Madison County Natural Disasters and Weather Extremes
Hot Arkansas Rankings
The chance of earthquake damage in Madison County is lower than Arkansas average and is much lower than the national average. The risk of tornado damage in Madison County is much lower than Arkansas average and is higher than the national average.
Earthquake Index, #55
| Madison County | 0.07 |
| Arkansas | 0.57 |
| U.S. | 1.81 |
The earthquake index value is calculated based on historical earthquake events data using USA.com algorithms. It is an indicator of the earthquake level in a region. A higher earthquake index value means a higher chance of an earthquake.
Volcano Index, #1
| Madison County | 0.0000 |
| Arkansas | 0.0000 |
| U.S. | 0.0023 |
The volcano index value is calculated based on the currently known volcanoes using USA.com algorithms. It is an indicator of the possibility of a region being affected by a possible volcano eruption. A higher volcano index value means a higher chance of being affected.
Tornado Index, #69
| Madison County | 166.91 |
| Arkansas | 272.21 |
| U.S. | 136.45 |
The tornado index value is calculated based on historical tornado events data using USA.com algorithms. It is an indicator of the tornado level in a region. A higher tornado index value means a higher chance of tornado events.
Other Weather Extremes Events
A total of 17,654 other weather extremes events within 50 miles of Madison County were recorded from 1950 to 2010. The following is a break down of these events:
| Type | Count | Type | Count | Type | Count | Type | Count | Type | Count |
| Avalanche: | 0 | Blizzard: | 0 | Cold: | 19 | Dense Fog: | 0 | Drought: | 21 |
| Dust Storm: | 0 | Flood: | 2,124 | Hail: | 7,564 | Heat: | 32 | Heavy Snow: | 30 |
| High Surf: | 0 | Hurricane: | 0 | Ice Storm: | 36 | Landslide: | 1 | Strong Wind: | 41 |
| Thunderstorm Winds: | 7,378 | Tropical Storm: | 2 | Wildfire: | 17 | Winter Storm: | 59 | Winter Weather: | 41 |
| Other: | 289 | ||||||||
Volcanos Nearby
No volcano is found in or near Madison County.
Historical Earthquake Events
A total of 1 historical earthquake event that had a recorded magnitude of 3.5 or above found in or near Madison County.
| Distance (miles) | Date | Magnitude | Depth (km) | Latitude | Longitude |
| 36.6 | 1985-09-06 | 3.8 | 10 | 35.81 | -93.12 |
Historical Tornado Events
A total of 87 historical tornado events that had recorded magnitude of 2 or above found in or near Madison County.
| Distance (miles) | Date | Magnitude | Start Lat/Log | End Lat/Log | Length | Width | Fatalities | Injuries | Property Damage | Crop Damage | Affected County |
| 9.4 | 1960-05-05 | 2 | 36°07'N / 93°55'W | 36°09'N / 93°41'W | 13.20 Miles | 167 Yards | 0 | 1 | 25K | 0 | Madison |
| 9.8 | 1962-03-20 | 2 | 36°09'N / 93°53'W | 36°07'N / 93°45'W | 7.80 Miles | 417 Yards | 0 | 0 | 250K | 0 | Madison |
| 10.0 | 1955-11-15 | 2 | 36°03'N / 94°00'W | 36°08'N / 93°45'W | 15.00 Miles | 220 Yards | 0 | 1 | 3K | 0 | Washington |
| 11.7 | 1996-04-21 | 3 | 35°46'N / 93°46'W | 35°56'N / 93°34'W | 15.00 Miles | 1050 Yards | 2 | 6 | 1.0M | 0 | Madison |
| Brief Description: M37MH, M10MH | |||||||||||
| 17.2 | 1954-04-30 | 3 | 36°02'N / 94°03'W | 36°06'N / 94°00'W | 5.40 Miles | 33 Yards | 0 | 0 | 250K | 0 | Washington |
| 20.9 | 1962-03-20 | 2 | 36°01'N / 93°21'W | 0.50 Mile | 300 Yards | 0 | 2 | 25K | 0 | Newton | |
| 21.0 | 2008-04-10 | 2 | 36°00'N / 94°06'W | 36°02'N / 94°06'W | 3.00 Miles | 600 Yards | 0 | 0 | 125K | 0K | Washington |
| Brief Description: EVENT NARRATIVE: An NWS storm survey determined that a strong tornado caused major damage to a permanent home, damaged several other homes, caused extensive tree damage, and snapped power poles. EPISODE NARRATIVE: Severe thunderstorms occurred across Northwest Arkansas during the evening and early morning hours on the 9th and 10th. | |||||||||||
| 21.5 | 1954-04-30 | 3 | 36°00'N / 94°10'W | 36°02'N / 94°03'W | 6.90 Miles | 33 Yards | 0 | 0 | 250K | 0 | Washington |
| 22.2 | 1960-05-05 | 2 | 35°49'N / 94°12'W | 36°00'N / 94°00'W | 16.90 Miles | 33 Yards | 0 | 1 | 250K | 0 | Washington |
| 23.7 | 1971-05-23 | 2 | 35°42'N / 93°41'W | 35°42'N / 93°25'W | 14.90 Miles | 200 Yards | 0 | 0 | 25K | 0 | Johnson |
| 23.8 | 1970-06-11 | 3 | 36°12'N / 94°06'W | 36°21'N / 93°54'W | 15.20 Miles | 250 Yards | 0 | 0 | 2.5M | 0 | Benton |
| 23.8 | 1973-05-26 | 2 | 36°20'N / 93°34'W | 2.00 Miles | 200 Yards | 0 | 2 | 250K | 0 | Carroll | |
| 25.7 | 1955-04-04 | 2 | 36°20'N / 93°36'W | 36°21'N / 93°25'W | 10.20 Miles | 50 Yards | 0 | 0 | 25K | 0 | Carroll |
| 26.1 | 2001-11-23 | 2 | 35°43'N / 93°25'W | 35°45'N / 93°24'W | 1.80 Miles | 200 Yards | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Newton |
| Brief Description: The F2 tornado over Johnson County crossed into Newton County about 4.5 miles southeast of Fallsville. The tornado continued to track to the northeast for 1.8 miles, before lifting 4.5 miles east-southeast of Fallsville. Since the tornado tracked across a national forest, damage along the path of the tornado consisted of numerous downed trees. | |||||||||||
| 26.9 | 2001-11-23 | 2 | 35°48'N / 93°21'W | 35°50'N / 93°16'W | 18.50 Miles | 200 Yards | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Newton |
| Brief Description: A strong tornado touched down in Newton County, tracking from 3.2 miles south-southwest of Swain to 4.5 miles east-southeast of Jasper. The thunderstorm that produced this tornado was the same storm that dropped a tornado over Johnson and southern Newton Counties a little earlier that evening. Significant damage occurred to an Inn and restaurant on Highway 7 in the Gum Springs community, or about 5 miles south-southeast of Jasper. The restaurant on the upper floor of the structure was destroyed. The roof was blown to the northwest, ending up across the highway from the building. The rear wall of the building went in the opposite direction, landing on a slope below the building. The tornado also damaged several houses and destroyed a number of outbuildings. Hundreds of trees were also blown down the entire path of the tornado. | |||||||||||
| 27.3 | 2001-11-23 | 2 | 35°31'N / 93°43'W | 35°45'N / 93°27'W | 22.70 Miles | 500 Yards | 1 | 4 | 0 | 0 | Johnson |
| Brief Description: An F2 tornado that developed over Franklin County, moved into Johnson County about 3 miles west-southwest of Hunt, on Highway 352. The tornado moved northeastward, passing just northwest of Hunt. The tornado continued on across a portion of Horsehead Lake, tracked several miles east of Catalpa and then crossed into Newton County about one mile west of Salus. The tornado killed a woman in a mobile home on County Road 272, about 1.5 miles northwest of Hunt. Two other people inside the mobile home sustained minor injuries. Two additional injuries occurred on County Road 29, about 1.5 miles north of Hunt, when two people were inside a chicken house when it was destroyed. Six chicken houses were destroyed at this location. Three of the chicken houses contained about 120 thousand chickens, many of which were killed. Other damage in Johnson County included more than a dozen barns destroyed, several mobile homes destroyed, several homes with major damage and a number of homes with lesser damage. A number of vehicles were destroyed and many others were damaged. Many outbuildings were destroyed and thousands of trees were blown down. | |||||||||||
| 27.5 | 1974-06-06 | 3 | 35°40'N / 93°32'W | 35°43'N / 93°20'W | 11.70 Miles | 300 Yards | 0 | 0 | 25K | 0 | Johnson |
| 27.9 | 1966-04-20 | 2 | 36°24'N / 93°45'W | 36°26'N / 93°43'W | 2.70 Miles | 100 Yards | 0 | 0 | 3K | 0 | Carroll |
| 28.7 | 1973-05-26 | 2 | 36°25'N / 93°50'W | 36°26'N / 93°44'W | 5.60 Miles | 100 Yards | 0 | 0 | 250K | 0 | Benton |
| 29.0 | 1983-05-14 | 2 | 35°38'N / 93°30'W | 0.50 Mile | 100 Yards | 0 | 0 | 250K | 0 | Johnson | |
| 30.5 | 1954-04-30 | 3 | 35°45'N / 94°19'W | 36°00'N / 94°10'W | 19.20 Miles | 440 Yards | 0 | 1 | 250K | 0 | Washington |
| 30.9 | 1996-04-21 | 2 | 35°37'N / 94°02'W | 35°39'N / 94°00'W | 3.00 Miles | 400 Yards | 0 | 2 | 500K | 0 | Franklin |
| Brief Description: The tornado touched down just to the southwest of Fern. It moved northeastward, through the town of Fern, where 7 homes were destroyed and a number of other buildings were damaged. The tornado continued moving northeastward and lifted 3 miles northeast of Fern. A number of trees were blown down along the tornado's path. 2 people sustained minor injuries from the storm. Initial estimates place the amount of damage at around $500,000. | |||||||||||
| 32.1 | 1957-01-22 | 2 | 35°33'N / 93°40'W | 35°34'N / 93°32'W | 7.40 Miles | 33 Yards | 0 | 0 | 0K | 0 | Johnson |
| 32.1 | 1967-05-30 | 2 | 36°20'N / 94°10'W | 36°20'N / 94°07'W | 3.00 Miles | 33 Yards | 0 | 0 | 25K | 0 | Hardin |
| 32.8 | 1961-03-12 | 2 | 36°29'N / 93°48'W | 1.00 Mile | 300 Yards | 0 | 14 | 25K | 0 | Carroll | |
| 32.8 | 1970-06-11 | 3 | 35°56'N / 94°31'W | 36°12'N / 94°06'W | 29.60 Miles | 250 Yards | 1 | 44 | 2.5M | 0 | Washington |
| 32.9 | 1993-10-08 | 2 | 36°24'N / 94°04'W | 1.50 Miles | 100 Yards | 0 | 0 | 500K | 0 | Benton | |
| Brief Description: An F2 tornado touched down in Avoca and travelled about one and a half miles before it dissipated. While the tornado was on the ground, it damaged about ten homes. A mobile home and two chicken houses were completely destroyed. A large number of trees were also blown down. | |||||||||||
| 32.9 | 1961-03-12 | 2 | 35°28'N / 93°48'W | 35°38'N / 93°22'W | 26.90 Miles | 17 Yards | 1 | 14 | 250K | 0 | Johnson |
| 34.0 | 2010-12-31 | 2 | 36°09'N / 94°20'W | 36°12'N / 94°16'W | 4.00 Miles | 250 Yards | 0 | 1 | 100K | 0K | Washington |
| Brief Description: EVENT NARRATIVE: This segment is the sixth of six segments of this long-track tornado. The tornado overturned a box truck on Highway 412, injuring its driver, severely damaged a couple permanent homes, severely damaged a mobile home, snapped or uprooted numerous trees, and snapped numerous power poles. The maximum estimated wind speed in this segment of the tornado based on this damage was 125 mph. EPISODE NARRATIVE: Unseasonably warm and moist air spread into northwestern Arkansas ahead of a cold front. Scattered thunderstorms developed in the late evening and early morning hours ahead of the cold front as a weak upper level disturbance passed through the region. Large hail and damaging wind gusts occurred with some of those storms. Another round of storms developed on the cold front over eastern Oklahoma as it pushed into the area. Weak to moderate instability combined with very strong low level wind shear created an environment that supported supercell thunderstorm structures. Several supercells developed resulting in large hail and damaging wind gusts in the hours just before and after sunrise on the 31st. One of these supercells produced a long-track, strong tornado that killed four people in and near the town of Cincinnati in Washington County. Debris was transported by the tornado into northern Benton County and was reported in Bella Vista and Pea Ridge. The Northwest Arkansas Regional Airport (XNA) was closed for three hours to remove the debris from the flight line. Another supercell produced a short-lived, weak tornado in Carroll County that moved into Missouri. | |||||||||||
| 34.1 | 2006-03-12 | 2 | 36°21'N / 94°14'W | 36°23'N / 94°04'W | 8.00 Miles | 250 Yards | 0 | 0 | 10.0M | 0 | Benton |
| Brief Description: The supercell cycled again and produced a third tornado that moved through the southern portion of Bentonville and Little Flock damaging or destroying 125 homes. | |||||||||||
| 35.1 | 1970-11-19 | 2 | 35°58'N / 94°29'W | 36°10'N / 94°13'W | 20.30 Miles | 300 Yards | 0 | 1 | 25K | 0 | Washington |
| 35.5 | 1954-03-24 | 3 | 36°21'N / 94°17'W | 36°29'N / 93°57'W | 20.60 Miles | 400 Yards | 0 | 4 | 3K | 0 | Benton |
| 35.6 | 2010-12-31 | 2 | 36°08'N / 94°21'W | 36°09'N / 94°20'W | 2.00 Miles | 300 Yards | 0 | 0 | 75K | 0K | Benton |
| Brief Description: EVENT NARRATIVE: This segment is the fifth of six segments of this long-track tornado. The tornado severely damaged a permanent home, destroyed a barn, snapped or uprooted numerous trees, and snapped power poles. The maximum estimated wind speed in this segment of the tornado based on this damage was 125 mph. The tornado moved northeast and back into Washington County, Arkansas. EPISODE NARRATIVE: Unseasonably warm and moist air spread into northwestern Arkansas ahead of a cold front. Scattered thunderstorms developed in the late evening and early morning hours ahead of the cold front as a weak upper level disturbance passed through the region. Large hail and damaging wind gusts occurred with some of those storms. Another round of storms developed on the cold front over eastern Oklahoma as it pushed into the area. Weak to moderate instability combined with very strong low level wind shear created an environment that supported supercell thunderstorm structures. Several supercells developed resulting in large hail and damaging wind gusts in the hours just before and after sunrise on the 31st. One of these supercells produced a long-track, strong tornado that killed four people in and near the town of Cincinnati in Washington County. Debris was transported by the tornado into northern Benton County and was reported in Bella Vista and Pea Ridge. The Northwest Arkansas Regional Airport (XNA) was closed for three hours to remove the debris from the flight line. Another supercell produced a short-lived, weak tornado in Carroll County that moved into Missouri. | |||||||||||
| 35.7 | 1979-04-11 | 2 | 35°50'N / 94°23'W | 35°59'N / 94°19'W | 11.10 Miles | 200 Yards | 0 | 4 | 250K | 0 | Washington |
| 36.3 | 1973-04-20 | 3 | 36°09'N / 93°09'W | 36°15'N / 93°05'W | 7.80 Miles | 500 Yards | 1 | 19 | 2.5M | 0 | Boone |
| 36.7 | 2010-12-31 | 2 | 36°07'N / 94°23'W | 36°08'N / 94°21'W | 2.00 Miles | 300 Yards | 0 | 0 | 0K | 0K | Washington |
| Brief Description: EVENT NARRATIVE: This segment is the fourth of six segments of this long-track tornado. Numerous trees were snapped or uprooted in this segment. Estimated maximum wind speed based on this damage was 125 mph. The tornado moved northeastward and crossed back into Benton County, Arkansas. EPISODE NARRATIVE: Unseasonably warm and moist air spread into northwestern Arkansas ahead of a cold front. Scattered thunderstorms developed in the late evening and early morning hours ahead of the cold front as a weak upper level disturbance passed through the region. Large hail and damaging wind gusts occurred with some of those storms. Another round of storms developed on the cold front over eastern Oklahoma as it pushed into the area. Weak to moderate instability combined with very strong low level wind shear created an environment that supported supercell thunderstorm structures. Several supercells developed resulting in large hail and damaging wind gusts in the hours just before and after sunrise on the 31st. One of these supercells produced a long-track, strong tornado that killed four people in and near the town of Cincinnati in Washington County. Debris was transported by the tornado into northern Benton County and was reported in Bella Vista and Pea Ridge. The Northwest Arkansas Regional Airport (XNA) was closed for three hours to remove the debris from the flight line. Another supercell produced a short-lived, weak tornado in Carroll County that moved into Missouri. | |||||||||||
| 36.7 | 1999-05-04 | 3 | 35°45'N / 94°28'W | 36°00'N / 94°15'W | 22.00 Miles | 175 Yards | 0 | 0 | 80K | 0 | Washington |
| Brief Description: A significant long-track tornado first touched down 4 miles west of Short, OK, and tracked 39 miles to a point about 7 miles southwest of Fayetteville, AR. Along the way, this tornado passed through portions of four counties but mainly affected sparsely-populated areas. It reached its peak strength as an F3 tornado in extreme southeast Adair County, OK, but mainly caused F2 damage in Washington County, AR. Fortunately, this tornado lifted before it reached heavily-populated Fayetteville. The tornado's first real property damage took place at a property between the Hogeye and Strickland communities, where the tornado peeled off the roof to a home, shattered windows, uprooted trees, destroyed two barns, and wiped a porch off of its stone foundation. Numerous trees were blown down along County Roads 212 and 214. Only a few miles away in the Cove Creek community, south of Prarie Grove, the tornado blew off a home's roof, demolished an enclosed garage, and destroyed a barn. A flagpole was bent almost in half, and a road sign ended up wrapped around a mailbox. The tornado uprooted a 200-year old walnut tree which then fell onto a pickup truck. About a half-dozen other oak and cedar trees on one property dating back at least 150 years were snapped or uprooted. The Washington County Judge's Office supplied a picture of a church near Cove Creek that was moved off of its foundation. Several poultry buildings along the tornado's path were also damaged. The property damage listed in this entry is for just that damage sustained in Washington County, while the F-rating reflects the tornado's peak strength in Adair County, OK. Summary of events for May 4 1999: Following a record tornado outbreak in Oklahoma on May 3-4, a significant severe weather outbreak affected northwest Arkansas on the morning and afternoon of May 4 as a vigorous upper level system continued to move slowly east. While there were many individual storms in the area on May 4, the most outstanding storm of the day was a supercell thunderstorm that spawned a tornado in Sequoyah County, OK, which then moved northeast for 39 miles to near Fayetteville. Other storms produced damaging winds and large hail. | |||||||||||
| 37.3 | 1985-11-18 | 2 | 35°28'N / 93°28'W | 35°41'N / 93°12'W | 18.00 Miles | 30 Yards | 0 | 0 | 2.5M | 0 | Johnson |
| 38.3 | 1961-03-12 | 2 | 35°27'N / 93°45'W | 35°28'N / 93°43'W | 1.90 Miles | 17 Yards | 0 | 4 | 250K | 0 | Franklin |
| 38.3 | 2010-12-31 | 2 | 36°06'N / 94°25'W | 36°07'N / 94°23'W | 2.00 Miles | 400 Yards | 0 | 2 | 200K | 0K | Benton |
| Brief Description: EVENT NARRATIVE: This segment is the third of six segments of this long-track tornado. The tornado severely damaged a couple permanent homes, destroyed a mobile home, destroyed barns, snapped or uprooted numerous trees, and snapped power poles in this portion of Benton County. Two injuries occurred in the mobile home that was destroyed on Winwood Ranch Road. The maximum estimated wind speed based on this damage was 130 mph. The tornado continued into Washington County, Arkansas. EPISODE NARRATIVE: Unseasonably warm and moist air spread into northwestern Arkansas ahead of a cold front. Scattered thunderstorms developed in the late evening and early morning hours ahead of the cold front as a weak upper level disturbance passed through the region. Large hail and damaging wind gusts occurred with some of those storms. Another round of storms developed on the cold front over eastern Oklahoma as it pushed into the area. Weak to moderate instability combined with very strong low level wind shear created an environment that supported supercell thunderstorm structures. Several supercells developed resulting in large hail and damaging wind gusts in the hours just before and after sunrise on the 31st. One of these supercells produced a long-track, strong tornado that killed four people in and near the town of Cincinnati in Washington County. Debris was transported by the tornado into northern Benton County and was reported in Bella Vista and Pea Ridge. The Northwest Arkansas Regional Airport (XNA) was closed for three hours to remove the debris from the flight line. Another supercell produced a short-lived, weak tornado in Carroll County that moved into Missouri. | |||||||||||
| 38.9 | 1954-02-15 | 3 | 35°29'N / 93°29'W | 1.00 Mile | 100 Yards | 0 | 24 | 250K | 0 | Johnson | |
| 39.4 | 1984-10-16 | 2 | 35°34'N / 94°22'W | 35°44'N / 94°10'W | 14.00 Miles | 50 Yards | 0 | 1 | 2.5M | 0 | Crawford |
| 39.6 | 1965-03-16 | 2 | 35°27'N / 93°35'W | 0 | 0 | 25K | 0 | Johnson | |||
| 40.0 | 1976-03-26 | 2 | 35°52'N / 94°25'W | 2.00 Miles | 77 Yards | 0 | 0 | 250K | 0 | Washington | |
| 40.1 | 1988-11-15 | 2 | 35°26'N / 93°25'W | 35°40'N / 93°10'W | 16.00 Miles | 150 Yards | 0 | 9 | 2.5M | 0 | Johnson |
| 40.2 | 1999-03-05 | 2 | 35°27'N / 93°36'W | 35°27'N / 93°29'W | 7.00 Miles | 200 Yards | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Johnson |
| Brief Description: A strong tornado was spawned in southern Johnson County. Toward the town of Hartman, the tornado heavily damaged or destroyed a couple of barns. Farther northeast toward Clarksville, every piece of tin was removed from a chicken house. Chickens were thrown from the house and from nearby houses. Up to 10,000 chickens were lost in the storm. Numerous trees were also downed. The tornado tracked about 7 miles before dissipating just southwest of Clarksville | |||||||||||
| 40.2 | 1980-04-07 | 3 | 35°27'N / 93°30'W | 35°29'N / 93°27'W | 3.60 Miles | 1707 Yards | 0 | 76 | 2.5M | 0 | Johnson |
| 40.3 | 1960-05-18 | 2 | 35°32'N / 93°20'W | 35°33'N / 93°16'W | 3.80 Miles | 1760 Yards | 0 | 0 | 0K | 0 | Johnson |
| 41.0 | 1982-12-02 | 2 | 35°50'N / 93°06'W | 36°06'N / 92°53'W | 19.00 Miles | 220 Yards | 0 | 0 | 250K | 0 | Clark |
| 41.3 | 1961-03-12 | 2 | 36°16'N / 93°14'W | 36°30'N / 93°03'W | 19.00 Miles | 333 Yards | 0 | 4 | 250K | 0 | Boone |
| 41.8 | 1960-04-14 | 3 | 35°28'N / 93°24'W | 2.00 Miles | 100 Yards | 0 | 0 | 25K | 0 | Johnson | |
| 41.8 | 1954-04-30 | 3 | 35°38'N / 94°24'W | 35°45'N / 94°19'W | 9.20 Miles | 440 Yards | 0 | 0 | 250K | 0 | Crawford |
| 42.0 | 1991-03-21 | 2 | 36°08'N / 93°01'W | 36°10'N / 92°58'W | 4.00 Miles | 100 Yards | 0 | 12 | 2.5M | 0 | Boone |
| 42.0 | 2010-12-31 | 3 | 36°01'N / 94°32'W | 36°06'N / 94°25'W | 9.00 Miles | 500 Yards | 4 | 7 | 1.5M | 0K | Washington |
| Brief Description: EVENT NARRATIVE: This segment is the second of six segments of this long-track tornado. The tornado moved into Washington County snapping numerous trees as it approached the town of Cincinnati. In Cincinnati, the tornado destroyed several permanent homes, destroyed the volunteer fire station, destroyed a mobile home, damaged several other permanent homes, snapped or uprooted numerous trees, snapped numerous power poles, and destroyed barns and outbuildings. Two people were killed in the mobile home that was destroyed and a third person was killed either in or near a barn while he was tending to his cattle. At least seven injuries also occurred. The tornado was about 300 yards wide when it went through town. The maximum estimated wind speed in the tornado based on this damage was 140 mph. The tornado continued to move rapidly northeastward and widened to about 500 yards northeast of Cincinnati. Several permanent homes were severely damaged, several mobile homes were destroyed, at least four chicken houses were destroyed, outbuildings were destroyed, numerous trees were snapped or uprooted, and power poles were snapped. A woman in one of the mobile homes that was destroyed was transported to a hospital with serious injuries. She later died from those injuries on January 4th. The tornado continued into Benton County, Arkansas. EPISODE NARRATIVE: Unseasonably warm and moist air spread into northwestern Arkansas ahead of a cold front. Scattered thunderstorms developed in the late evening and early morning hours ahead of the cold front as a weak upper level disturbance passed through the region. Large hail and damaging wind gusts occurred with some of those storms. Another round of storms developed on the cold front over eastern Oklahoma as it pushed into the area. Weak to moderate instability combined with very strong low level wind shear created an environment that supported supercell thunderstorm structures. Several supercells developed resulting in large hail and damaging wind gusts in the hours just before and after sunrise on the 31st. One of these supercells produced a long-track, strong tornado that killed four people in and near the town of Cincinnati in Washington County. Debris was transported by the tornado into northern Benton County and was reported in Bella Vista and Pea Ridge. The Northwest Arkansas Regional Airport (XNA) was closed for three hours to remove the debris from the flight line. Another supercell produced a short-lived, weak tornado in Carroll County that moved into Missouri. | |||||||||||
| 43.4 | 2006-03-12 | 3 | 36°16'N / 94°34'W | 36°20'N / 94°16'W | 19.00 Miles | 700 Yards | 0 | 12 | 5.0M | 0 | Benton |
| Brief Description: The second tornado moved into western Benton County (from Delaware County, Oklahoma) south of Highway 12, where damage suggested the tornado strengthened considerably. A mobile home was destroyed, a pickup truck was rolled and destroyed, and several homes sustained major damage to their roofs near Bloomfield, where damage was rated at F2. Damage was more extensive in and around Gentry and Centerton where 75 homes were damaged or destroyed. Damage in this area was rated F3. Twelve people were injured by the tornado. See Storm Data for Oklahoma, Eastern for details regarding the Delaware County segment of this tornado. | |||||||||||
| 43.6 | 1953-03-14 | 3 | 35°13'N / 93°57'W | 35°33'N / 93°22'W | 40.10 Miles | 880 Yards | 0 | 0 | 250K | 0 | Logan |
| 43.7 | 1960-04-14 | 3 | 35°28'N / 94°17'W | 35°31'N / 94°03'W | 13.60 Miles | 833 Yards | 0 | 3 | 250K | 0 | Crawford |
| 43.8 | 2008-04-10 | 2 | 35°49'N / 94°30'W | 35°54'N / 94°28'W | 6.00 Miles | 400 Yards | 0 | 0 | 75K | 0K | Washington |
| Brief Description: EVENT NARRATIVE: The strong tornado that began 5.5 miles east-southeast of Stillwell in Adair County Oklahoma moved into Washington County. The tornado destroyed a mobile home, destroyed a barn, rolled a vehicle, caused extensive tree damage, and snapped power poles. EPISODE NARRATIVE: Severe thunderstorms occurred across Northwest Arkansas during the evening and early morning hours on the 9th and 10th. | |||||||||||
| 44.0 | 1973-03-13 | 2 | 36°34'N / 93°20'W | 2.50 Miles | 300 Yards | 0 | 4 | 25K | 0 | Stone | |
| 44.5 | 1968-06-01 | 2 | 36°08'N / 94°33'W | 36°11'N / 94°27'W | 6.50 Miles | 500 Yards | 0 | 0 | 3K | 0 | Benton |
| 44.5 | 1988-11-15 | 2 | 36°30'N / 94°14'W | 36°38'N / 94°02'W | 10.00 Miles | 23 Yards | 0 | 0 | 0K | 0 | Mcdonald |
| 45.2 | 1973-04-20 | 2 | 35°23'N / 93°30'W | 1.50 Miles | 500 Yards | 0 | 2 | 25K | 0 | Logan | |
| 45.5 | 1982-04-02 | 3 | 36°19'N / 93°00'W | 1.00 Mile | 100 Yards | 0 | 5 | 2.5M | 0 | Boone | |
| 45.8 | 1953-04-23 | 3 | 35°29'N / 94°13'W | 0 | 0 | 3K | 0 | Crawford | |||
| 45.8 | 1999-05-04 | 3 | 35°43'N / 94°29'W | 35°45'N / 94°27'W | 3.00 Miles | 175 Yards | 0 | 0 | 3K | 0 | Crawford |
| Brief Description: A significant long-track tornado first developed 4 miles west of Short, OK, moving northeast to about 7 miles southwest of Fayetteville, AR. This tornado reached its peak strength as an F3 tornado as it clipped extreme southeast Adair County, OK. This tornado then clipped extreme northwest Crawford County, passing through an unpopulated, forested area in the Ozark National Forest. An aerial survey by NWS personnel just west of the Oklahoma/Arkansas state line west of Natural Dam revealed that every tree in a hardwood forest was completely leveled. Property damage listed with this entry reflects tree damage sustained in Crawford County, while the F-rating reflects the tornado's peak strength in Adair County, OK. Summary of events for May 4 1999: Following a record tornado outbreak in Oklahoma on May 3-4, a significant severe weather outbreak affected northwest Arkansas on the morning and afternoon of May 4 as a vigorous upper level system continued to move slowly east. While there were many individual storms in the area on May 4, the most outstanding storm of the day was a supercell thunderstorm that spawned a tornado in Sequoyah County, OK, which then moved northeast for 39 miles to near Fayetteville. Other storms produced damaging winds and large hail. | |||||||||||
| 45.9 | 1972-04-12 | 2 | 36°40'N / 93°52'W | 0.90 Mile | 177 Yards | 0 | 7 | 2.5M | 0 | Barry | |
| 46.1 | 2010-12-31 | 2 | 36°00'N / 94°34'W | 36°01'N / 94°32'W | 2.00 Miles | 250 Yards | 0 | 0 | 60K | 0K | Adair |
| Brief Description: EVENT NARRATIVE: This segment is the first of six segments of this long-track tornado. A tornado developed just northeast of Westville and moved rapidly northeastward damaging a home, tossing or rolling four vehicles, snapping at least 13 large power poles, and snapping or uprooting large trees. Estimated maximum wind based on this damage was 125 mph. This tornado continued into Washington County, Arkansas. EPISODE NARRATIVE: Unseasonably warm and moist air spread into eastern Oklahoma ahead of a cold front. Scattered thunderstorms developed in the late evening and early morning hours ahead of the cold front as a weak upper level disturbance passed through the region. Large hail and damaging wind gusts occurred with some of these storms. Another round of storms developed on the cold front as it moved into eastern Oklahoma a few hours before sunrise. Weak to moderate instability combined with very strong low level wind shear created an environment that supported supercell thunderstorm structures. Several supercells developed resulting in large hail and damaging wind gusts in the hours just before and after sunrise on the 31st. One of these supercells produced a long-track, strong tornado that began in Adair County, Oklahoma, and moved into Washington County, Arkansas, where it killed four people in and near the town of Cincinnati. | |||||||||||
| 46.4 | 1982-12-02 | 3 | 35°29'N / 94°14'W | 1.00 Mile | 500 Yards | 0 | 0 | 250K | 0 | Crawford | |
| 46.4 | 1970-11-19 | 2 | 36°10'N / 94°32'W | 2.50 Miles | 100 Yards | 0 | 0 | 25K | 0 | Benton | |
| 46.5 | 1973-05-01 | 2 | 36°11'N / 94°33'W | 36°13'N / 94°30'W | 3.80 Miles | 150 Yards | 0 | 4 | 250K | 0 | Benton |
| 46.6 | 1984-10-16 | 2 | 35°38'N / 94°24'W | 35°34'N / 94°22'W | 8.00 Miles | 50 Yards | 0 | 2 | 2.5M | 0 | Crawford |
| 46.7 | 2008-04-10 | 2 | 35°47'N / 94°32'W | 35°49'N / 94°30'W | 4.00 Miles | 400 Yards | 0 | 0 | 50K | 0K | Adair |
| Brief Description: EVENT NARRATIVE: An NWS storm survey determined that a strong tornado destroyed a mobile home, caused extensive tree damage, and snapped power poles. This tornado continued into Washington County Arkansas, lifting about 4 miles southwest of Lincoln. EPISODE NARRATIVE: Severe thunderstorms occurred across eastern Oklahoma from the evening of the 9th into the morning of the 10th. | |||||||||||
| 47.7 | 1955-03-20 | 2 | 35°17'N / 93°44'W | 35°22'N / 93°32'W | 12.60 Miles | 60 Yards | 0 | 0 | 25K | 0 | Logan |
| 48.0 | 1968-06-01 | 2 | 36°06'N / 94°36'W | 36°08'N / 94°33'W | 3.60 Miles | 200 Yards | 0 | 0 | 25K | 0 | Adair |
| 48.0 | 1982-12-23 | 2 | 35°19'N / 93°43'W | 0.50 Mile | 100 Yards | 0 | 0 | 250K | 0 | Logan | |
| 48.0 | 1982-12-23 | 2 | 35°19'N / 93°44'W | 0.60 Mile | 80 Yards | 0 | 0 | 250K | 0 | Logan | |
| 48.2 | 1988-11-15 | 2 | 36°38'N / 94°02'W | 36°45'N / 93°49'W | 18.00 Miles | 23 Yards | 1 | 12 | 2.5M | 0 | Barry |
| 48.5 | 1961-05-08 | 2 | 35°48'N / 94°33'W | 0 | 0 | 25K | 0 | Adair | |||
| 48.7 | 2001-11-23 | 2 | 36°40'N / 93°59'W | 36°43'N / 93°56'W | 4.00 Miles | 440 Yards | 0 | 3 | 1.0M | 500K | Barry |
| Brief Description: A tornado touched down just before 830 pm just south of Highway 76/86 between Exeter and Ridgley. Initial damage was limited to chicken houses and grain bins which suffered sporadic damage. The tornado quickly intensified as it crossed the Highway and moved north across a residence. Extensive damage occurred to the property including two storage buildings swept clean of their foundations, a dump truck flipped almost 30 feet, and the loss of the residence's roof. Nearly a dozen other vehicles suffered collateral damage, along with numerous trees stripped or uprooted. Three individuals were injured as their vehicle was flipped over. The tornado tracked for approximately four miles north of Exeter, causing significant damage to at least three additional residences. Numerous outbuildings were also destroyed along with hundreds of trees that were uprooted. The tornado reached a width of over one quarter of a mile at peak intensity, before dissipating just north of Highway CC. The damage assessment would place this tornado at the high end of an F2 rating on the fujita scale...with winds approaching 150 mph. | |||||||||||
| 48.7 | 1954-03-24 | 3 | 36°43'N / 93°40'W | 1.00 Mile | 300 Yards | 0 | 2 | 25K | 0 | Barry | |
| 48.9 | 1972-12-30 | 2 | 36°39'N / 94°03'W | 36°42'N / 94°01'W | 3.80 Miles | 220 Yards | 0 | 2 | 25K | 0 | Barry |
| 48.9 | 1982-12-02 | 2 | 36°06'N / 92°53'W | 36°09'N / 92°50'W | 5.00 Miles | 220 Yards | 0 | 0 | 250K | 0 | Dallas |
| 49.2 | 1961-11-02 | 2 | 35°18'N / 93°42'W | 1.50 Miles | 100 Yards | 0 | 0 | 3K | 0 | Logan | |
| 49.2 | 1959-03-31 | 3 | 35°18'N / 93°45'W | 2.00 Miles | 300 Yards | 0 | 0 | 25K | 0 | Logan | |
| 49.4 | 1957-05-11 | 2 | 35°19'N / 93°31'W | 0 | 0 | 0K | 0 | Logan | |||
| 49.8 | 1996-04-21 | 3 | 35°26'N / 94°21'W | 35°31'N / 94°17'W | 6.00 Miles | 1050 Yards | 0 | 49 | 150.0M | 0 | Crawford |
| 50.0 | 1970-10-08 | 3 | 36°13'N / 94°32'W | 36°18'N / 94°36'W | 6.90 Miles | 200 Yards | 0 | 4 | 250K | 0 | Benton |
* The information on this page is based on the global volcano database, the U.S. earthquake database of 1638-1985, and the U.S. Tornado and Weather Extremes database of 1950-2010.