NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Russellville, 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 Russellville, Arkansas since 1851, 0 of them at hurricane strength; the most recent was Laura in 2020. Since 1950, 101 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 11 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 5
- Tornadoes
- 101
- EF3 or stronger
- 11
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
19 deaths in all
What the records show for Russellville
None of the 5 tropical systems was at hurricane strength as it passed Russellville; the strongest was an unnamed storm in 1879, a tropical storm with 43 mph winds when its centre passed 65 miles away. The record near Russellville begins with an unnamed storm in 1879; the most recent system was Laura in 2020, a tropical storm 71 miles away. Of the 5 systems, 2 have come since 2000. Of the 213 Arkansas cities on this site, 54% have more tropical storms and hurricanes within 75 miles than Russellville. The strongest of the 101 tornadoes within 25 miles was an EF4 on February 5, 2008; its path came within 12 miles, and it killed 13 people. Of the 101, 7 had paths within 5 miles of the city centre, and 42 have come since 2000. April has had the most tornadoes, 23. The most recent tornado was on June 25, 2023. Russellville has more tornadoes within 25 miles than 51% of the 213 Arkansas cities. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 136 times since 1956, with stones up to 3 inches (tea cup size). Russellville has more hail reports within 10 miles than 78% of the 213 Arkansas cities.
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Tropical storms and hurricanes near Russellville
| Year | Storm | Closest | Strength when closest | Peak |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | LauraAug 28 | 71 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 4 |
| 2008 | IkeSep 14 | 33 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1941 | Unnamed 1941 stormSep 24 | 66 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1915 | Unnamed 1915 stormAug 19 | 33 mi | Tropical storm (39 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1879 | Unnamed 1879 stormAug 24 | 65 mi | Tropical storm (43 mph) | Category 2 |
Strength is the sustained wind on the track at the closest point, which is not the wind felt in Russellville: 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 Russellville
By decade
- 2020s8
- 2010s12(2 EF3+)
- 2000s22(2 EF3+)
- 1990s15
- 1980s7(1 EF3+)
- 1970s16(1 EF3+)
- 1960s6(1 EF3+)
- 1950s15(4 EF3+)
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Feb 5, 2008 | EF4 | 12 mi | 121.84 mi | 13 / 139 |
| May 24, 2011 | EF3 | 21 mi | 29.01 mi | 1 / 4 |
| Apr 30, 2010 | EF3 | 22 mi | 20.28 mi | 1 / 15 |
| Feb 14, 1956 | F3 | 11 mi | 33 mi | 1 / 5 |
| Nov 27, 2005 | F3 | 25 mi | 19 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Apr 7, 1980 | F3 | 23 mi | 3.6 mi | 0 / 76 |
| Mar 26, 1976 | F3 | 12 mi | 16.1 mi | 0 / 4 |
| Apr 14, 1960 | F3 | 20 mi | 2 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Feb 15, 1954 | F3 | 24 mi | 1 mi | 0 / 24 |
| Mar 14, 1953 | F3 | 5 mi | 12.2 mi | 0 / 7 |
| Mar 14, 1953 | F3 | 23 mi | 40.1 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jan 8, 2008 | EF2 | 8 mi | 20.46 mi | 1 / 2 |
The strongest 12 of 101, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Russellville
The Storm Prediction Center has 136 hail reports within 10 miles of Russellville since 1956, made on 94 separate days. Of these, 88 were 1 inch across or larger, and 7 reached 2 inches. The largest, 3 inches (tea cup size), fell on June 25, 2023. The most recent report is from May 7, 2025. April has the most reports, 31.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Russellville
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Russellville Municipal Airport, AR, 3 miles southeast of Russellville at 403 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 93°F and low of 71°F; January is the coolest, at 50°F and 30°F. April is the wettest at 4.8 inches of precipitation on average and September the driest at 3.0 inches; the year adds up to 46.6 inches over 68 days with at least a tenth of an inch. Highs reach 90°F on about 73 days a year, almost all from May to October. Lows fall below freezing on about 77 nights a year. That 46.6 inches is more than at 5 of the 95 Arkansas stations used on this site (5%). Dardanelle, 7 miles southwest, has its own station (Dardanelle, AR): 49.6 inches a year, 3.0 more than here, and the same July average high, 93°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 50 | 30 | 3.2 | 5 |
| Feb | 55 | 33 | 3.1 | 6 |
| Mar | 64 | 41 | 4.4 | 7 |
| Apr | 73 | 49 | 4.8 | 7 |
| May | 80 | 59 | 4.7 | 7 |
| Jun | 88 | 68 | 3.4 | 5 |
| Jul | 93 | 71 | 3.5 | 6 |
| Aug | 92 | 70 | 3.5 | 6 |
| Sep | 86 | 62 | 3.0 | 4 |
| Oct | 74 | 50 | 4.1 | 5 |
| Nov | 62 | 39 | 4.6 | 5 |
| Dec | 52 | 32 | 4.3 | 6 |
| Year | 72 | 50 | 46.6 | 68 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Russellville Municipal Airport, AR (403 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 Russellville
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 239 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Russellville: 188 thunderstorm wind reports, 27 flash floods, 13 floods, 9 heavy rain events and 2 lightning strikes. They killed 1 person and injured 4, and the NWS estimated $9.6 million in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 90 mph, on June 12, 2009. Of the 212 Arkansas cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 139 have had fewer than Russellville.
July 6, 2018: lightning strike 2 miles from the centre of Russellville — 1 killed.
NWS: “A 67 year old male was killed by a lightning strike. The man was outside working on his yard at the time of the strike.”
May 9, 2015: flash flood 7 miles from the centre of Russellville — 2 injured, $10,000 damage.
May 15, 2022: thunderstorm wind 2 miles from the centre of Russellville — 2 injured.
NWS: “A tree fell on a vehicle near East 4th Street in Russellville. Two people were extricated from the vehicle and taken to the local hospital.”
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 Russellville's 2 ZIP codes have filed 55 claims with the National Flood Insurance Program since 1978, and were paid $921,000 for buildings and contents, in the dollars of each year. The year with the most claims was 1998, with 11. 11% 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, 66 have fewer than Russellville.
Pope County, which includes Russellville, has been named in 19 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1968, 11 of them major disasters (by incident: 7 severe storms, 3 floods, 2 biological emergencies, 2 hurricanes). The latest major disaster declaration was Covid-19 Pandemic, on April 3, 2020. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Pope County a Relatively Low rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively High for tornadoes; Relatively Moderate for inland flooding, strong wind, lightning and heat waves; Relatively Low for hail; Very Low for hurricanes. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $38.7 million a year, the 13th highest of 75 Arkansas counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $16.6 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 Russellville
- Pottsville, AR7 mi
- Dardanelle, AR7 mi
- London, AR11 mi
- Dover, AR11 mi
- Atkins, AR12 mi
- Hector, AR18 mi
- Lamar, AR18 mi
- Ola, AR21 mi
- Belleville, AR21 mi
- Morrilton, AR23 mi
- Danville, AR24 mi
- Clarksville, AR25 mi
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