Tornadoes · United States · Arkansas
Tornadoes in Stone County, Arkansas
25 tornadoes have crossed Stone County since 1950, 1 of them surveyed so far this year and still preliminary, 49th of the 75 counties in Arkansas with a tornado on record, an average of one every 3.0 years. They have killed 7 people and injured 46. 2 were rated F4 or EF4 and 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
- 25
- Deaths
- 7
- Injuries
- 46
- F4 and above
- 2
- Worst on record
- F4, April 14, 1996
The deadliest in Stone County
The strongest
- EF4 Larkin tornado, Arkansas and MissouriMarch 14, 2025
- F4, Stone and Izard counties, ArkansasApril 14, 1996
- EF3, Oregon, Sharp, Shannon, Izard, Randolph, Carter, Ripley, Reynolds, Stone and Butler counties, Missouri and ArkansasMarch 14, 2025
- F3, Van Buren and Stone counties, ArkansasDecember 2, 1982
- F2, Stone and Izard counties, ArkansasMarch 14, 1953
- F2, Stone County, ArkansasNovember 15, 1988
- F2, Stone County, ArkansasMay 12, 1978
- F2, Stone County, ArkansasApril 30, 1970
- F2, Stone County, ArkansasNovember 27, 2005
- EF2, Stone County, ArkansasMarch 31, 2023
Every year with a tornado
The 21 years of the 76 in the record with a tornado in Stone County. Each year links to every tornado in Arkansas that year.
Every tornado that crossed Stone County
25 tornadoes, newest first. 1 of them touched down in a neighboring state and ran in, so the record files it under that state rather than Arkansas. The 1 at the top is this year's, from the surveying office rather than SPC's published database, and its rating is marked as preliminary.
| Date | Time | Rating | Where | Path (mi) | Width (yd) | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| April 27, 2026 | 10:30 PM CDT | EF1 | Stone | 13.5 | 400 | |||
| March 14, 2025 | 9:11 PM CDT | EF4 | Larkin tornado | 116.0 | 1,400 | 5 | $2.8 million | |
| March 14, 2025 | 9:11 PM CDT | EF3 | Oregon to AR | 57.2 | 800 | $2.5 million | ||
| March 31, 2023 | 4:49 PM CDT | EF2 | Stone | 6.8 | 125 | |||
| March 6, 2022 | 6:26 PM CST | EF1 | Stone | 2.4 | 200 | $40,000 | ||
| April 10, 2013 | 5:07 PM CDT | EF1 | Stone | 4.1 | 300 | $200,000 | ||
| April 30, 2010 | 7:48 PM CDT | EF1 | Van Buren | 8.9 | 150 | $165,000 | ||
| September 22, 2006 | 5:35 PM CDT | F0 | Stone | 5.2 | 25 | |||
| November 27, 2005 | 8:05 PM CST | F2 | Stone | 7.0 | 250 | |||
| April 24, 2003 | 5:42 PM CDT | F0 | Stone | 0.2 | 20 | |||
| April 24, 2003 | 5:27 PM CDT | F0 | Stone | 1.3 | 50 | |||
| May 24, 2000 | 10:50 PM CDT | F1 | Izard | 1.9 | 20 | |||
| April 3, 1999 | 4:35 PM CST | F0 | Stone | 1.0 | 50 | 2 | ||
| March 1, 1997 | 4:50 PM CST | F1 | Stone | 0.5 | 20 | |||
| March 1, 1997 | 4:22 PM CST | F0 | Stone | 0.5 | 20 | |||
| April 14, 1996 | 7:10 PM CDT | F4 | Stone | 44.0 | 880 | 7 | 35 | $3.0 million |
| November 15, 1988 | 7:45 PM CST | F2 | Stone | 13.0 | 400 | 4 | $50,000 to $500,000 | |
| December 24, 1982 | 2:30 AM CST | F1 | Stone | 1.5 | 40 | $5,000 to $50,000 | ||
| December 2, 1982 | 8:30 PM CST | F3 | Van Buren | 23.0 | 400 | $500,000 to $5 million | ||
| April 11, 1979 | 8:42 AM CST | F1 | Stone | 8.7 | 150 | $50,000 to $500,000 | ||
| May 12, 1978 | 5:10 PM CDT | F2 | Stone | 12.1 | 200 | $50,000 to $500,000 | ||
| June 15, 1976 | 7:05 PM CDT | F1 | Stone | 9.9 | 27 | $500 to $5,000 | ||
| May 14, 1974 | 1:30 PM CDT | F1 | Searcy | 62.0 | 100 | $50,000 to $500,000 | ||
| April 30, 1970 | 9:00 PM CDT | F2 | Stone | 7.2 | 100 | $500 to $5,000 | ||
| March 14, 1953 | 12:30 AM GMT-6 | F2 | Stone | 36.2 | 333 | $50,000 to $500,000 |
Nearby
Warnings in force in Stone CountyThe forecast for Stone CountyThe live radar over Stone 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.