Hail, Crawford
- When
- March 5, 4:06 PM CST
- Where
- Crawford County, Uniontown
- Measured
- 1 in hail
- Reported by
- AMATEUR RADIO
- Coordinates
- 35.580, -94.450
Tornado and Hail in Arkansas, March 5, 1999
Summary of events for March 5 1999:An approaching cold front and an upper level disturbance kicked off several severe thunderstorms in northwest Arkansas on March 5. The largest severe thunderstorm developed in Sequoyah County Oklahoma and then strengthened as it moved across Crawford and Franklin Counties along Interstate 40.
Where it happened
Every event with a place to put it; 2 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
- 1
- Property damage
- $1.4 million
- Crop damage
- None recorded
- Events
- 19
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 March 5 1999:An approaching cold front and an upper level disturbance kicked off several severe thunderstorms in northwest Arkansas on March 5. The largest severe thunderstorm developed in Sequoyah County Oklahoma and then strengthened as it moved across Crawford and Franklin Counties along Interstate 40. Along the way, this storm produced giant hail as large as baseballs and softballs. This storm demonstrated strong rotation, producing a brief tornado touchdown just west of Alma and considerable damage from softball-sized hail in Alma. A second weaker, though severe, thunderstorm formed over southern Crawford County and followed the same path as the first storm. Finally, a severe thunderstorm moved out of northeast Oklahoma and clipped northwest Benton County, producing marginally severe hail.
The radar
The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
Event by event
15 hail, 2 funnel cloud, 1 thunderstorm wind, 1 tornado. Local standard time, as filed.
Hail, Crawford
- When
- March 5, 4:08 PM CST
- Where
- Crawford County, 2 mi S of Cedarville
- Measured
- 1 in hail
- Reported by
- AMATEUR RADIO
- Coordinates
- 35.530, -94.370
There was a report of quarter-sized hail in Cedarville, and there was another report of quarter-sized hail 2 miles south of Cedarville.
Hail, Crawford
- When
- March 5, 4:25 PM CST
- Where
- Crawford County, 2 mi NE of Van Buren
- Measured
- 1.75 in hail
- Reported by
- NEWSPAPER
- Coordinates
- 35.450, -94.320
Location: near I-40 and I-540
Thunderstorm Wind, Crawford
- When
- March 5, 4:28 PM CST
- Where
- Crawford County, 1 mi N of Rudy
- Property damage
- $5,000
- Reported by
- AMATEUR RADIO
- Coordinates
- 35.550, -94.280
A home just north of Rudy near the old 81 loop had its roof lifted off.
Hail, Crawford
- When
- March 5, 4:35 PM CST
- Where
- Crawford County, Alma
- Measured
- 4.5 in hail
- Injuries
- 1 direct, 0 indirect
- Property damage
- $800,000
- Reported by
- AMATEUR RADIO
- Coordinates
- 35.480, -94.230
There were several reports of extremely large hail from Alma. The largest report was of giant softball-sized hail, while there were also reports of quarter and golfball-sized hail just north of Alma.Such enormous hail caused widespread damage in Alma. Many cars sustained windshield and body damage. Just one auto body shop reported that it had written estimates from hail damage totaling $140,000. Many roofs also sustained major damage. At the Eagle Crest Golf Course, the hail left small craters on the greens, closing the course for several days while the crater marks were filled. A photo in the Alma Journal newspaper showed a softball-sized pock mark on the golf greens.A child was treated for injuries at a local hospital after being struck by the hail.
Tornado, Crawford
- When
- March 5, 4:36 PM CST
- Where
- Crawford County, 2 mi W of Alma
- Rating
- F0
- Path length
- 0.5 mi
- Path width
- 30 yd
- Property damage
- $1,000
- Reported by
- AMATEUR RADIO
- Coordinates
- 35.480, -94.270
Spotters reported a tornado touchdown 2 miles west of Alma. Spotters had followed a wall cloud and then a funnel cloud most of the way across Crawford County which then continued on into Franklin County after the tornado touchdown. The tornado blew down several trees.
Hail, Crawford
- When
- March 5, 4:41 PM CST
- Where
- Crawford County, 2 mi N of Dyer
- Measured
- 1.75 in hail
- Reported by
- AMATEUR RADIO
- Coordinates
- 35.530, -94.130
Hail, Crawford
- When
- March 5, 4:45 PM CST
- Where
- Crawford County, Mulberry
- Measured
- 2.75 in hail
- Reported by
- AMATEUR RADIO
- Coordinates
- 35.500, -94.050
Hail, Benton
- When
- March 5, 5:00 PM CST
- Where
- Benton County, Maysville
- Measured
- 0.75 in hail
- Reported by
- GENERAL PUBLIC
- Coordinates
- 36.400, -94.580
Hail, Franklin
- When
- March 5, 5:05 PM CST
- Where
- Franklin County, Ozark
- Measured
- 2.75 in hail
- Property damage
- $600,000
- Reported by
- GENERAL PUBLIC
- Coordinates
- 35.500, -93.830
Just south of Ozark, golfball to baseball-sized hail fell, while quarter to golfball-sized hail fell and covered the ground just north of Ozark.There were widespread reports of damage to vehicles and to roofs on homes and other structures.
Hail, Franklin
- When
- March 5, 5:15 PM CST
- Where
- Franklin County, 2 mi N of Altus
- Measured
- 1 in hail
- Reported by
- GENERAL PUBLIC
- Coordinates
- 35.480, -93.770
Location: Wiederkehr Winery Restaurant...no damage
Funnel Cloud, Franklin
- When
- March 5, 5:16 PM CST
- Where
- Franklin County, 2 mi E of Altus
- Reported by
- AMATEUR RADIO
- Coordinates
- 35.512, -93.891 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Hail, Crawford
- When
- March 5, 5:19 PM CST to 5:23 PM CST
- Where
- Crawford County, Van Buren
- Measured
- 1.75 in hail
- Reported by
- AMATEUR RADIO
- Coordinates
- 35.430, -94.350
There was a report of golfball-sized hail at 519 PM, and there was another report of quarter-sized hail several minutes later in Van Buren.
Hail, Sebastian
- When
- March 5, 5:22 PM CST
- Where
- Sebastian County, Ft Smith
- Measured
- 1.75 in hail
- Reported by
- GENERAL PUBLIC
- Coordinates
- 35.380, -94.420
Location: 5700 block of Kelley Hwy in northeastern Fort Smith
Hail, Crawford
- When
- March 5, 5:26 PM CST
- Where
- Crawford County, Rudy
- Measured
- 0.75 in hail
- Reported by
- AMATEUR RADIO
- Coordinates
- 35.530, -94.280
Hail, Crawford
- When
- March 5, 5:32 PM CST
- Where
- Crawford County, Furry
- Measured
- 0.75 in hail
- Reported by
- AMATEUR RADIO
- Coordinates
- 35.480, -94.300
Hail, Crawford
- When
- March 5, 5:34 PM CST
- Where
- Crawford County, 1 mi W of Alma
- Measured
- 0.88 in hail
- Reported by
- LAW ENFORCEMENT
- Coordinates
- 35.480, -94.250
Funnel Cloud, Crawford
- When
- March 5, 5:35 PM CST
- Where
- Crawford County, Alma
- Reported by
- LAW ENFORCEMENT
- Coordinates
- 35.589, -94.243 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Hail, Crawford
- When
- March 5, 5:49 PM CST
- Where
- Crawford County, 2 mi W of Mulberry
- Measured
- 0.75 in hail
- Reported by
- AMATEUR RADIO
- Coordinates
- 35.500, -94.080
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.
- 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.
- Funnel Cloud
- A rotating column of cloud extending from a thunderstorm that did not reach the ground.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
The same day elsewhere
- Tornado in Arkansas, March 5, 1999
- Winter Weather in Wyoming, March 5, 1999
- Tornado in Arkansas, March 5, 1999
- Tornado in Arkansas, March 5, 1999
- Tornado in Arkansas, March 5, 1999
- Tornado in Arkansas, March 5, 1999
- Tornado in Arkansas, March 5, 1999
- Tornado in Arkansas, March 5, 1999
- Tornado in Arkansas, March 5, 1999
- Tornado in Arkansas, March 5, 1999
- Tornado in Arkansas, March 5, 1999
- Tornado in Arkansas, March 5, 1999
More
Every storm in Arkansas in 1999Every state in 1999This day in weather historyThe tornado archive for Arkansas, 1999Warnings in Arkansas, March 1999
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: 5688433, 5688554, 5688557, 5688555, 5688434, 5688543, 5688556, 5688551, 5688544, 5688545, 5688546, 5688558, 5688559, 5688550, 5688547, 5688548, 5688552, 5688553, 5688549.