Columbia County, Arkansas severe weather history spans 464 recorded events between 1952 and 2026. The dominant hazard is thunderstorm wind, accounting for 43.5% of all recorded events. It ranks #1,006 nationally and #37 in Arkansas.
464
Recorded events
4
Direct deaths
25
Direct injuries
$141.0M
Property damage
The record
What the Columbia County, Arkansas severe weather history record shows
Across the archive, Columbia County, Arkansas severe weather history averages 6.3 recorded events a year. The busiest stretch on record is the 1990s, with 115 events logged in that decade alone. Roughly 110 events fall before 1990 and 354 from 1990 onward — a gap that reflects the expansion of NOAA reporting practice as much as the weather itself.
The deadliest hazard in the Columbia County, Arkansas record is tornado, responsible for 3 direct deaths. The costliest is flash flood, with $131.7M in reported property damage. In total, 8 distinct hazard types appear in this county archive, each listed with its own dated record below.
By hazard type
Every hazard type recorded in Columbia County
| Hazard | Events | Deaths | Damage | Max | Span |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thunderstorm Wind | 202 | 1 | $1.2M | 97 | 1957–2025 |
| Hail | 167 | 0 | $100K | 4.5 | 1971–2026 |
| Flash Flood | 46 | 0 | $131.7M | 0 | 1997–2025 |
| Tornado | 36 | 3 | $7.6M | F4 | 1952–2024 |
| Lightning | 8 | 0 | $317K | 0 | 1999–2019 |
| Funnel Cloud | 2 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 1998–2001 |
| Flood | 2 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 1997–1997 |
| Heavy Rain | 1 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 2023–2023 |
Decade by decade
Columbia County, Arkansas severe weather history by decade
Reporting practice changed over time — early decades are undercounted, not calmer.
Tornado tracks
Paths crossing this county
36 mapped tornado paths intersect this county: 34 touched down inside it and 2 crossed in from a neighbouring county. This comes from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
| Date | Scale | Deaths | Injuries | Path length | Origin |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1957-12-19 | EF4 | 2 | 9 | 17.7 mi | Touched down here |
| 1964-03-04 | EF3 | 1 | 0 | 9.1 mi | Touched down here |
| 1999-05-04 | EF3 | 0 | 0 | 9.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 1999-05-04 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 6.5 mi | Touched down here |
| 1994-04-11 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 2.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 1990-05-16 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 26.5 mi | Touched down here |
| 1981-05-13 | EF2 | 0 | 4 | 14.6 mi | Touched down here |
| 1973-04-24 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 0.5 mi | Touched down here |
| 1962-04-30 | EF2 | 0 | 2 | 2.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 1957-05-23 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 4.6 mi | Touched down here |
Significant events
Deadliest events on record in Columbia County
| Date | Type | Location | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dec 19, 1957 | Tornado | 2 | 9 | $25K | |
| Aug 21, 2000 | Thunderstorm Wind | MAGNESIA SPGS | 1 | 0 | $30K |
| Mar 4, 1964 | Tornado | 1 | 0 | $250K | |
| May 14, 1981 | Tornado | 0 | 4 | $250K | |
| May 3, 2003 | Hail | MAGNOLIA | 0 | 3 | $0 |
| Apr 3, 1982 | Tornado | 0 | 2 | $25K | |
| May 1, 1962 | Tornado | 0 | 2 | $25K | |
| Aug 7, 2010 | Lightning | CHALYBEAT SPGS | 0 | 1 | $75K |
From the record
What the reports say
Written by National Weather Service staff at the time of the event · public domain
Flooding was reported across the entire city. The local hospital had one foot of water in it while water also entered numerous homes. Rainfall for a 24 hour period averaged just under twelve inches. Many roads and bridges were washed out resulting in 1 million dollars damage alone.
An F2 tornado touched down in Magnolia. The tornado traveled approximately two miles through Magnolia before lifting. The tornado damaged a number of vehicles in a car lot, destroyed a greenhouse at a local Wal-Mart and damaged a local gas station. Several mobile homes were either damaged or destroyed and a small church was also damaged.
Numerous roads were closed in town and across the county from excessive heavy rainfall. Just some of the roads closed throughout the county included County Roads 7, 31, 38, 47, 60, 72, 204, 246 and 400. At the high of the storm, four dozen county and state roads had high water across them. Many of these roads were washed out as well and will need to be replaced along with adjacent culverts. Columbia County was declared a Federal Disaster Area because of the extreme flood and storm damage that ensued during the month of October.
Context
Risk, population and federal disasters
Very Low
FEMA NRI risk rating
22,349
Population (ACS)
$152K
Median home value
22
Federal declarations
| Declared | Incident | Title | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jan 24, 2026 | Winter Storm | SEVERE WINTER STORM | EM |
| Apr 5, 2025 | Severe Storm | SEVERE STORMS, TORNADOES, AND FLOODING | EM |
| Aug 27, 2020 | Hurricane | HURRICANE LAURA | EM |
| Apr 3, 2020 | Biological | COVID-19 PANDEMIC | DR |
| Mar 13, 2020 | Biological | COVID-19 | EM |
| May 6, 2016 | Severe Storm | SEVERE STORMS, TORNADOES, STRAIGHT-LINE WINDS, AND FLOODING | DR |
Within the county
Most affected places
- Magnolia 100
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many severe weather events have been recorded in Columbia County, Arkansas?
464 events are on record between 1952 and 2026, causing 4 direct deaths and $141.0M in property damage.
What is the most common severe weather hazard in Columbia County?
Thunderstorm Wind, with 202 recorded events — 43.5% of everything in the archive for this county.
How many tornadoes have crossed Columbia County?
36 mapped tornado paths intersect the county boundary; 34 of them touched down inside it. This is derived from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
How many federal disaster declarations cover Columbia County?
22 federal disaster declarations from FEMA include Columbia County, each tied to a specific incident period.
How risky is Columbia County compared with the rest of the country?
FEMA's National Risk Index rates Columbia County as very low risk, placing it in the 42 percentile of its state for expected annual loss.
Where does the Columbia County, Arkansas severe weather history data come from?
Every figure is drawn from United States federal public-domain records: NOAA/NCEI Storm Events for the event archive, NOAA SPC SVRGIS for mapped tornado paths, FEMA for disaster declarations and risk ratings, and the U.S. Census for population context. Dates are shown in UTC and recent entries may still be revised by NOAA.
Nearby
Neighbouring counties
- Cleveland County 269
- Conway County 547
- Cleburne County 367
- Craighead County 646
- Clay County 337
- Crawford County 788
Cite this page
“Columbia County, Arkansas.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/arkansas/columbia-county/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.