Little River County

Every recorded tornado

1. Injuries and deaths are for the tornado’s whole path, which may extend beyond the county. Deaths recorded within Little River County: 2.
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.

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.

More event types since 1996

Costliest events since 1996

1. Dec 12, 2000Ice Storm, Little River$40.0 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   An arctic air mass spilled southward out of the central plains and into the lower Mississippi Valley. This cold, surface air mass was overrun by a warm humid air mass which combined with a strong upper level storm system across west Texas. the result was widespread freezing rain across all of southwest Arkansas. The precipitation was a mixture of freezing rain, sleet and some light snow northwest of a Texarkana to Prescott Arkansas line while further east the precipitation was all freezing rain. Ice accumulations of two to four inches were common. An estimated 235,000 residents lost electrical power due to ice covered power lines snapping or ice covered trees splitting and falling…

2. Jun 1, 2015Flood$1.0 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   Excessive heavy rainfall during the month of May resulted in very high water on the Red River bordering Little River, Hempstead, Miller and Lafayette Counties in Southwest Arkansas as well as Bowie County in Northeast Texas during the entire month of June. Rainfall amounts during the month of May across the Upper and Middle Red River basins of Southern Oklahoma and Northern Texas totaled over 20 inches of rain. The Oklahoma state climatologist reported that May of 2015 was the all time wettest month of any month in state history. Lake Texhoma, a flood control reservoir to the Red River upstream of Arthur City, Texas rose to its highest pool stage on record early on June 1st at…

3. Apr 4, 2011Thunderstorm Wind$500,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   A downburst occurred on the southwest side of Ashdown which resulted in numerous trees and powerlines to be snapped in the town of Ashdown. As many as 50 county and city roads were closed in Little River County from the damaging winds which started approximately 8AM west of Ashdown. In the town of Ashdown trees were noted to point NE and N away from the downburst region very indicative of a strong straight line wind. Damage included numerous homes and businesses as well as a school. Very little structural damage occurred from the wind alone. Most of the damage was the result of falling trees. Maximum winds are estimated at 95-105 mph.

4. Dec 4, 1999Thunderstorm Wind$400,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   John Moon, who lives near Hwy 108 West of Ashdown, had three chicken houses, one metal building and farm equipment destroyed and a fourth house damaged. In addition, he lost 44,000 two day old chicks with an estimated total damage of $350 thousand dollars. Moon was inside one of the chicken houses when the winds struck. A large fan fell on his back causing minor injuries. The winds also damaged the home of Ashdown Police Sargent Danny Hallet, Hwy 108 west of Ashdown. Windows were broken out on his patrol car and a camper trailer was overturned. Two other homes reported roof damage; several trees were uprooted and some snapped off above the ground accounting for the remainder of…

5. Mar 18, 2008Flash Flood$250,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   Heavy rainfall flooded and washed out several county roads across the southern portion of the county. Several recreational facilities surrounding Lake Millwood also had to be closed. Flooding was particularly bad in the Cerrogordo area of northern Little River county. Pine prairie Road in the southern portion of the county was also flooded. Other roads across the county that were flooded included County Roads 15, 23, 29, 42, 56 and 59.

6. Sep 13, 2008Tropical Storm, Little River$200,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   The remnants of Tropical Storm Ike resulted in widespread trees and power lines downed throughout all of Little River County, Arkansas. Power outages were widespread as well with numerous residents without power during the height of the storm and days afterward. A tree was reported down on the roof top of a car in the town of Ashdown, Arkansas. Another tree was down on a home on Rankin Street in Ashdown as well. There were no injuries reported.

7. Oct 13, 2014Tornado$200,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   A tornado quickly spun up, embedded in a squall line across Little River County in Southwest Arkansas. A National Weather Service Storm Survey crew determined that an EF-2 tornado touched down 9 miles west of Ashdown, Arkansas near the Arden community. The tornado touched down just south of Hwy. 32 where it snapped and uprooted numerous trees. The tornado then crossed Hwy. 32 where it completely destroyed a mobile home with 5 family members inside. A 33 year old male was killed and a 34 year old female was critically injured after being thrown from the mobile home. Three children, a 16 year old female, an 11 year old male and a 6 year old male were injured when they were trapped…

8. Jun 11, 2003Thunderstorm Wind$150,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   Numerous trees down and numerous trees had their tops blown off. A roof was torn off a house and a telephone pole fell on a car.

9. May 10, 2009Flash Flood$100,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   Flash flood waters beginning to enter a few homes in Ashdown, Arkansas.

10. May 10, 2009Flash Flood$100,000
    National Weather Service narrative

    Hwy. 71 near the paper mill was flooded and closed. Heavy rainfall plummeted through the roof of the planned Two Rivers Museum annex, soaking museum artifacts and exhibits. The Central Baptist Church and several other homes sustained water damage from the high waters that clogged city drainage ditches. Rainwater also backed up into a mobile home park near the Arkansas 32 Bypass causing some flooding concerns.

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

117°FAug 10, 1936

All-time low

−9°FFeb 13, 1899

Warmest night

84°F2 times, most recently Aug 4, 2011

Coldest day

15°FJan 10, 1962

Wettest day

10.48 inMay 28, 1998

Snowiest day

9.0 inJan 30, 1982

Hottest year

1921mean 69.0°F

Coldest year

1905mean 61.5°F

Wettest year

200978.08 in

Driest year

189622.48 in

Snowiest season

13.4 in1965-66

Station Texarkana Webb Field (USW00013977), 380 ft elevation, 20.8 miles from the population centre. Daily records from 1892 to October 26, 2026; 99.8% 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 USW00013977.
• 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.