NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Earle, 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 Earle, Arkansas since 1851, 0 of them at hurricane strength; the most recent was Olga in 2019. Since 1950, 70 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 12 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 9
- Tornadoes
- 70
- EF3 or stronger
- 12
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
19 deaths in all
What the records show for Earle
None of the 9 tropical systems was at hurricane strength as it passed Earle; the strongest was an unnamed storm in 1888, a tropical storm with 63 mph winds when its centre passed 38 miles away. The record near Earle begins with an unnamed storm in 1888; the most recent system was Olga in 2019, a tropical storm 57 miles away. The 1900s and the 1920s were the busiest decades, with 2 systems each. Of the 9 systems, one has come since 2000. Earle has more tropical storms and hurricanes within 75 miles than 77% of the 213 Arkansas cities on this site. The highest rating among the 70 tornadoes within 25 miles is F3 or EF3, reached 12 times; the most recent, on March 31, 2023, came within 4 miles. The deadliest, an F3 on December 14, 1987, killed 6 people. Of the 70, 5 had paths within 5 miles of the city centre, and 30 have come since 2000. April has had the most tornadoes, 16. The most recent tornado was on April 5, 2025. Of the 213 Arkansas cities, 84% have more tornadoes within 25 miles than Earle. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 28 times since 1975, with stones up to 1.75 inches (golf ball size). Of the 213 Arkansas cities, 95% have more hail reports within 10 miles than Earle.
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Tropical storms and hurricanes near Earle
| Year | Storm | Closest | Strength when closest | Peak |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2019 | OlgaOct 26 | 57 mi | Tropical storm (47 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1969 | CamilleAug 19 | 40 mi | Tropical storm (39 mph) | Category 5 |
| 1941 | Unnamed 1941 stormSep 24 | 58 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1923 | Unnamed 1923 stormOct 18 | 72 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1923 | Unnamed 1923 stormOct 16 | 50 mi | Tropical storm (52 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1915 | Unnamed 1915 stormAug 20 | 75 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1909 | Unnamed 1909 stormSep 21 | 45 mi | Tropical storm (44 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1906 | Unnamed 1906 stormSep 28 | 20 mi | Tropical storm (41 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1888 | Unnamed 1888 stormAug 21 | 38 mi | Tropical storm (63 mph) | Category 3 |
Strength is the sustained wind on the track at the closest point, which is not the wind felt in Earle: 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 Earle
By decade
- 2020s10(1 EF3+)
- 2010s9
- 2000s11(3 EF3+)
- 1990s13
- 1980s9(2 EF3+)
- 1970s12(3 EF3+)
- 1960s1
- 1950s5(3 EF3+)
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dec 14, 1987 | F3 | 18 mi | 25 mi | 6 / 121 |
| Mar 31, 2023 | EF3 | 4 mi | 72.55 mi | 4 / 26 |
| Jun 6, 1974 | F3 | 23 mi | 3.8 mi | 4 / 112 |
| Jan 7, 1978 | F3 | 7 mi | 39.6 mi | 1 / 9 |
| Feb 16, 1954 | F3 | 22 mi | 2 mi | 1 / 4 |
| Mar 21, 1952 | F3 | 18 mi | 9.4 mi | 1 / 5 |
| May 2, 2008 | EF3 | in town | 20.23 mi | 0 / 4 |
| Apr 2, 2006 | F3 | 3 mi | 38 mi | 0 / 5 |
| May 4, 2003 | F3 | 17 mi | 43 mi | 0 / 4 |
| Apr 21, 1984 | F3 | 19 mi | 3 mi | 0 / 3 |
| Apr 19, 1970 | F3 | 18 mi | 1.8 mi | 0 / 2 |
| Sep 26, 1959 | F3 | 25 mi | 35.2 mi | 0 / 21 |
The strongest 12 of 70, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Earle
The Storm Prediction Center has 28 hail reports within 10 miles of Earle since 1975, made on 24 separate days. Of these, 15 were 1 inch across or larger, and none reached 2 inches. The largest size, 1.75 inches (golf ball size), was reported on 8 days, most recently October 2, 2014. The most recent report is from June 5, 2020. March and April have the most reports, 6 each.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Earle
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is West Memphis Municipal Airport, AR, 16 miles southeast of Earle at 214 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 91°F and low of 72°F; January is the coolest, at 50°F and 33°F. March is the wettest at 5.1 inches of precipitation on average and August the driest at 2.4 inches; the year adds up to 50.4 inches over 69 days with at least a tenth of an inch. Highs reach 90°F on about 66 days a year, almost all from May to October. Lows fall below freezing on about 58 nights a year. That 50.4 inches is more than at 26 of the 95 Arkansas stations used on this site (27%). West Memphis, 18 miles southeast, has its own station (W Memphis, AR): 55.7 inches a year, 5.3 more than here, and the same July average high, 91°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 50 | 33 | 3.8 | 6 |
| Feb | 54 | 36 | 4.3 | 7 |
| Mar | 63 | 43 | 5.1 | 7 |
| Apr | 73 | 52 | 5.0 | 7 |
| May | 82 | 62 | 5.0 | 8 |
| Jun | 89 | 69 | 4.1 | 5 |
| Jul | 91 | 72 | 4.1 | 5 |
| Aug | 91 | 71 | 2.4 | 4 |
| Sep | 86 | 64 | 3.1 | 3 |
| Oct | 75 | 52 | 4.1 | 5 |
| Nov | 62 | 42 | 4.5 | 6 |
| Dec | 53 | 36 | 4.9 | 6 |
| Year | 72 | 53 | 50.4 | 69 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at West Memphis Municipal Airport, AR (214 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 Earle
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 45 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Earle: 40 thunderstorm wind reports, 4 flash floods and 1 flood. They killed 0 people and injured 1, and the NWS estimated $1.3 million in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 85 mph, on February 24, 2011.
February 7, 1999: thunderstorm wind in Earle — 1 injured, $15,000 damage.
NWS: “Several trees and power poles were knocked down. One tree fell in the middle of a house injuring one person and trapping a second person in bed.”
March 4, 2018: flood 2 miles from the centre of Earle — $1.0 million damage.
NWS: “Heavy rainfall caused the Tyronza River to flood in Earle. Residents were evacuated from a neighborhood with 20 homes.”
May 27, 2017: thunderstorm wind 7 miles from the centre of Earle — $100,000 damage.
NWS: “A large tree fell on two mobile homes in Crawfordsville. One minor injury occurred.”
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 Earle's ZIP code 72331 have filed 39 claims with the National Flood Insurance Program since 1987, and were paid $539,000 for buildings and contents, in the dollars of each year. The year with the most claims was 2003, with 14. 33% 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, 52 have fewer than Earle.
Crittenden County, which includes Earle, has been named in 21 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1973, 13 of them major disasters (by incident: 5 severe storms, 4 floods, 3 ice storms, 3 tornadoes). The latest major disaster declaration was Severe Storms, Tornadoes, and Flooding, on May 21, 2025. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Crittenden County a Relatively Moderate rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively Moderate for tornadoes, lightning and heat waves; Relatively Low for hail, inland flooding and strong wind; Very Low for hurricanes. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $38.8 million a year, the 12th highest of 75 Arkansas counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $11.2 million (29%), 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 Earle
- Marion, AR15 mi
- West Memphis, AR18 mi
- Marked Tree, AR19 mi
- Wynne, AR21 mi
- Hughes, AR23 mi
- Harrisburg, AR24 mi
- Trumann, AR25 mi
- Forrest City, AR25 mi
- Lepanto, AR26 mi
- Colt, AR27 mi
- Walls, MS29 mi
- Lake Cormorant, MS29 mi
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