of some heavier rain are still possible through tonight. A flash flood watch is in effect for much of the Western half the State through this evening.

Due to the mostly light and steady nature of the rainfall, any flooding problems should be very isolated. This is exactly the kind of rain we need to alleviate the dry conditions from the last few weeks.

The clouds and rain have kept temperatures quite cool for this time of year. High temperatures so far today have been mainly in the 70s.

The high in Little Rock so far Friday has only reached 77 degrees. This is the first time the high temperature in Little Rock failed to hit a daily high of at least 80 in July since 2009. The last time the high temperature in Little Rock did not hit 80 in July was July 20th 2009 with a high of 79. Normal highs this time of year are in the low to mid 90s.

Drought Develops in Arkansas

Several weeks of dry conditions are leading to worsening drought across Arkansas. Even though a few spots have received some rainfall over the last couple of days, the isolated and brief nature of the rain has not been enough to alleviate the dry conditions. The U.S. Drought Monitor now shows parts of Arkansas under moderate drought, with dry conditions across much the State. The areas considered dry will go into drought conditions soon if no significant rain occurs.

Drought conditions are nowhere near as bad as they were this time last year. By mid- July of 2012, much of Arkansas was under severe to extreme drought.

Fire danger is quickly increasing due to the dry weather. Burn bans are now in effect for numerous Arkansas Counties.

(County Burn Bans as of 10PM Friday July 12th)

The outlook for any significant rain is slim going into next week, which will likely lead to worsening drought conditions and more burn bans.