NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Heber Springs, 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
5 tropical systems have passed within 75 miles of Heber Springs, Arkansas since 1851, 0 of them at hurricane strength; the most recent was Ike in 2008. Since 1950, 114 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 19 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 5
- Tornadoes
- 114
- EF3 or stronger
- 19
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
52 deaths in all
What the records show for Heber Springs
None of the 5 tropical systems was at hurricane strength as it passed Heber Springs; the strongest was an unnamed storm in 1923, a tropical storm with 52 mph winds when its centre passed 36 miles away. The record near Heber Springs begins with an unnamed storm in 1909; the most recent system was Ike in 2008, a tropical storm 66 miles away. Of the 5 systems, one has come since 2000. Of the 213 Arkansas cities on this site, 54% have more tropical storms and hurricanes within 75 miles than Heber Springs. The highest rating among the 114 tornadoes within 25 miles is F4 or EF4, reached 3 times; the most recent, on April 27, 2014, came within 24 miles. Of the 114, 7 had paths within 5 miles of the city centre, and 52 have come since 2000. April has had the most tornadoes, 21. The most recent tornado was on March 14, 2025. Heber Springs has more tornadoes within 25 miles than 61% of the 213 Arkansas cities. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 69 times since 1963, with stones up to 3 inches (tea cup size). Of the 213 Arkansas cities, 61% have more hail reports within 10 miles than Heber Springs.
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Tropical storms and hurricanes near Heber Springs
| Year | Storm | Closest | Strength when closest | Peak |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2008 | IkeSep 14 | 66 mi | Tropical storm (43 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1941 | Unnamed 1941 stormSep 24 | 23 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1923 | Unnamed 1923 stormOct 16 | 36 mi | Tropical storm (52 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1915 | Unnamed 1915 stormAug 20 | 1 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1909 | Unnamed 1909 stormSep 21 | 44 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 Heber Springs: 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 Heber Springs
By decade
- 2020s3
- 2010s14(1 EF3+)
- 2000s35(4 EF3+)
- 1990s20(3 EF3+)
- 1980s12(5 EF3+)
- 1970s13(1 EF3+)
- 1960s8(1 EF3+)
- 1950s9(4 EF3+)
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apr 27, 2014 | EF4 | 24 mi | 41.1 mi | 16 / 193 |
| Feb 5, 2008 | EF4 | 20 mi | 121.84 mi | 13 / 139 |
| Mar 15, 1984 | F4 | 9 mi | 41 mi | 2 / 13 |
| May 2, 2008 | EF3 | 10 mi | 45.3 mi | 5 / 24 |
| Dec 18, 2002 | F3 | 22 mi | 9.8 mi | 1 / 13 |
| Nov 15, 1988 | F3 | 12 mi | 29 mi | 1 / 10 |
| Dec 24, 1982 | F3 | 19 mi | 16.5 mi | 1 / 7 |
| Mar 29, 1976 | F3 | 6 mi | 16.5 mi | 1 / 6 |
| May 6, 1960 | F3 | 17 mi | 26.7 mi | 1 / 30 |
| Feb 14, 1956 | F3 | 23 mi | 33 mi | 1 / 5 |
| Nov 15, 1955 | F3 | in town | 36.5 mi | 1 / 4 |
| May 4, 2003 | F3 | 25 mi | 34.9 mi | 0 / 5 |
The strongest 12 of 114, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Heber Springs
The Storm Prediction Center has 69 hail reports within 10 miles of Heber Springs since 1963, made on 56 separate days. Of these, 42 were 1 inch across or larger, and 2 reached 2 inches. The largest, 3 inches (tea cup size), fell on November 5, 1963. The most recent report is from August 10, 2023. April has the most reports, 23.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Heber Springs
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Greers Ferry Dam, AR, 3 miles northeast of Heber Springs at 527 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 91°F and low of 70°F; January is the coolest, at 48°F and 28°F. May is the wettest at 5.7 inches of precipitation on average and June and September the driest at 3.7 inches; the year adds up to 53.4 inches over 70 days with at least a tenth of an inch. Highs reach 90°F on about 54 days a year, almost all from May to September. Lows fall below freezing on about 74 nights a year. Snowfall averages 2.6 inches a year, most of it in March and December. That 53.4 inches is more than at 65 of the 95 Arkansas stations used on this site (68%). Romance, 18 miles south, has its own station (Searcy, AR): 51.8 inches a year, 1.6 less than here, and a July average high of 93°F against 91°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" | Snow in |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 48 | 28 | 3.8 | 5 | 0.6 |
| Feb | 54 | 31 | 3.8 | 6 | 0.6 |
| Mar | 62 | 39 | 4.9 | 7 | 0.7 |
| Apr | 72 | 47 | 5.4 | 6 | 0.0 |
| May | 79 | 57 | 5.7 | 7 | 0.0 |
| Jun | 87 | 66 | 3.7 | 6 | 0.0 |
| Jul | 91 | 70 | 4.4 | 6 | 0.0 |
| Aug | 91 | 68 | 3.8 | 5 | 0.0 |
| Sep | 84 | 61 | 3.7 | 5 | 0.0 |
| Oct | 73 | 49 | 4.2 | 5 | 0.0 |
| Nov | 61 | 39 | 5.1 | 6 | 0.0 |
| Dec | 51 | 31 | 4.9 | 6 | 0.7 |
| Year | 71 | 49 | 53.4 | 70 | 2.6 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Greers Ferry Dam, AR (527 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 Heber Springs
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 101 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Heber Springs: 82 thunderstorm wind reports, 14 flash floods, 3 heavy rain events and 2 lightning strikes. They killed 0 people and injured 1, and the NWS estimated $1.8 million in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 75 mph, on August 5, 2009. Of the 212 Arkansas cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 63 have had fewer than Heber Springs.
April 4, 2011: thunderstorm wind 2 miles from the centre of Heber Springs — 1 injured, $100,000 damage.
NWS: “Thunderstorm winds caused damage in a small section of Heber Springs. The roof of a storage building at a building supply business was torn off, with part of the roof landing in Arkansas Highway 25B.”
August 5, 2009: thunderstorm wind 7 miles from the centre of Heber Springs — $375,000 damage.
NWS: “Nine residences (houses and mobile homes) were damaged, two of which were destroyed; one metal building collapsed; eight metal barns were severely damaged, two of which were flattened and another of which was destroyed; and six vehicles were damaged, one of which was totaled. A number of trees were blown down.”
March 10, 2010: thunderstorm wind 3 miles from the centre of Heber Springs — $300,000 damage.
NWS: “A few boat docks on Greers Ferry Lake near Thunderbird Country Club were damaged from high winds in a severe thunderstorm.”
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 Heber Springs's ZIP code 72543 have filed 18 claims with the National Flood Insurance Program since 2003, and were paid $152,000 for buildings and contents, in the dollars of each year. 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, 21 have fewer than Heber Springs.
Cleburne County, which includes Heber Springs, has been named in 23 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1976, 16 of them major disasters (by incident: 12 severe storms, 3 ice storms, 2 biological emergencies, 2 hurricanes). The latest major disaster declaration was Covid-19 Pandemic, on April 3, 2020. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Cleburne County a Relatively Low rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively High for lightning; Relatively Moderate for tornadoes, inland flooding and strong wind; Relatively Low for hail and heat waves; Very Low for hurricanes. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $23.2 million a year, the 19th highest of 75 Arkansas counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $11.1 million (48%), 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 Heber Springs
- Greers Ferry, AR9 mi
- Rose Bud, AR10 mi
- Quitman, AR12 mi
- Pangburn, AR12 mi
- Fairfield Bay, AR15 mi
- Romance, AR18 mi
- Shirley, AR19 mi
- Searcy, AR24 mi
- Judsonia, AR24 mi
- Mountain View, AR26 mi
- Greenbrier, AR26 mi
- Kensett, AR27 mi
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