Desha County

Every recorded tornado

1. Injuries and deaths are for the tornado’s whole path, which may extend beyond the county. Deaths recorded within Desha County: 0.
2. Weak tornadoes were under-recorded before Doppler radar coverage became national in the early 1990s, so earlier decades read low. Ratings use the Fujita scale before February 2007 and the Enhanced Fujita scale after.

Storm Prediction Center severe weather database, 1950 to 2025.

Every storm within 100 miles

1. Tropical storms and hurricanes (34 kt or more, still tropical) at closest approach. Post-tropical remnants with gale-force winds are listed but not counted. Direct: track within 50 miles; near: within 100 miles. Distance is measured to the county boundary for counties and to the city centre for cities, using positions interpolated hourly between HURDAT2 fixes.

National Hurricane Center HURDAT2, 1851 to 2025.

Smoke overhead

1. A smoke day is a date on which a smoke plume traced by NOAA Hazard Mapping System analysts from satellite imagery covered this place's point (the county's population centre or the city centre). Counts here are of medium or heavy smoke. Since 2018 analysts have often drawn light smoke as one area over most of the continent, so light-smoke counts are not comparable from year to year. The plumes show smoke anywhere in the air above, not air quality at the ground, and smoke hidden by cloud is missed.

NOAA Hazard Mapping System smoke analysis, 2011 to 2026, retrieved October 30, 2026.

Claims by ZIP code

This product uses the Federal Emergency Management Agency's OpenFEMA API, but is not endorsed by FEMA. The Federal Government or FEMA cannot vouch for the data or analyses derived from these data after the data have been retrieved from the Agency's website(s).

OpenFEMA NFIP Redacted Claims v3, refreshed August 4, 2026. NOAA Storm Events through 2026.

River crests

River gauges

1. Crests are the highest and the recent crests the National Weather Service lists for each river gauge in the county that has a flood stage, not every flood. Flood categories use each gauge's current flood stages; crests from before levees, dams or channel changes may not be comparable. Crests measured on an old datum are left out of the rankings.

NOAA National Water Prediction Service gauge records, retrieved October 30, 2026.

1. The Palmer Drought Severity Index is computed by NOAA each month from the county's average temperature and precipitation, relative to the county's own climate. Zero is normal; -3 or lower is severe drought and -4 or lower extreme drought. It describes the long-term balance of moisture, not water supply or crop losses.

NOAA NCEI nClimDiv county Palmer Drought Severity Index, 1895 to September 2026, issued October 6, 2026.

Every earthquake of magnitude 4 or more within 50 miles

1. Earthquakes of magnitude 2.5 or more in the USGS Comprehensive Catalog since 1900. Within 50 miles means the epicentre lies within 50 miles of the county boundary (or inside the county).
2. Small earthquakes were under-recorded before the modern seismic networks of the 1970s and are still missed in remote areas, so early decades read low. Magnitudes are as the catalogue reports them and mix scales (moment, local and body-wave).

USGS ANSS Comprehensive Earthquake Catalog, 1900 to present, retrieved October 30, 2026.

More event types since 1996

Costliest events since 1996

1. Feb 24, 2007Tornado$45.0 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   The tornado moved out of Lincoln County and into Desha County about 6 miles southwest of Dumas. The tornado continued to track northeastward and moved across the southeast portion of the city of Dumas and produced significant damage. In Dumas, 25 businesses were destroyed, along with 19 homes. More than 65 additional homes sustained minor to moderate damage. Six mobile homes were destroyed, along with an athletic park. A community building sustained major damage, as well as a 20-unit assisted living center. An electrical substation was destroyed, leaving the area without power for several days. Numerous trees and power lines were also blown down. Farther to the northeast, in the…

2. Apr 13, 2008Flood$1.5 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   Moderate flooding at the Pendleton stream gage on the Arkansas River occurred for over three days. The crest in April was higher than the March crest, primarily due to the high Mississippi River stages. There were damages to agricultural, county roads, and a few houses near the U.S. Highway 165 bridge in Pendleton. There were about six to eight homes flooded. Other property within the levee system, such as hunting and fishing camps, was also flooded. The lower Arkansas River floodplain contains some exclusive hunting camps and all were flooded by either the Arkansas or Mississippi River flooding the vast expanse of floodplain. The crest at Pendleton was the highest since May,…

3. Apr 13, 2008Flood$1.5 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   Moderate flooding at the Pendleton stream gage on the Arkansas River occurred for over 3 days. The crest in April was higher than the March crest, primarily due to the high Mississippi River stages. There were damages to agricultural, county roads, and a few houses near the U.S. highway 165 bridge in Pendleton. There were about 6 to 8 homes flooded. Other property within the levee system, such as hunting and fishing camps, were also flooded. The lower Arkansas River floodplain contains some exclusive hunting camps and all were flooded by either the Arkansas or Mississippi River flooding the vast expanse of floodplain. The crest at Pendleton was the highest since May 1990 and the…

4. Mar 22, 2008Flood$1.0 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   The Arkansas River rose to flood stage at Pendleton and caused some damage to roads in the community and a couple of homes. Agricultural losses were noted to the winter wheat crop. The Corps of Engineer park facilities were also damaged.

5. May 28, 2019Flood$1.0 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   Flooding began on the Arkansas River at Pendleton on May 28 and continued into June. The river reached a record stage in June of 37.63 feet.

6. Sep 2, 2008Tropical Depression, Desha$575,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   A car was destroyed when a large sycamore tree fell on it on West Waterman Street in Clarion.

7. May 1, 2011Flood$500,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   The Freddie Black Choctaw Island Wildlife Management Area was closed due to flooding. Flooding in Desha County continued into June along the Mississippi River.

8. Aug 29, 2012Tropical Depression, Desha$500,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   Although Isaac was a hurricane in the Gulf of Mexico, it had weakened to a tropical depression by the time it reached Arkansas. Isaac passed through western Arkansas on the evening of the 30th and during the day on the 31st. Positions from the National Hurricane Center and the Hydrometeorological Prediction Center: August 30th at 10 PM (CDT) 95 miles south-southwest of Little Rock, August 31st at 4 AM 95 miles west of Little Rock, August 31st at 10 AM 25 miles northeast of Fort Smith, and August 31st at 4 PM 40 miles east of Joplin, Missouri. Although Isaac had exited Arkansas by the end of the month, some effects, including bands of thunderstorms spiraling in toward its center,…

9. Sep 13, 2008Tropical Storm, Desha$375,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   Tropical Storm Ike moved into Arkansas on the evening of the 13th. By mid evening of the 13th, Ike was located in western Arkansas. Ike weakened to a tropical depression during the wee hours of the 14th, when it was located about 105 miles west-northwest of Little Rock. Ike exited northern Arkansas before sunrise on the 14th. In the Little Rock County Warning Area, wind gusts of 35 to 45 mph were common, and some gusts in the northern part of the state exceeded 50 mph. The strongest gusts measured were 67 mph at the Izard County Fairgrounds in Melbourne and 61 mph at the Newport airport. The strongest sustained wind measured was 46 mph at the Newport airport. Power was knocked out…

10. Jan 29, 2008Strong Wind, Desha$250,000
    National Weather Service narrative

    A strong cold front approached from the Plains during the morning of January 29th. The front arrived during the early afternoon hours, and winds shifted to the northwest. Wind speeds of 30 to 40 mph were common, with gusts over 50 mph. Approximately 80,000 power outages occurred.

1. Storm Events records before 1996 cover only tornadoes, thunderstorm wind and hail. Damage figures are as reported by the National Weather Service at the time, not adjusted for inflation.

NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, 1950 to 2026, issued October 26, 2026.

All-time high

105°F4 times, most recently Jul 31, 1986

All-time low

−5°FJan 30, 1966

Warmest night

83°F2 times, most recently Jun 29, 1998

Coldest day

8°F2 times, most recently Dec 23, 1989

Wettest day

9.97 inJun 9, 2021

Snowiest day

10.0 inJan 29, 1966

Hottest year

1998mean 65.4°F

Coldest year

1968mean 60.3°F

Wettest year

201976.83 in

Driest year

196734.57 in

Snowiest season

19.1 in1965-66

Station Rohwer 2 Nne (USC00036253), 151 ft elevation, 8.9 miles from the population centre. Daily records from 1959 to October 13, 2026; 91.1% of days in the last 30 years are complete. Records at a single station can differ from a city’s official threaded record, which may combine several stations.

NOAA NCEI Global Historical Climatology Network Daily.

This product uses the Federal Emergency Management Agency's OpenFEMA API, but is not endorsed by FEMA. The Federal Government or FEMA cannot vouch for the data or analyses derived from these data after the data have been retrieved from the Agency's website(s).

OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations Summaries, retrieved October 30, 2026. Statewide declarations are not listed.

Neighbouring counties

• Tornadoes NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather database, through 2025.
• Tropical cyclones NOAA National Hurricane Center HURDAT2 (Atlantic; Northeast and Central Pacific), through 2025.
• Wildfire USGS/USFS Monitoring Trends in Burn Severity, through 2026.
• Storm events NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, through 2026.
• Flood insurance OpenFEMA NFIP Redacted Claims v3, refreshed August 4, 2026.
• Declarations OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations Summaries v2, retrieved October 30, 2026.
• Weather records NOAA NCEI Global Historical Climatology Network Daily, station USC00036253.
• River crests NOAA National Weather Service, National Water Prediction Service river gauges, retrieved October 30, 2026.
• Drought NOAA NCEI nClimDiv county Palmer Drought Severity Index, through September 2026.
• Smoke NOAA NESDIS Hazard Mapping System smoke analysis, retrieved October 30, 2026.
• Earthquakes USGS ANSS Comprehensive Earthquake Catalog (ComCat), retrieved October 30, 2026.

Joins, thresholds and known limits are set out in the methodology. Found an error? Report it. Page built October 30, 2026.