Hail, Benton
- When
- May 25, 2:00 AM CST
- Where
- Benton County, Cave Spgs
- Measured
- 0.75 in hail
- Coordinates
- 36.270, -94.230
Flood and Hail in Arkansas, May 25, 1998
Summary of events for May 25, 1998:Several severe thunderstorms moved out of northeast Oklahoma and into northwest Arkansas during the early morning hours of May 25 between 300 AM CDT and 530 AM CDT, producing hail as large as quarters, marginally severe wind gusts, and high rainfall rates. These thunderstorms moved east-southeast along an outflow boundary produced by earlier thunderstorms in…
Where it happened
Every event with a place to put it; 1 filed by county or forecast zone are drawn at its center, in a lighter ring. 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
The toll
- Deaths
- 0
- Injuries
- 0
- Property damage
- $6,000
- Crop damage
- None recorded
- Events
- 7
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.
What happened
The episode as NWS TSA wrote it up.
Summary of events for May 25, 1998:Several severe thunderstorms moved out of northeast Oklahoma and into northwest Arkansas during the early morning hours of May 25 between 300 AM CDT and 530 AM CDT, producing hail as large as quarters, marginally severe wind gusts, and high rainfall rates. These thunderstorms moved east-southeast along an outflow boundary produced by earlier thunderstorms in southwest Missouri. The first cluster of severe thunderstorms moved across Benton, Carroll, and extreme northern Madison Counties. As one storm moved across northern Madison County, it acquired strong rotation, and this storm produced severe wind gusts in northern Madison and Carroll Counties. A second cluster of severe storms moved across Washington County after 400 AM, weakening briefly over the far southeastern part of the county, and then reintensying over northern Franklin County.
The radar
The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
Event by event
3 hail, 3 thunderstorm wind, 1 flood. Local standard time, as filed.
Thunderstorm Wind, Madison
- When
- May 25, 2:30 AM CST
- Where
- Madison County, Forum
- Measured
- 52 kt (60 mph)
- Coordinates
- 36.180, -93.720
Reported at Withrow Springs State Park
Thunderstorm Wind, Carroll
- When
- May 25, 2:40 AM CST
- Where
- Carroll County, Eureka Spgs
- Measured
- 52 kt (60 mph)
- Property damage
- $1,000
- Coordinates
- 36.400, -93.730
Tree limbs were blown down onto power lines
Flood, Washington
- When
- May 25, 3:00 AM CST to 4:00 AM CST
- Where
- Washington County, Fayetteville
- Property damage
- $5,000
- Coordinates
- 35.979, -94.216 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
AQ Chicken reported severe flooding and had to be closed until they could reclaim all of the dead chickens that floated away. There was an unofficial report of 1.5 inches in Wedington Woods falling in less than one hour. Debris was washed from ditches into streets in the city of Fayetteville.
Hail, Washington
- When
- May 25, 3:05 AM CST
- Where
- Washington County, 2 mi E of Lincoln
- Measured
- 1 in hail
- Coordinates
- 35.950, -94.380
Thunderstorm Wind, Washington
- When
- May 25, 3:20 AM CST
- Where
- Washington County, Fayetteville
- Property damage
- $100
- Coordinates
- 36.070, -94.170
OES Director reported a tree down along SH 112 in north Fayetteville.
Hail, Franklin
- When
- May 25, 4:20 AM CST
- Where
- Franklin County, Cass
- Measured
- 0.75 in hail
- Coordinates
- 35.680, -93.820
What these are
- Hail
- Hail three-quarters of an inch or larger, or smaller hail that caused damage, filed with the largest stone measured.
- Thunderstorm Wind
- Winds from a thunderstorm of 50 knots (58 mph) or more, or lower winds that caused damage or casualties. Measured gusts are marked MG, estimated EG.
- Flood
- Flooding that develops more slowly than a flash flood: rivers leaving their banks, or water standing over land for an extended time.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
The same day elsewhere
- Lightning Strike in Pennsylvania, May 25, 1998
- Tornado and Hail in Texas, May 25, 1998
- Damaging Wind in Tennessee, May 25, 1998
- Damaging Wind in Missouri, May 25, 1998
- Hail in Texas, May 25, 1998
- Lightning Strikes in Pennsylvania, May 25, 1998
- Damaging Winds in Kentucky, May 25, 1998
- Tornadoes and Flash Flooding in Texas, May 25 to 26, 1998
- Hail and Damaging Winds in Tennessee, May 25, 1998
- Hail in Texas, May 25, 1998
- Hail and Damaging Wind in Texas, May 25, 1998
- Lightning Strikes in New Jersey, May 25, 1998
More
Every storm in Arkansas in 1998Every state in 1998This day in weather historyWarnings in Arkansas, May 1998
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: 5645316, 5645317, 5645318, 5645322, 5645319, 5645321, 5645315.