NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Nashville, 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
7 tropical systems have passed within 75 miles of Nashville, Arkansas since 1851, 0 of them at hurricane strength; the most recent was Laura in 2020. Since 1950, 85 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 8 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 7
- Tornadoes
- 85
- EF3 or stronger
- 8
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
18 deaths in all
What the records show for Nashville
None of the 7 tropical systems was at hurricane strength as it passed Nashville; the strongest was Laura in 2020, a tropical storm with 49 mph winds when its centre passed 70 miles away. The record near Nashville begins with an unnamed storm in 1865; the most recent system was Laura in 2020. Of the 7 systems, 2 have come since 2000. Nashville has more tropical storms and hurricanes within 75 miles than 54% of the 213 Arkansas cities on this site. The highest rating among the 85 tornadoes within 25 miles is F4, reached 2 times; the most recent, on April 2, 1982, came within 6 miles. The deadliest, an F4 on March 21, 1952, killed 7 people. Of the 85, 8 had paths within 5 miles of the city centre, and 41 have come since 2000. April has had the most tornadoes, 34. The most recent tornado was on April 30, 2025. Of the 213 Arkansas cities, 66% have more tornadoes within 25 miles than Nashville. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 156 times since 1955, with stones up to 2.75 inches (baseball size). Nashville has more hail reports within 10 miles than 82% of the 213 Arkansas cities.
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Tropical storms and hurricanes near Nashville
| Year | Storm | Closest | Strength when closest | Peak |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | LauraAug 27 | 70 mi | Tropical storm (49 mph) | Category 4 |
| 2008 | IkeSep 14 | 39 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1941 | Unnamed 1941 stormSep 24 | 50 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1918 | Unnamed 1918 stormAug 7 | 67 mi | Tropical storm (39 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1891 | Unnamed 1891 stormJul 7 | 74 mi | Tropical storm (45 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1879 | Unnamed 1879 stormAug 23 | 45 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Category 2 |
| 1865 | Unnamed 1865 stormSep 14 | 48 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 Nashville: 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 Nashville
By decade
- 2020s9
- 2010s13
- 2000s19(1 EF3+)
- 1990s14(2 EF3+)
- 1980s9(3 EF3+)
- 1970s10(1 EF3+)
- 1960s5
- 1950s6(1 EF3+)
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mar 21, 1952 | F4 | 10 mi | 13 mi | 7 / 9 |
| Apr 2, 1982 | F4 | 6 mi | 45 mi | 3 / 23 |
| Apr 2, 1982 | F3 | 25 mi | 18 mi | 5 / 4 |
| May 4, 1999 | F3 | 22 mi | 71.5 mi | 1 / 22 |
| Apr 9, 2009 | EF3 | 15 mi | 37.18 mi | 0 / 7 |
| Mar 5, 1999 | F3 | 20 mi | 13 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Dec 23, 1982 | F3 | 14 mi | 20 mi | 0 / 29 |
| May 10, 1971 | F3 | 12 mi | 20.3 mi | 0 / 3 |
| May 10, 2015 | EF2 | in town | 6.7 mi | 2 / 8 |
| Apr 5, 2025 | EF2 | 24 mi | 10.43 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Mar 2, 2023 | EF2 | 22 mi | 1.8 mi | 0 / 5 |
| Nov 4, 2022 | EF2 | 21 mi | 1.7 mi | 0 / 0 |
The strongest 12 of 85, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Nashville
The Storm Prediction Center has 156 hail reports within 10 miles of Nashville since 1955, made on 105 separate days. Of these, 100 were 1 inch across or larger, and 10 reached 2 inches. The largest size, 2.75 inches (baseball size), was reported on 3 days, most recently May 13, 2003. The most recent report is from September 24, 2025. April has the most reports, 44.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Nashville
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Nashville, AR, 4 miles south of Nashville at 400 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 93°F and low of 71°F; January is the coolest, at 54°F and 32°F. May is the wettest at 6.2 inches of precipitation on average and August the driest at 3.2 inches; the year adds up to 54.9 inches over 72 days with at least a tenth of an inch. Highs reach 90°F on about 81 days a year, almost all from May to October. Lows fall below freezing on about 64 nights a year. Snowfall averages 2.6 inches a year, most of it in January. That 54.9 inches is more than at 71 of the 95 Arkansas stations used on this site (75%). Murfreesboro, 13 miles northeast, has its own station (Murfreesboro 1W, AR): 58.4 inches a year, 3.5 more than here, and a July average high of 90°F against 93°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" | Snow in |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 54 | 32 | 4.0 | 6 | 1.2 |
| Feb | 59 | 35 | 4.2 | 7 | 1.0 |
| Mar | 67 | 42 | 5.1 | 7 | 0.1 |
| Apr | 75 | 50 | 5.7 | 7 | 0.0 |
| May | 82 | 60 | 6.2 | 8 | 0.0 |
| Jun | 89 | 68 | 4.2 | 6 | 0.0 |
| Jul | 93 | 71 | 4.1 | 5 | 0.0 |
| Aug | 94 | 70 | 3.2 | 4 | 0.0 |
| Sep | 88 | 64 | 3.7 | 4 | 0.0 |
| Oct | 77 | 51 | 5.0 | 5 | 0.0 |
| Nov | 65 | 41 | 4.4 | 6 | 0.0 |
| Dec | 56 | 34 | 5.1 | 6 | 0.3 |
| Year | 75 | 52 | 54.9 | 72 | 2.6 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Nashville, AR (400 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 Nashville
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 175 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Nashville: 133 thunderstorm wind reports, 37 flash floods, 4 heavy rain events and 1 lightning strike. None is recorded as killing or injuring anyone; the NWS estimated $2.4 million in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 98 mph, on May 12, 2000. July has had the most flash floods, 11 of 37. Of the 212 Arkansas cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 168 have had fewer than Nashville.
May 12, 2000: thunderstorm wind 9 miles from the centre of Nashville — $1.1 million damage.
NWS: “Pine, Oak, and Pecan trees over a 15 mile wide area were flattened along with 2 homes destroyed, 5 homes suffering major damage, 30 homes suffering minor damage, 3 mobile homes totally destroyed and one new motor home crushed by a fallen tree. No injuries or deaths occurred.”
June 2, 2004: thunderstorm wind 4 miles from the centre of Nashville — $500,000 damage.
NWS: “Nashville and surrounding rural areas of Howard County had numerous trees and power lines down. Many homes suffered wind damage as well as many chicken houses.”
June 11, 2003: thunderstorm wind 5 miles from the centre of Nashville — $130,000 damage.
NWS: “A chicken house had 300 feet of roof stripped off. Numerous trees down.”
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 Nashville's ZIP code 71852 have filed 26 claims with the National Flood Insurance Program since 1982, and were paid $179,000 for buildings and contents, in the dollars of each year. 15% 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, 40 have fewer than Nashville.
Howard County, which includes Nashville, has been named in 22 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1968, 15 of them major disasters (by incident: 7 severe storms, 4 floods, 4 tornadoes, 2 biological emergencies). The latest major disaster declaration was Covid-19 Pandemic, on April 3, 2020. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Howard County a Relatively Low rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively Moderate for hail and strong wind; Relatively Low for tornadoes, inland flooding, lightning and heat waves; Very Low for hurricanes. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $9.9 million a year, the 48th highest of 75 Arkansas counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $4.5 million (45%), 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 Nashville
- Murfreesboro, AR13 mi
- Lockesburg, AR17 mi
- Horatio, AR26 mi
- Ashdown, AR27 mi
- Hope, AR27 mi
- Glenwood, AR27 mi
- De Queen, AR28 mi
- Amity, AR29 mi
- Prescott, AR30 mi
- Foreman, AR35 mi
- Texarkana, AR39 mi
- Texarkana, TX40 mi
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