NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Camden, 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
8 tropical systems have passed within 75 miles of Camden, Arkansas since 1851, 0 of them at hurricane strength; the most recent was Laura in 2020. Since 1950, 56 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 5 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 8
- Tornadoes
- 56
- EF3 or stronger
- 5
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
2 deaths in all
What the records show for Camden
None of the 8 tropical systems was at hurricane strength as it passed Camden; the strongest was Laura in 2020, a tropical storm with 52 mph winds when its centre passed 6 miles away. The record near Camden begins with an unnamed storm in 1865; the most recent system was Laura in 2020. Of the 8 systems, one has come since 2000. Camden has more tropical storms and hurricanes within 75 miles than 68% of the 213 Arkansas cities on this site. The strongest of the 56 tornadoes within 25 miles was an F4 on December 19, 1957; its path came within 13 miles, and it killed 2 people. Of the 56, 6 had paths within 5 miles of the city centre, and 33 have come since 2000. December has had the most tornadoes, 13. The most recent tornado was on March 14, 2025. Of the 213 Arkansas cities, 97% have more tornadoes within 25 miles than Camden. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 70 times since 1967, with stones up to 4.5 inches (grapefruit size). Of the 213 Arkansas cities, 59% have more hail reports within 10 miles than Camden.
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Tropical storms and hurricanes near Camden
| Year | Storm | Closest | Strength when closest | Peak |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | LauraAug 27 | 6 mi | Tropical storm (52 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1965 | BetsySep 11 | 56 mi | Tropical storm (39 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1941 | Unnamed 1941 stormSep 24 | 15 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1905 | Unnamed 1905 stormSep 30 | 55 mi | Tropical storm (39 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1891 | Unnamed 1891 stormJul 7 | 14 mi | Tropical storm (43 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1886 | Unnamed 1886 stormOct 13 | 27 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1879 | Unnamed 1879 stormAug 23 | 21 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1865 | Unnamed 1865 stormSep 14 | 16 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 Camden: 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 Camden
By decade
- 2020s7
- 2010s5
- 2000s21
- 1990s6
- 1980s3(2 EF3+)
- 1970s8(1 EF3+)
- 1960s2
- 1950s4(2 EF3+)
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dec 19, 1957 | F4 | 13 mi | 17.7 mi | 2 / 9 |
| Nov 9, 1984 | F3 | 20 mi | 6 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Dec 3, 1982 | F3 | 2 mi | 10 mi | 0 / 7 |
| Apr 8, 1979 | F3 | 3 mi | 62.4 mi | 0 / 18 |
| Apr 30, 1954 | F3 | 18 mi | 111.6 mi | 0 / 2 |
| Mar 14, 2025 | EF2 | 18 mi | 14.55 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jan 22, 2012 | EF2 | 20 mi | 19.64 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Oct 29, 2009 | EF2 | 7 mi | 25.86 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Oct 29, 2009 | EF2 | 9 mi | 10.83 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Dec 3, 1978 | F2 | 11 mi | 25.2 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 10, 1968 | F2 | 21 mi | 1 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Sep 21, 1965 | F2 | 23 mi | 0.1 mi | 0 / 0 |
The strongest 12 of 56, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Camden
The Storm Prediction Center has 70 hail reports within 10 miles of Camden since 1967, made on 55 separate days. Of these, 45 were 1 inch across or larger, and 3 reached 2 inches. The largest, 4.5 inches (grapefruit size), fell on May 6, 2001. The most recent report is from June 14, 2023. May has the most reports, 28.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Camden
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Camden 1, AR, 1 mile northwest of Camden at 116 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 92°F and low of 71°F; January is the coolest, at 53°F and 31°F. December is the wettest at 5.5 inches of precipitation on average and August the driest at 3.2 inches; the year adds up to 53.2 inches over 71 days with at least a tenth of an inch. Highs reach 90°F on about 82 days a year, almost all from May to October. Lows fall below freezing on about 63 nights a year. Snowfall averages 1.5 inches a year, most of it in January. That 53.2 inches is more than at 62 of the 95 Arkansas stations used on this site (65%). Smackover, 16 miles south, has its own station (El Dorado S Ar Regional Airport, AR): 52.1 inches a year, 1.1 less than here, and a July average high of 94°F against 92°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" | Snow in |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 53 | 31 | 4.3 | 6 | 0.9 |
| Feb | 58 | 34 | 4.7 | 7 | 0.3 |
| Mar | 66 | 42 | 5.4 | 7 | 0.3 |
| Apr | 75 | 50 | 5.4 | 6 | 0.0 |
| May | 81 | 60 | 4.6 | 7 | 0.0 |
| Jun | 89 | 67 | 3.5 | 6 | 0.0 |
| Jul | 92 | 71 | 4.1 | 6 | 0.0 |
| Aug | 92 | 70 | 3.2 | 5 | 0.0 |
| Sep | 86 | 62 | 3.5 | 4 | 0.0 |
| Oct | 76 | 50 | 4.8 | 5 | 0.0 |
| Nov | 64 | 40 | 4.2 | 6 | 0.0 |
| Dec | 56 | 33 | 5.5 | 7 | 0.0 |
| Year | 74 | 51 | 53.2 | 71 | 1.5 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Camden 1, AR (116 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 Camden
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 204 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Camden: 97 floods, 89 thunderstorm wind reports, 15 flash floods and 3 heavy rain events. None is recorded as killing or injuring anyone; the NWS estimated $6.6 million in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 85 mph, on April 3, 2014. April has had the most flash floods, 3 of 15. Of the 212 Arkansas cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 76 have had fewer than Camden.
April 3, 2014: thunderstorm wind 7 miles from the centre of Camden — $2.5 million damage.
NWS: “The Camden-Fairview High School had damage at the baseball field, where the bleachers were overturned and the dugouts were destroyed, at the football stadium and weight room, at the band building, and at one of the classroom buildings. Hundreds of trees were blown down.”
April 30, 2016: thunderstorm wind in Camden — $1.0 million damage.
NWS: “Trees were uprooted and snapped, with some trees falling and causing damage to homes. This was on the northwest side of town.”
March 20, 2008: flood in Camden — $610,000 damage.
NWS: “Heavy rain caused the Ouachita River at Camden to go above moderate flood level. Numerous county roads were flooded and Arkansas Highway 7 was closed.”
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 Camden's ZIP code 71701 have filed 85 claims with the National Flood Insurance Program since 1982, and were paid $1.4 million for buildings and contents, in the dollars of each year. The year with the most claims was 2009, with 21. 9% 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, 75 have fewer than Camden.
Ouachita County, which includes Camden, has been named in 29 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1979, 22 of them major disasters (by incident: 11 severe storms, 5 floods, 3 tornadoes, 2 biological emergencies). The latest major disaster declaration was Severe Storms, Tornadoes, and Flooding, on May 21, 2025. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Ouachita County a Relatively Low rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively Moderate for tornadoes, hail, strong wind and lightning; Relatively Low for inland flooding and heat waves; Very Low for hurricanes. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $10.4 million a year, the 43rd highest of 75 Arkansas counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $4.5 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.
Cities near Camden
- Bearden, AR14 mi
- Smackover, AR16 mi
- Hampton, AR20 mi
- El Dorado, AR27 mi
- Fordyce, AR28 mi
- Gurdon, AR30 mi
- Magnolia, AR32 mi
- Waldo, AR33 mi
- Junction City, AR35 mi
- Prescott, AR35 mi
- Arkadelphia, AR39 mi
- Strong, AR41 mi
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