Tornadoes in Louisiana, December 3, 1978

Name: Tornadoes in Louisiana, December 3, 1978
Start: 1978-12-03T01:50
End: 1978-12-03T04:45
Location: Louisiana

December 3, 1978 · 8 events in 4 counties and zones

8 tornado, as filed by the National Weather Service.

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it. Tap one for its entry below.

Tornadoes
Tropical storms and surge
Floods
Wind
Hail
Winter weather
Heat and drought
Cold
Fire, smoke and dust
Marine and coastal
Other

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The toll

Deaths: 4
Injuries: 270
Property damage: $250 million
Crop damage: None recorded
Events: 8

Deaths and injuries are direct and indirect together, as the offices filed them. Damage is property and crops in the dollars of the year, not adjusted for inflation, and only where an office estimated it.

Event by event

8 tornado. Local standard time, as filed.

Tornado, Bossier

When: December 3, 1:50 AM CST
Where: Bossier County
Rating: F4
Path length: 6.2 mi
Path width: 400 yd
Deaths: 2 direct, 0 indirect
Injuries: 266 direct, 0 indirect
Property damage: $250 million
Coordinates: 32.500, -93.750

Tornado, Bossier

When: December 3, 2:30 AM CST
Where: Bossier County
Rating: F3
Path length: 7.7 mi
Path width: 33 yd
Coordinates: 32.700, -93.550

Tornado, Webster

When: December 3, 2:45 AM CST
Where: Webster County
Rating: F3
Path length: 11.6 mi
Path width: 33 yd
Coordinates: 32.750, -93.430

Tornado, Claiborne

When: December 3, 3:15 AM CST
Where: Claiborne County
Rating: F3
Path length: 38.2 mi
Path width: 33 yd
Coordinates: 32.820, -93.250

Tornado, Union

When: December 3, 3:20 AM CST
Where: Union County
Rating: F3
Path length: 3.6 mi
Path width: 33 yd
Coordinates: 32.970, -92.620

Tornado, Webster

When: December 3, 3:38 AM CST
Where: Webster County
Rating: F3
Path length: 8.3 mi
Path width: 300 yd
Deaths: 2 direct, 0 indirect
Injuries: 3 direct, 0 indirect
Property damage: $250,000
Coordinates: 32.470, -93.300

Tornado, Claiborne

When: December 3, 4:00 AM CST
Where: Claiborne County
Rating: F3
Path length: 33.4 mi
Path width: 150 yd
Coordinates: 32.530, -93.180

Tornado, Union

When: December 3, 4:45 AM CST
Where: Union County
Rating: F3
Path length: 14.5 mi
Path width: 100 yd
Injuries: 1 direct, 0 indirect
Coordinates: 32.830, -92.730

What these are

Tornado: A violently rotating column of air in contact with the ground and extending from a thunderstorm, filed with its path, width and Fujita or Enhanced Fujita rating from the damage survey.

After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.

The same day elsewhere

Every storm in Louisiana in 1978 Every state in 1978 This day in weather history The tornado archive for Louisiana, 1978

Sources

NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Storm Events Database, compiled from the National Weather Service’s monthly Storm Data. Complete through 2026-06; NCEI adds each month about 75 days after it ends and revises past years a few times a year. Rebuilt 2026-09-24. Each event’s entry at NCEI: 10029982, 10029983, 10029984, 10029985, 10029986, 10029987, 10029988, 10029989.