Lee County

Every recorded tornado

1. Injuries and deaths are for the tornado’s whole path, which may extend beyond the county. Deaths recorded within Lee 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.

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.

Costliest events since 1996

1. May 1, 2011Flood$550,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   Heavy rain during late April into early May caused the St. Francis River and L'Anguille River to rise to near record levels. The river remained above flood stage through the end of May. Several homes sustained minor damage from the flooding. Several roads were closed and/or damaged. Several hundred acres of cropland was flooded. The Mississippi River was also at near record levels. Backwater from the Mississippi River aggravated flooding further on the St. Francis River and L'Anguille River.

2. Dec 23, 2015Tornado$100,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   This tornado damaged several mobile homes and caused roof damage to several permanent homes. The tornado damaged boat docks along Bear Creek Lake before dissipating.

3. Dec 13, 2000Winter Storm, Lee$100,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   A mix of snow,sleet and freezing rain fell across much of east Arkansas. The storm produced numerous downed tree limbs and power lines. Thousands of homes were without power for some period of time.

4. Dec 28, 2015Tornado$50,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   A tornado touched down southwest of Marianna. A mobile home was destroyed. There was roof damage to homes.

5. Mar 31, 2023Thunderstorm Wind$50,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   Straight-line winds punched in a grain silo on Highway 1 South about five miles south of Marianna.

6. May 22, 2024Thunderstorm Wind$25,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   Roof partially peeled off of a retail building on Chestnut Street.

7. Jun 2, 2018Thunderstorm Wind$25,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   Lots of large trees down along Highway 79 in and around the city of Marianna.

8. Mar 24, 2020Flash Flood$25,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   Lee County Road 215 closed due to a washout between County Road 242 and County Road 248.

9. Apr 8, 2024Thunderstorm Wind$25,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   The roof was removed from a home on Highway 1 south of Marianna.

10. Jun 5, 1998Thunderstorm Wind$20,000
    National Weather Service narrative

    Trees and power lines were knocked down in both Marianna and Aubrey.

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

109°FJul 24, 1918

All-time low

−11°FJan 12, 1918

Warmest night

84°F2 times, most recently Jun 15, 1981

Coldest day

5°FJan 21, 1985

Wettest day

5.98 inMar 12, 1975

Snowiest day

11.6 inMar 22, 1968

Hottest year

1938mean 64.9°F

Coldest year

1989mean 58.8°F

Wettest year

201976.40 in

Driest year

194329.48 in

Snowiest season

18.1 in1917-18

Station Marianna 2 S (USC00034638), 254 ft elevation, 3.8 miles from the population centre. Daily records from 1899 to October 27, 2026; 98.4% 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 USC00034638.
• 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.