NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Bald Knob, AR
Every tropical system within 75 miles since 1851 and every tornado within 25 miles since 1950.
Data: NOAA NHC HURDAT2 and NOAA SPC tornado and hail reports, through 2025 · Updated
4 tropical systems have passed within 75 miles of Bald Knob, Arkansas since 1851, 0 of them at hurricane strength; the most recent was an unnamed storm in 1941. Since 1950, 136 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 23 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 4
- Tornadoes
- 136
- EF3 or stronger
- 23
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
86 deaths in all
What the records show for Bald Knob
None of the 4 tropical systems was at hurricane strength as it passed Bald Knob; the strongest was an unnamed storm in 1923, a tropical storm with 52 mph winds when its centre passed 11 miles away. The record near Bald Knob begins with an unnamed storm in 1909; the most recent system was an unnamed storm in 1941, a tropical storm 6 miles away. None of the 4 systems has come since 2000. Of the 213 Arkansas cities on this site, 72% have more tropical storms and hurricanes within 75 miles than Bald Knob. The highest rating among the 136 tornadoes within 25 miles is F4 or EF4, reached 6 times; the most recent, on March 14, 2025, came within 19 miles. The deadliest, an F4 on March 21, 1952, killed 50 people. Of the 136, 6 had paths within 5 miles of the city centre, and 61 have come since 2000. March and May have had the most tornadoes, 27 each. Bald Knob has more tornadoes within 25 miles than 81% of the 213 Arkansas cities. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 67 times since 1961, with stones up to 4.25 inches. Of the 213 Arkansas cities, 63% have more hail reports within 10 miles than Bald Knob.
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Tropical storms and hurricanes near Bald Knob
| Year | Storm | Closest | Strength when closest | Peak |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1941 | Unnamed 1941 stormSep 24 | 6 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1923 | Unnamed 1923 stormOct 16 | 11 mi | Tropical storm (52 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1915 | Unnamed 1915 stormAug 20 | 28 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1909 | Unnamed 1909 stormSep 21 | 16 mi | Tropical storm (44 mph) | Category 3 |
Strength is the sustained wind on the track at the closest point, which is not the wind felt in Bald Knob: a hurricane's worst winds sit within a few dozen miles of its centre, and inland cities are usually past that.
Tornadoes within 25 miles of Bald Knob
By decade
- 2020s7(1 EF3+)
- 2010s23(1 EF3+)
- 2000s31(2 EF3+)
- 1990s26(5 EF3+)
- 1980s19(3 EF3+)
- 1970s9(2 EF3+)
- 1960s10(3 EF3+)
- 1950s11(6 EF3+)
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mar 21, 1952 | F4 | 1 mi | 14.6 mi | 50 / 325 |
| May 15, 1968 | F4 | 23 mi | 0.3 mi | 7 / 24 |
| Mar 15, 1984 | F4 | 21 mi | 26 mi | 5 / 12 |
| May 26, 1973 | F4 | 11 mi | 54.8 mi | 3 / 289 |
| Mar 15, 1984 | F4 | 23 mi | 41 mi | 2 / 13 |
| Mar 14, 2025 | EF4 | 19 mi | 18.5 mi | 0 / 2 |
| Jan 21, 1999 | F3 | 19 mi | 8 mi | 2 / 29 |
| Dec 24, 1982 | F3 | 16 mi | 15 mi | 1 / 0 |
| Mar 14, 1959 | F3 | 25 mi | 18 mi | 1 / 3 |
| Nov 15, 1955 | F3 | 22 mi | 36.5 mi | 1 / 4 |
| Apr 30, 2010 | EF3 | 18 mi | 7.74 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 4, 2003 | F3 | 15 mi | 43 mi | 0 / 4 |
The strongest 12 of 136, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Bald Knob
The Storm Prediction Center has 67 hail reports within 10 miles of Bald Knob since 1961, made on 55 separate days. Of these, 33 were 1 inch across or larger, and 2 reached 2 inches. The largest, 4.25 inches, fell on April 2, 2006. The most recent report is from April 2, 2025. April has the most reports, 21.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Bald Knob
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Searcy, AR, 10 miles west of Bald Knob at 230 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 93°F and low of 73°F; January is the coolest, at 49°F and 30°F. May is the wettest at 5.9 inches of precipitation on average and June the driest at 3.0 inches; the year adds up to 51.8 inches over 74 days with at least a tenth of an inch. Highs reach 90°F on about 76 days a year, almost all from May to September. Lows fall below freezing on about 72 nights a year. Snowfall averages 1.8 inches a year, most of it in January. That 51.8 inches is more than at 47 of the 95 Arkansas stations used on this site (49%). Bradford, 11 miles northeast, has its own station (Newport, AR): 51.3 inches a year, 0.5 less than here, and a July average high of 89°F against 93°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" | Snow in |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 49 | 30 | 3.6 | 6 | 0.7 |
| Feb | 54 | 33 | 3.9 | 6 | 0.6 |
| Mar | 63 | 42 | 5.1 | 8 | 0.4 |
| Apr | 73 | 50 | 5.4 | 7 | 0.0 |
| May | 82 | 61 | 5.9 | 8 | 0.0 |
| Jun | 90 | 69 | 3.0 | 5 | 0.0 |
| Jul | 93 | 73 | 3.9 | 6 | 0.0 |
| Aug | 92 | 71 | 3.4 | 5 | 0.0 |
| Sep | 85 | 63 | 3.8 | 5 | 0.0 |
| Oct | 74 | 51 | 4.1 | 6 | 0.0 |
| Nov | 61 | 40 | 4.8 | 6 | 0.0 |
| Dec | 52 | 33 | 4.9 | 7 | 0.1 |
| Year | 72 | 51 | 51.8 | 74 | 1.8 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Searcy, AR (230 ft), from NOAA NCEI U.S. Climate Normals. Normals describe the station; the farther a place is from it, and the bigger the difference in height, the more its weather can differ.
Floods, thunderstorm wind and lightning near Bald Knob
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 226 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Bald Knob: 145 floods, 60 thunderstorm wind reports, 16 flash floods, 3 heavy rain events and 2 lightning strikes. They killed 1 person and injured 6, and the NWS estimated $17.9 million in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 81 mph, on March 24, 2017. September has had the most flash floods, 5 of 16. Of the 212 Arkansas cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 82 have had fewer than Bald Knob.
April 15, 2011: thunderstorm wind 2 miles from the centre of Bald Knob — 1 killed, 3 injured, $30,000 damage.
NWS: “A 6 year-old boy was killed when a tree more than 6 feet in diameter fell into a house. The boy's parents and a sibling suffered minor injuries.”
April 30, 2010: lightning strike 6 miles from the centre of Bald Knob — 2 injured.
July 29, 2009: lightning strike 5 miles from the centre of Bald Knob — 1 injured.
Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, events whose starting point is on record, 1996 to June 30, 2026. Damage is the NWS estimate in the dollars of the year, not insured losses, and NWS notes that some reports are unverified.
Flood insurance claims, disaster declarations and FEMA risk ratings
Flood insurance policyholders in Bald Knob's ZIP code 72010 have filed 28 claims with the National Flood Insurance Program since 1981, and were paid $383,000 for buildings and contents, in the dollars of each year. The year with the most claims was 2011, with 12. 39% of the claims carry the name of a storm or flood event; the rest have no event name. Of the 103 Arkansas cities on this site with 10 or more claims, 43 have fewer than Bald Knob.
White County, which includes Bald Knob, has been named in 29 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1968, 21 of them major disasters (by incident: 14 severe storms, 4 ice storms, 3 floods, 2 biological emergencies). The latest major disaster declaration was Severe Storms, Tornadoes, and Flooding, on May 21, 2025. FEMA's National Risk Index gives White County a Relatively Moderate rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively High for tornadoes and strong wind; Relatively Moderate for inland flooding, lightning and heat waves; Relatively Low for hail; Very Low for hurricanes. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $50.9 million a year, the 9th highest of 75 Arkansas counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $17.9 million (35%), is from inland flooding.
Claims: FEMA, OpenFEMA Dataset FIMA NFIP Redacted Claims – v3, summed over ZIP codes; payments in the dollars of each year, not adjusted for inflation. Declarations: Disaster Declarations Summaries – v2, by county. Retrieved October 25, 2026. This product uses the Federal Emergency Management Agency's OpenFEMA API, but is not endorsed by FEMA. The Federal Government or FEMA cannot vouch for the data or analyses derived from these data after the data have been retrieved from the Agency's website(s).
Risk ratings: FEMA, National Risk Index county table, December 2025 (v1.20), retrieved October 26, 2026; ratings compare counties nationwide, are meant for planning and are no substitute for a local risk assessment. This product uses the Federal Emergency Management Agency's National Risk Index dataset API or downloadable datasets but is not endorsed by FEMA. The Federal Government or FEMA cannot vouch for the data or analyses derived from these data after the data have been retrieved from the Agency's website(s).
What counts as a pass, the distances and the sources: how this storm history is built.
Cities near Bald Knob
- Judsonia, AR6 mi
- Kensett, AR9 mi
- Bradford, AR11 mi
- Augusta, AR12 mi
- Searcy, AR12 mi
- Pangburn, AR17 mi
- Mc Rae, AR21 mi
- Mc Crory, AR23 mi
- Newport, AR25 mi
- Des Arc, AR25 mi
- Beebe, AR25 mi
- Romance, AR27 mi
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