Tornadoes · United States · Arkansas
Tornadoes in Little River County, Arkansas
23 tornadoes have crossed Little River County since 1950, 57th of the 75 counties in Arkansas with a tornado on record, an average of one every 3.3 years. They have killed 3 people and injured 37. None was rated F4 or above.
The rating scale
Tracks are drawn in the color of the rating. The United States rated tornadoes on Ted Fujita’s F scale until 31 January 2007 and on the Enhanced Fujita scale after it. Both run from 0 to 5, and both rate the damage rather than measure the wind: the speeds are what that damage is taken to imply.
F0 / EF040 to 72 mph on the F scale, 65 to 85 mph on the EF scale
Light damage. Surface peeled off some roofs, gutters and siding damaged, branches broken, shallow-rooted trees pushed over.
F1 / EF173 to 112 mph on the F scale, 86 to 110 mph on the EF scale
Moderate damage. Roofs badly stripped, mobile homes overturned or badly damaged, exterior doors lost, windows broken.
F2 / EF2113 to 157 mph on the F scale, 111 to 135 mph on the EF scale
Considerable damage. Roofs torn off well-built houses, frame homes shifted on their foundations, mobile homes destroyed, large trees snapped or uprooted, cars lifted off the ground.
F3 / EF3158 to 206 mph on the F scale, 136 to 165 mph on the EF scale
Severe damage. Whole stories of well-built houses destroyed, large buildings badly damaged, trains overturned, trees debarked, heavy cars lifted and thrown.
F4 / EF4207 to 260 mph on the F scale, 166 to 200 mph on the EF scale
Devastating damage. Well-built houses leveled, structures with weak foundations moved some distance, cars thrown and large missiles generated.
F5 / EF5261 to 318 mph on the F scale, over 200 mph on the EF scale
Incredible damage. Strong frame houses swept off their foundations, car-sized missiles thrown more than 100 meters, steel-reinforced concrete badly damaged, high-rise buildings deformed.
Unrated
The survey recorded a tornado but could not put a number on it, most often because it crossed open country and damaged nothing a rating can be read from.
Now
- Tornadoes
- 23
- Deaths
- 3
- Injuries
- 37
- F4 and above
- 0
- Worst on record
- F3, May 4, 1999
The deadliest in Little River County
The strongest
- F3, Bowie, Little River, Sevier, Hempstead and Howard counties, Texas and ArkansasApril 30, 1954
- F3, Franklin, Titus, Red River, Bowie, Little River and Sevier counties, Texas and ArkansasMay 4, 1999
- F3, Red River, Bowie, McCurtain and Little River counties, Texas and Oklahoma and ArkansasApril 2, 1982
- EF2, Little River County, ArkansasOctober 13, 2014
- F2, Little River County, ArkansasMay 13, 1957
- F2, Little River County, ArkansasOctober 17, 1980
- F2, Little River County, ArkansasNovember 24, 1973
Every year with a tornado
The 18 years of the 76 in the record with a tornado in Little River County. Each year links to every tornado in Arkansas that year.
Every tornado that crossed Little River County
23 tornadoes, newest first. 3 of them touched down in a neighboring state and ran in, so the record files them under that state rather than Arkansas.
| Date | Time | Rating | Where | Path (mi) | Width (yd) | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| April 9, 2021 | 11:31 PM CDT | EF1 | Little River | 2.4 | 150 | $5,000 | ||
| May 16, 2020 | 5:36 PM CDT | EF0 | Little River | 0.1 | 20 | $2,000 | ||
| May 16, 2020 | 2:35 PM CDT | Unrated | Little River to OK | 2.2 | 20 | |||
| January 21, 2018 | 9:48 PM CST | EF1 | Little River | 6.3 | 295 | $40,000 | ||
| October 13, 2014 | 5:43 AM CDT | EF0 | Little River | 0.1 | 50 | $10,000 | ||
| October 13, 2014 | 5:37 AM CDT | EF2 | Little River | 2.5 | 400 | 1 | 4 | $200,000 |
| November 21, 2011 | 9:12 PM CST | EF0 | Sevier | 2.7 | 75 | $1,000 | ||
| April 25, 2011 | 5:37 PM CDT | EF0 | Sevier | 7.4 | 70 | |||
| April 4, 2011 | 8:10 AM CDT | EF1 | Little River | 4.8 | 150 | $25,000 | ||
| May 14, 2009 | 4:20 AM CDT | EF0 | Little River | 2.4 | 100 | |||
| May 9, 2009 | 2:10 PM CDT | EF0 | Little River | 2.3 | 75 | |||
| March 3, 2008 | 8:27 AM CST | EF0 | Little River | 3.0 | 100 | $20,000 | ||
| April 23, 2000 | 4:54 PM CDT | F1 | Sevier | 13.0 | 20 | $2,000 | ||
| May 4, 1999 | 2:04 PM CDT | F3 | Franklin to AR | 71.5 | 50 | 1 | 22 | $125 million |
| February 5, 1986 | 6:24 PM CST | F0 | Little River | 0.2 | 10 | |||
| April 2, 1982 | 4:40 PM CST | F3 | Red River to OK, AR | 52.0 | 233 | 1 | 4 | $500,000 to $5 million |
| October 17, 1980 | 9:30 AM CDT | F2 | Little River | 0.5 | 440 | 2 | $50,000 to $500,000 | |
| July 7, 1975 | 5:25 PM CDT | F1 | Little River | 2.0 | 50 | 2 | $5,000 to $50,000 | |
| November 24, 1973 | 6:15 PM CST | F2 | Little River | 0.1 | 10 | $500 to $5,000 | ||
| March 12, 1971 | 7:45 PM CST | F1 | Little River | 0.1 | 10 | $500 to $5,000 | ||
| August 20, 1964 | 3:15 AM GMT-5 | F1 | Little River | 4.1 | 100 | $500 to $5,000 | ||
| May 13, 1957 | 11:20 AM GMT-5 | F2 | Little River | 1.0 | 77 | 1 | ||
| April 30, 1954 | 11:30 AM GMT-5 | F3 | Bowie to AR | 111.6 | 1,760 | 2 | $50,000 to $500,000 |
Nearby
Warnings in force in Little River CountyThe forecast for Little River CountyThe live radar over Little River CountyEvery county in Arkansas
What this means
Ratings are the survey's, read off the damage rather than measured; the rating scale is above. Tornado counts rise through the record as reporting improved, so a year in the 1950s is not comparable with one today except for the strongest tornadoes, which were always noticed.
Sources
NOAA Storm Prediction Center tornado database, 1950-2025, the official record kept by NOAA's Storm Prediction Center.