NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Benton, 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
9 tropical systems have passed within 75 miles of Benton, Arkansas since 1851, 0 of them at hurricane strength; the most recent was Laura in 2020. Since 1950, 170 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 17 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 9
- Tornadoes
- 170
- EF3 or stronger
- 17
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
64 deaths in all
What the records show for Benton
None of the 9 tropical systems was at hurricane strength as it passed Benton; the strongest was an unnamed storm in 1923, a tropical storm with 52 mph winds when its centre passed 64 miles away. The record near Benton begins with an unnamed storm in 1865; the most recent system was Laura in 2020, a tropical storm 20 miles away. The busiest decade was the 1900s, with 2 systems. Of the 9 systems, one has come since 2000. Benton has more tropical storms and hurricanes within 75 miles than 77% of the 213 Arkansas cities on this site. The highest rating among the 170 tornadoes within 25 miles is F4 or EF4, reached 4 times; the most recent, on April 27, 2014, came within 12 miles. Of the 170, 11 had paths within 5 miles of the city centre, and 83 have come since 2000. April has had the most tornadoes, 50. The most recent tornado was on June 12, 2025. Benton has more tornadoes within 25 miles than 93% of the 213 Arkansas cities. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 385 times since 1955, with stones up to 4.5 inches (grapefruit size). Benton has more hail reports within 10 miles than 98% of the 213 Arkansas cities.
Compare Benton's storm record with another city →
Tropical storms and hurricanes near Benton
| Year | Storm | Closest | Strength when closest | Peak |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | LauraAug 28 | 20 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1941 | Unnamed 1941 stormSep 24 | 11 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1923 | Unnamed 1923 stormOct 16 | 64 mi | Tropical storm (52 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1915 | Unnamed 1915 stormAug 19 | 24 mi | Tropical storm (39 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1909 | Unnamed 1909 stormSep 21 | 62 mi | Tropical storm (49 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1905 | Unnamed 1905 stormSep 30 | 48 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1891 | Unnamed 1891 stormJul 7 | 69 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1879 | Unnamed 1879 stormAug 24 | 8 mi | Tropical storm (43 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1865 | Unnamed 1865 stormSep 14 | 57 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Category 2 |
Strength is the sustained wind on the track at the closest point, which is not the wind felt in Benton: 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 Benton
By decade
- 2020s10(1 EF3+)
- 2010s36(2 EF3+)
- 2000s37(1 EF3+)
- 1990s25(3 EF3+)
- 1980s21(3 EF3+)
- 1970s21(2 EF3+)
- 1960s11(3 EF3+)
- 1950s9(2 EF3+)
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apr 27, 2014 | EF4 | 12 mi | 41.1 mi | 16 / 193 |
| Mar 1, 1997 | F4 | 5 mi | 14 mi | 10 / 40 |
| Apr 10, 1965 | F4 | 25 mi | 4.7 mi | 6 / 200 |
| Mar 1, 1997 | F4 | 7 mi | 11 mi | 5 / 180 |
| Mar 29, 1976 | F3 | 20 mi | 17.2 mi | 5 / 64 |
| Jan 21, 1999 | F3 | 6 mi | 39 mi | 3 / 72 |
| Dec 2, 1982 | F3 | 2 mi | 18 mi | 2 / 53 |
| Apr 25, 2011 | EF3 | 21 mi | 16.78 mi | 1 / 20 |
| Dec 24, 1982 | F3 | 22 mi | 16.5 mi | 1 / 7 |
| Feb 22, 1975 | F3 | 4 mi | 14.4 mi | 1 / 22 |
| Mar 31, 2023 | EF3 | 3 mi | 34.23 mi | 0 / 54 |
| May 4, 2003 | F3 | 22 mi | 34.9 mi | 0 / 5 |
The strongest 12 of 170, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Benton
The Storm Prediction Center has 385 hail reports within 10 miles of Benton since 1955, made on 189 separate days. Of these, 231 were 1 inch across or larger, and 14 reached 2 inches. The largest, 4.5 inches (grapefruit size), fell on January 21, 1999. The most recent report is from March 12, 2025. April has the most reports, 129.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Benton
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Little Rock Airport Adams Field, AR, 12 miles east of Benton at 258 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 92°F and low of 71°F; January is the coolest, at 51°F and 31°F. April is the wettest at 5.6 inches of precipitation on average and September the driest at 3.0 inches; the year adds up to 50.6 inches over 71 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 50 nights a year. Snowfall averages 3.8 inches a year, most of it in February. That 50.6 inches is more than at 28 of the 95 Arkansas stations used on this site (29%). Alexander, 5 miles southwest, has its own station (Benton, AR): 53.4 inches a year, 2.8 more than here, and a July average high of 93°F against 92°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" | Snow in |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 51 | 31 | 3.5 | 6 | 1.1 |
| Feb | 55 | 34 | 4.0 | 6 | 1.6 |
| Mar | 64 | 42 | 5.0 | 8 | 0.5 |
| Apr | 73 | 50 | 5.6 | 7 | 0.0 |
| May | 81 | 59 | 5.1 | 7 | 0.0 |
| Jun | 88 | 68 | 3.6 | 6 | 0.0 |
| Jul | 92 | 71 | 3.3 | 6 | 0.0 |
| Aug | 92 | 70 | 3.2 | 5 | 0.0 |
| Sep | 85 | 63 | 3.0 | 4 | 0.0 |
| Oct | 74 | 51 | 4.5 | 6 | 0.0 |
| Nov | 62 | 40 | 4.7 | 6 | 0.0 |
| Dec | 53 | 33 | 5.1 | 6 | 0.6 |
| Year | 72 | 51 | 50.6 | 71 | 3.8 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Little Rock Airport Adams Field, AR (258 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 Benton
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 433 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Benton: 278 thunderstorm wind reports, 103 flash floods, 22 lightning strikes, 21 heavy rain events and 9 floods. They killed 3 people and injured 15, and the NWS estimated $12.8 million in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 86 mph, on August 11, 1999. May has had the most flash floods, 23 of 103. Of the 212 Arkansas cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 206 have had fewer than Benton.
April 5, 2025: thunderstorm wind 4 miles from the centre of Benton — 1 killed, 6 injured.
NWS: “A tree fell on a mobile home at this location of southwestern Little Rock leading to one fatality.”
May 22, 2008: lightning strike 7 miles from the centre of Benton — 1 killed, 2 injured.
May 1, 2010: flash flood 6 miles from the centre of Benton — 1 killed, $30,000 damage.
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 Benton's 2 ZIP codes have filed 97 claims with the National Flood Insurance Program since 1978, and were paid $3.1 million for buildings and contents, in the dollars of each year. The year with the most claims was 2009, with 13. 18% 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, 76 have fewer than Benton.
Pulaski County, which includes Benton, has been named in 33 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1968, 25 of them major disasters (by incident: 12 severe storms, 8 floods, 4 ice storms, 4 tornadoes). The latest major disaster declaration was Severe Storms, Tornadoes, and Flooding, on May 21, 2025. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Pulaski County a Relatively High rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Very High for tornadoes and lightning; Relatively High for hail, inland flooding and strong wind; Relatively Moderate for heat waves; Relatively Low for hurricanes. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $212.2 million a year, the highest of 75 Arkansas counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $91.0 million (43%), 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.