National Weather Service: Weak tornado likely touched down in Arkansas, ending twister drought
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}This frame taken from video provided by Brenton Leete shows a funnel cloud in part of a storm Wednesday, March 25, 2015, in Sand Springs, Okla. The slow start to the nation's tornado season came to a blustery end Wednesday when tornadoes hit Arkansas and Oklahoma. (AP Photo/Brenton Leete) (The Associated Press)
The National Weather Service says a severe weather system in Arkansas likely produced the nation's first tornado for the month of March.
Meteorologist Jeff Hood in Little Rock says it appears a weak "waterspout" tornado briefly touched down in Bull Shoals Lake in Marion County in northwest Arkansas on Tuesday night. A "waterspout" touches forms over water.
If the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's Storm Prediction Center confirms it was indeed a tornado, it would have ended a twister drought that's lasted all month. March is when tornado season often begins ramping up for parts of the U.S.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Greg Carbin with the Storm Prediction Center says official documentation could take months. But Carbin says his read of the preliminary reports suggests it probably was a tornado.