NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit West Memphis, 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 West Memphis, Arkansas since 1851, 0 of them at hurricane strength; the most recent was Olga in 2019. Since 1950, 94 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 12 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 9
- Tornadoes
- 94
- EF3 or stronger
- 12
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
24 deaths in all
What the records show for West Memphis
None of the 9 tropical systems was at hurricane strength as it passed West Memphis; the strongest was an unnamed storm in 1888, a tropical storm with 63 mph winds when its centre passed 21 miles away. The record near West Memphis begins with an unnamed storm in 1860; the most recent system was Olga in 2019, a tropical storm 40 miles away. The 1900s and the 1920s were the busiest decades, with 2 systems each. Of the 9 systems, one has come since 2000. West Memphis has more tropical storms and hurricanes within 75 miles than 77% of the 213 Arkansas cities on this site. The highest rating among the 94 tornadoes within 25 miles is F3 or EF3, reached 12 times; the most recent, on March 31, 2023, came within 17 miles. The deadliest, an F3 on December 14, 1987, killed 6 people. Of the 94, 7 had paths within 5 miles of the city centre, and 25 have come since 2000. April has had the most tornadoes, 21. The most recent tornado was on April 5, 2025. Of the 213 Arkansas cities, 54% have more tornadoes within 25 miles than West Memphis. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 113 times since 1964, with stones up to 3 inches (tea cup size). West Memphis has more hail reports within 10 miles than 69% of the 213 Arkansas cities.
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Tropical storms and hurricanes near West Memphis
| Year | Storm | Closest | Strength when closest | Peak |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2019 | OlgaOct 26 | 40 mi | Tropical storm (47 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1969 | CamilleAug 19 | 22 mi | Tropical storm (39 mph) | Category 5 |
| 1957 | AudreyJun 28 | 65 mi | Tropical storm (41 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1923 | Unnamed 1923 stormOct 18 | 56 mi | Tropical storm (41 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1923 | Unnamed 1923 stormOct 16 | 66 mi | Tropical storm (52 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1909 | Unnamed 1909 stormSep 21 | 62 mi | Tropical storm (45 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1906 | Unnamed 1906 stormSep 28 | 7 mi | Tropical storm (43 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1888 | Unnamed 1888 stormAug 21 | 21 mi | Tropical storm (63 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1860 | Unnamed 1860 stormOct 3 | 68 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 West Memphis: 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 West Memphis
By decade
- 2020s6(1 EF3+)
- 2010s7
- 2000s12(2 EF3+)
- 1990s17(1 EF3+)
- 1980s15(2 EF3+)
- 1970s20(5 EF3+)
- 1960s16(1 EF3+)
- 1950s1
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dec 14, 1987 | F3 | in town | 25 mi | 6 / 121 |
| Mar 31, 2023 | EF3 | 17 mi | 72.55 mi | 4 / 26 |
| Apr 3, 1968 | F3 | 19 mi | 28.8 mi | 4 / 32 |
| Nov 27, 1994 | F3 | 20 mi | 16 mi | 3 / 25 |
| Jan 7, 1978 | F3 | 24 mi | 39.6 mi | 1 / 9 |
| May 2, 2008 | EF3 | 18 mi | 20.23 mi | 0 / 4 |
| Apr 2, 2006 | F3 | 14 mi | 38 mi | 0 / 5 |
| Apr 21, 1984 | F3 | 2 mi | 3 mi | 0 / 3 |
| Apr 24, 1970 | F3 | 12 mi | 10.4 mi | 0 / 3 |
| Apr 24, 1970 | F3 | 14 mi | 12.3 mi | 0 / 18 |
| Apr 24, 1970 | F3 | 12 mi | 17 mi | 0 / 5 |
| Apr 19, 1970 | F3 | 19 mi | 1.8 mi | 0 / 2 |
The strongest 12 of 94, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in West Memphis
The Storm Prediction Center has 113 hail reports within 10 miles of West Memphis since 1964, made on 87 separate days. Of these, 59 were 1 inch across or larger, and 6 reached 2 inches. The largest, 3 inches (tea cup size), fell on April 11, 1987. The most recent report is from May 26, 2024. April has the most reports, 21.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in West Memphis
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is W Memphis, AR, 2 miles south of West Memphis at 215 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 91°F and low of 73°F; January is the coolest, at 49°F and 31°F. May is the wettest at 5.9 inches of precipitation on average and August the driest at 3.1 inches; the year adds up to 55.7 inches over 80 days with at least a tenth of an inch. Highs reach 90°F on about 61 days a year, almost all from May to September. Lows fall below freezing on about 58 nights a year. Snowfall averages 1.7 inches a year, most of it in February. That 55.7 inches is more than at 76 of the 95 Arkansas stations used on this site (80%). Marion, 4 miles northwest, has its own station (West Memphis Municipal Airport, AR): 50.4 inches a year, 5.3 less than here, and the same July average high, 91°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" | Snow in |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 49 | 31 | 4.4 | 8 | 0.5 |
| Feb | 54 | 34 | 4.4 | 7 | 0.7 |
| Mar | 62 | 42 | 5.8 | 8 | 0.3 |
| Apr | 72 | 51 | 5.8 | 7 | 0.0 |
| May | 80 | 61 | 5.9 | 8 | 0.0 |
| Jun | 88 | 69 | 4.0 | 6 | 0.0 |
| Jul | 91 | 73 | 4.2 | 6 | 0.0 |
| Aug | 90 | 71 | 3.1 | 5 | 0.0 |
| Sep | 85 | 64 | 3.3 | 5 | 0.0 |
| Oct | 75 | 52 | 4.4 | 6 | 0.0 |
| Nov | 62 | 42 | 4.8 | 7 | 0.0 |
| Dec | 52 | 35 | 5.6 | 8 | 0.2 |
| Year | 72 | 52 | 55.7 | 80 | 1.7 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at W Memphis, AR (215 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 West Memphis
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 195 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of West Memphis: 138 thunderstorm wind reports, 51 flash floods, 3 floods and 3 lightning strikes. They killed 1 person and injured 6, and the NWS estimated $14.5 million in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 96 mph, on February 24, 2011. Of the 212 Arkansas cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 179 have had fewer than West Memphis.
March 31, 2008: flash flood 5 miles from the centre of West Memphis — 1 killed.
NWS: “A nineteen year old man fell from a bridge near McKellar Lake into a swollen ditch near an apartment complex where he lived and drowned.”
June 27, 2013: lightning strike 1 mile from the centre of West Memphis — 3 injured.
NWS: “Three teenagers were struck by lightning on Oxford Street in West Memphis. All three were injured.”
June 5, 1998: thunderstorm wind 9 miles from the centre of West Memphis — 1 injured, $1.0 million damage.
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 West Memphis's ZIP code 72301 have filed 794 claims with the National Flood Insurance Program since 1979, and were paid $10.9 million for buildings and contents, in the dollars of each year. The most came from Flooding in 1987: 243 claims (31% of all) and $2.1 million, then Mid-spring storms in 2011 with 78 and Central U.S. April Flooding in 2025 with 26. 44% 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, 101 have fewer than West Memphis.
| Event | Claims | Paid |
|---|---|---|
| Flooding1987 | 243 | $2.1 million |
| Mid-spring storms2011 | 78 | $1.9 million |
| Central U.S. April Flooding2025 | 26 | $2.1 million |
Crittenden County, which includes West Memphis, 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 West Memphis
- Marion, AR4 mi
- Walls, MS13 mi
- Memphis, TN13 mi
- Horn Lake, MS15 mi
- Lake Cormorant, MS17 mi
- Southaven, MS17 mi
- Earle, AR18 mi
- Bartlett, TN20 mi
- Millington, TN20 mi
- Nesbit, MS21 mi
- Hughes, AR21 mi
- Germantown, TN22 mi
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