NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Pocahontas, 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 Pocahontas, Arkansas since 1851, 0 of them at hurricane strength; the most recent was Ike in 2008. Since 1950, 77 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 8 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 5
- Tornadoes
- 77
- EF3 or stronger
- 8
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
10 deaths in all
What the records show for Pocahontas
None of the 5 tropical systems was at hurricane strength as it passed Pocahontas; the strongest was an unnamed storm in 1923, a tropical storm with 48 mph winds when its centre passed 27 miles away. The record near Pocahontas begins with an unnamed storm in 1906; the most recent system was Ike in 2008, a tropical storm 64 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 Pocahontas. The highest rating among the 77 tornadoes within 25 miles is F4 or EF4, reached 2 times; the most recent, on March 14, 2025, came within 11 miles. The deadliest, an EF3 on March 14, 2025, killed 3 people. Of the 77, 6 had paths within 5 miles of the city centre, and 39 have come since 2000. May has had the most tornadoes, 15. The most recent tornado was on April 2, 2025. Of the 213 Arkansas cities, 73% have more tornadoes within 25 miles than Pocahontas. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 49 times since 1973, with stones up to 2.75 inches (baseball size). Of the 213 Arkansas cities, 87% have more hail reports within 10 miles than Pocahontas.
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Tropical storms and hurricanes near Pocahontas
| Year | Storm | Closest | Strength when closest | Peak |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2008 | IkeSep 14 | 64 mi | Tropical storm (44 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1941 | Unnamed 1941 stormSep 25 | 8 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1923 | Unnamed 1923 stormOct 17 | 27 mi | Tropical storm (48 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1915 | Unnamed 1915 stormAug 20 | 2 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1906 | Unnamed 1906 stormSep 28 | 37 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 3 |
Strength is the sustained wind on the track at the closest point, which is not the wind felt in Pocahontas: 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 Pocahontas
By decade
- 2020s12(2 EF3+)
- 2010s10
- 2000s17(1 EF3+)
- 1990s19(4 EF3+)
- 1980s10(1 EF3+)
- 1970s4
- 1960s2
- 1950s3
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mar 14, 2025 | EF4 | 11 mi | 115.95 mi | 0 / 5 |
| Dec 24, 1982 | F4 | 25 mi | 63 mi | 0 / 11 |
| Mar 14, 2025 | EF3 | 3 mi | 80.97 mi | 3 / 0 |
| Apr 2, 2006 | F3 | 6 mi | 77 mi | 2 / 177 |
| Mar 1, 1997 | F3 | 25 mi | 15 mi | 1 / 5 |
| Jan 21, 1999 | F3 | 24 mi | 31 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Mar 1, 1997 | F3 | 25 mi | 5 mi | 0 / 2 |
| Mar 5, 1996 | F3 | 17 mi | 46.5 mi | 0 / 2 |
| Feb 24, 2018 | EF2 | 21 mi | 41.93 mi | 1 / 5 |
| Nov 27, 2005 | F2 | 16 mi | 12 mi | 1 / 0 |
| Dec 24, 1982 | F2 | 20 mi | 33 mi | 1 / 2 |
| Sep 14, 1977 | F2 | 22 mi | 2 mi | 1 / 3 |
The strongest 12 of 77, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Pocahontas
The Storm Prediction Center has 49 hail reports within 10 miles of Pocahontas since 1973, made on 41 separate days. Of these, 30 were 1 inch across or larger, and 2 reached 2 inches. The largest size, 2.75 inches (baseball size), was reported on 2 days, most recently April 27, 2011. The most recent report is from May 16, 2025. April has the most reports, 13.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Pocahontas
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Pocahontas 1, AR, 4 miles southeast of Pocahontas at 315 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 90°F and low of 69°F; January is the coolest, at 46°F and 26°F. April and May are the wettest at 5.4 inches of precipitation on average and June the driest at 3.5 inches; the year adds up to 51.6 inches over 74 days with at least a tenth of an inch. Highs reach 90°F on about 51 days a year, almost all from May to September. Lows fall below freezing on about 82 nights a year. Snowfall averages 6.3 inches a year, most of it in January. That 51.6 inches is more than at 43 of the 95 Arkansas stations used on this site (45%). Walnut Ridge, 17 miles south, has its own station (Alicia 2NNE, AR): 47.4 inches a year, 4.2 less than here, and a July average high of 88°F against 90°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" | Snow in |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 46 | 26 | 3.8 | 6 | 2.3 |
| Feb | 50 | 29 | 3.9 | 6 | 1.9 |
| Mar | 60 | 38 | 4.7 | 7 | 1.4 |
| Apr | 71 | 47 | 5.4 | 7 | 0.0 |
| May | 79 | 56 | 5.4 | 8 | 0.0 |
| Jun | 87 | 65 | 3.5 | 5 | 0.0 |
| Jul | 90 | 69 | 3.7 | 6 | 0.0 |
| Aug | 89 | 68 | 3.9 | 6 | 0.0 |
| Sep | 83 | 60 | 3.8 | 5 | 0.0 |
| Oct | 72 | 47 | 3.9 | 6 | 0.1 |
| Nov | 59 | 37 | 4.9 | 6 | 0.2 |
| Dec | 49 | 29 | 4.7 | 6 | 0.4 |
| Year | 69 | 48 | 51.6 | 74 | 6.3 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Pocahontas 1, AR (315 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 Pocahontas
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 139 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Pocahontas: 66 thunderstorm wind reports, 48 floods and 25 flash floods. They killed 2 people and injured 1, and the NWS estimated $11.2 million in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 86 mph, on July 4, 2005. Of the 212 Arkansas cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 132 have had fewer than Pocahontas.
April 1, 2008: flood 3 miles from the centre of Pocahontas — 1 killed, $2.3 million damage.
NWS: “Heavy rain produced flooding in March along the Black River and it's tributaries. The flooding provided intense pressure on the county's levees.”
May 1, 2011: flood 3 miles from the centre of Pocahontas — 1 killed, $525,000 damage.
NWS: “Heavy rain from numerous rounds of severe storms brought the Black River at Pocahontas to record levels during late April which continued through the end of May. The crest surpassed the Flood of 1915.”
January 17, 1999: thunderstorm wind 4 miles from the centre of Pocahontas — 1 injured, $50,000 damage.
NWS: “Several houses had their roofs blown off. One truck was blown off the road injuring the driver.”
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 Pocahontas's ZIP code 72455 have filed 175 claims with the National Flood Insurance Program since 1978, and were paid $7.5 million for buildings and contents, in the dollars of each year. The most came from Late spring severe storms in 2017: 79 claims (45% of all) and $5.1 million, then Mid-spring storms in 2011 with 44 and March storm in 2008 with 18. 85% 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, 90 have fewer than Pocahontas.
| Event | Claims | Paid |
|---|---|---|
| Late spring severe storms2017 | 79 | $5.1 million |
| Mid-spring storms2011 | 44 | $1.1 million |
| March storm2008 | 18 | $656,000 |
Randolph County, which includes Pocahontas, has been named in 27 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1969, 20 of them major disasters (by incident: 15 severe storms, 4 floods, 2 biological emergencies, 2 hurricanes). The latest major disaster declaration was Severe Storms, Tornadoes, and Flooding, on May 21, 2025. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Randolph County a Relatively Low rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively Moderate for tornadoes and heat waves; Relatively Low for inland flooding, strong wind and lightning; Very Low for hurricanes and hail. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $20.4 million a year, the 23rd highest of 75 Arkansas counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $4.5 million (22%), 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 Pocahontas
- Imboden, AR10 mi
- Walnut Ridge, AR17 mi
- Hoxie, AR18 mi
- Doniphan, MO24 mi
- Corning, AR26 mi
- Highland, AR26 mi
- Bono, AR29 mi
- Cherokee Village, AR30 mi
- Mammoth Spring, AR32 mi
- Alton, MO32 mi
- Paragould, AR33 mi
- Thayer, MO33 mi
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