NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Booneville, 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
3 tropical systems have passed within 75 miles of Booneville, Arkansas since 1851, 0 of them at hurricane strength; the most recent was Ike in 2008. Since 1950, 71 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 4 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 3
- Tornadoes
- 71
- EF3 or stronger
- 4
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
19 deaths in all
What the records show for Booneville
None of the 3 tropical systems was at hurricane strength as it passed Booneville; the strongest was Ike in 2008, a tropical storm with 40 mph winds when its centre passed 2 miles away. The record near Booneville begins with an unnamed storm in 1902; the most recent system was Ike in 2008. Of the 213 Arkansas cities on this site, 77% have more tropical storms and hurricanes within 75 miles than Booneville. The highest rating among the 71 tornadoes within 25 miles is F4 or EF4, reached 2 times; the most recent, on May 24, 2011, came within 12 miles. The deadliest, an F4 on April 19, 1968, killed 14 people. Of the 71, 6 had paths within 5 miles of the city centre, and 41 have come since 2000. April and May have had the most tornadoes, 14 each. The most recent tornado was on May 19, 2025. Of the 213 Arkansas cities, 83% have more tornadoes within 25 miles than Booneville. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 54 times since 1966, with stones up to 2 inches (hen egg size). Of the 213 Arkansas cities, 81% have more hail reports within 10 miles than Booneville.
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Tropical storms and hurricanes near Booneville
| Year | Storm | Closest | Strength when closest | Peak |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2008 | IkeSep 14 | 2 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1961 | CarlaSep 13 | 65 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1902 | Unnamed 1902 stormJun 28 | 52 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 1 |
Strength is the sustained wind on the track at the closest point, which is not the wind felt in Booneville: 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 Booneville
By decade
- 2020s13
- 2010s18(1 EF3+)
- 2000s10
- 1990s7
- 1980s5
- 1970s2
- 1960s8(1 EF3+)
- 1950s8(2 EF3+)
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apr 19, 1968 | F4 | 18 mi | 2 mi | 14 / 270 |
| May 24, 2011 | EF4 | 12 mi | 45.71 mi | 4 / 27 |
| Mar 31, 1959 | F3 | 19 mi | 2 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Mar 14, 1953 | F3 | 8 mi | 40.1 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jan 10, 2020 | EF2 | 23 mi | 13.6 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Dec 23, 1982 | F2 | 20 mi | 0.6 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Dec 23, 1982 | F2 | 21 mi | 0.5 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Apr 7, 1980 | F2 | 4 mi | 20.9 mi | 0 / 1 |
| Apr 7, 1980 | F2 | 17 mi | 5.4 mi | 0 / 8 |
| Mar 25, 1967 | F2 | 3 mi | 1 mi | 0 / 5 |
| Nov 2, 1961 | F2 | 21 mi | 1.5 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Apr 7, 1957 | F2 | 12 mi | 4.7 mi | 0 / 0 |
The strongest 12 of 71, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Booneville
The Storm Prediction Center has 54 hail reports within 10 miles of Booneville since 1966, made on 48 separate days. Of these, 27 were 1 inch across or larger, and one reached 2 inches. The largest, 2 inches (hen egg size), fell on April 7, 1980. The most recent report is from June 5, 2023. April has the most reports, 16.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Booneville
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Booneville 3 SSE, AR, 3 miles east of Booneville at 600 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 92°F and low of 70°F; January is the coolest, at 50°F and 28°F. May is the wettest at 5.8 inches of precipitation on average and February the driest at 3.2 inches; the year adds up to 51.7 inches over 69 days with at least a tenth of an inch. Highs reach 90°F on about 70 days a year, almost all from May to October. Lows fall below freezing on about 72 nights a year. That 51.7 inches is more than at 46 of the 95 Arkansas stations used on this site (48%). Mansfield, 15 miles west, has its own station (Waldron, AR): 53.3 inches a year, 1.6 more than here, and the same July average high, 92°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 50 | 28 | 3.8 | 5 |
| Feb | 55 | 31 | 3.2 | 5 |
| Mar | 64 | 39 | 4.8 | 7 |
| Apr | 73 | 47 | 5.0 | 7 |
| May | 80 | 58 | 5.8 | 7 |
| Jun | 87 | 66 | 4.2 | 6 |
| Jul | 92 | 70 | 3.6 | 6 |
| Aug | 92 | 68 | 3.5 | 5 |
| Sep | 85 | 61 | 4.4 | 5 |
| Oct | 75 | 50 | 4.4 | 5 |
| Nov | 62 | 38 | 4.6 | 5 |
| Dec | 52 | 31 | 4.4 | 6 |
| Year | 72 | 49 | 51.7 | 69 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Booneville 3 SSE, AR (600 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 Booneville
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 80 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Booneville: 62 thunderstorm wind reports, 13 flash floods, 3 heavy rain events and 2 lightning strikes. They killed 0 people and injured 1, and the NWS estimated $17.8 million in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 92 mph, on March 18, 2008. Of the 212 Arkansas cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 56 have had fewer than Booneville.
March 26, 2009: lightning strike 5 miles from the centre of Booneville — 1 injured.
NWS: “A man was struck by lightning while on a drilling rig off of Ferguson Valley Road.”
March 18, 2008: flash flood 5 miles from the centre of Booneville — $15.0 million damage.
NWS: “Several roads were impassible across the county. Damage was caused to at least 50 percent of the county's roads.”
March 18, 2008: thunderstorm wind 7 miles from the centre of Booneville — $2.0 million 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
Logan County, which includes Booneville, has been named in 23 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1968, 14 of them major disasters (by incident: 6 severe storms, 5 floods, 4 ice storms, 2 biological emergencies). The latest major disaster declaration was Covid-19 Pandemic, on April 3, 2020. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Logan County a Relatively Low rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively Moderate for tornadoes, strong wind and lightning; Relatively Low for hail, inland flooding and heat waves; Very Low for hurricanes. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $12.3 million a year, the 39th highest of 75 Arkansas counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $6.6 million (53%), 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 Booneville
- Magazine, AR11 mi
- Charleston, AR15 mi
- Mansfield, AR15 mi
- Waldron, AR16 mi
- Greenwood, AR17 mi
- Paris, AR19 mi
- Lavaca, AR20 mi
- Hackett, AR24 mi
- Barling, AR24 mi
- Altus, AR27 mi
- Fort Smith, AR29 mi
- Pocola, OK29 mi
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