344
Recorded events
1
Direct deaths
12
Direct injuries
$3.0M
Property damage
Thunderstorm Wind in Rapides Parish, Louisiana: 344 recorded events between 1955 and 2026. The strongest on record measured 96. That places the county #320 nationally and #6 statewide for this hazard.
Decade by decade
Thunderstorm Wind in Rapides Parish, Louisiana: events per decade
Reporting practice changed over time — early decades are undercounted, not calmer.
The busiest decade for thunderstorm wind in Rapides Parish is the 2000s, when 85 of the county's 344 recorded events were logged. Comparing decades is useful for spotting active periods, but the earliest years are thin because systematic reporting for this hazard began later.
Within the Rapides Parish archive, thunderstorm wind makes up 52.0% of all recorded severe weather across 8 hazard types. Nationally the county sits at #320 for this hazard and #6 within Louisiana, putting it in the 89.9 percentile of all U.S. counties.
Seasonality
Events by month
May is the peak month for thunderstorm wind in Rapides Parish with 56 recorded events, while Sep is the quietest. Seasonality here is a property of the archive as much as the climate: reports cluster where population and spotter networks are densest.
Significant events
Deadliest on record
| Date | Location | Scale | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apr 10, 2024 | (ESF)ESLER ARPT ALXN | 50 | 1 | 0 | $15K |
| Feb 26, 1998 | ALEXANDRIA | 0 | 0 | 5 | $100K |
| Oct 13, 2001 | TIOGA | 50 | 0 | 4 | $150K |
| Apr 23, 2025 | UNION HILL | 50 | 0 | 1 | $0 |
| Dec 21, 1990 | 0 | 0 | 1 | $0 | |
| May 16, 1989 | 0 | 0 | 1 | $0 |
Most recent
Latest recorded events
| Date | Location | Magnitude | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|
| Apr 25, 2026 | (AEX)ENGLAND AFB ALX | 50 | $2K |
| Mar 11, 2026 | LECOMPTE | 50 | $5K |
| Feb 14, 2026 | BALL | 50 | $2K |
| Feb 14, 2026 | SMITHVILLE | 50 | $2K |
| Feb 14, 2026 | BARRETT | 50 | $1K |
| Feb 14, 2026 | UNION HILL | 50 | $2K |
| Feb 14, 2026 | ELMER | 50 | $1K |
| Feb 14, 2026 | CALCASIEU | 50 | $5K |
| Jul 30, 2025 | GLENMORA ARPT | 50 | $1K |
| Jul 30, 2025 | LECOMPTE | 50 | $1K |
Other hazards here
More from Rapides Parish
- Hail 171
- Tornado 84
- Flash Flood 42
From the record
What the reports say
Written by National Weather Service staff at the time of the event · public domain
A thunderstorm produced winds of up to 90 mph likely from the descending rear inflow jet. The damage path extended from near the Rapides Sheriff's Office through northern Pineville, and into rural areas of northeast Rapides Parish. Damage consisted of large trees falling into several homes, outbuildings ripped apart, and power poles pushed down.
Alexandria International Airport recorded a sustained wind of 66 MPH with a gust of 90 MPH during a macroburst. Two parked airbuses were blown into each other. A small GA aircraft was tied down, but the straps broke during the event. The plane became loose and caused structural damage to a nearby building.
A thunderstorm moved eastward through Rapides Parish during the early morning hours of June 20 2019. This resulted in sporadic areas of damage along Philadelphia Road. The most concentrated damage occurred from Creduer Road southeast to Denny Road where numerous trees were either uprooted or snapped halfway up the trunk. Several of the trees fell on homes resulting in damage. The fall pattern of all the trees was within 45 degrees of due east and consistent with downburst winds. When compared with the eyewitness timelines of when the damage occurred, radar data indicated that the strongest winds were associated with downburst winds that pushed out ahead of the storm. Maximum winds with this microburst are estimated at 110 MPH|based on the snapped hardwood tree trunks. Maximum estimated winds were 105 mph.
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many thunderstorm wind events are on record in Rapides Parish, Louisiana?
344 thunderstorm wind events are recorded in Rapides Parish between 1955 and 2026, causing 1 direct deaths.
What is the strongest thunderstorm wind recorded in Rapides Parish?
The strongest thunderstorm wind on record in Rapides Parish measured 96.
Where does the thunderstorm wind data for Rapides Parish come from?
All events come from the NOAA/NCEI Storm Events Database, the federal public-domain archive of severe weather reports. Dates are UTC, damage is as reported and not inflation-adjusted, and the most recent entries may still be revised.
Cite this page
“Thunderstorm Wind in Rapides Parish, Louisiana.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/louisiana/rapides-parish/thunderstorm-wind/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.