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Conway County, Arkansas severe weather history spans 547 recorded events between 1956 and 2025. The dominant hazard is thunderstorm wind, accounting for 40.2% of all recorded events. It ranks #736 nationally and #25 in Arkansas.
547
Recorded events
8
Direct deaths
54
Direct injuries
$43.1M
Property damage
The record
What the Conway County, Arkansas severe weather history record shows
Across the archive, Conway County, Arkansas severe weather history averages 7.9 recorded events a year. The busiest stretch on record is the 2000s, with 171 events logged in that decade alone. Roughly 61 events fall before 1990 and 486 from 1990 onward — a gap that reflects the expansion of NOAA reporting practice as much as the weather itself.
The deadliest hazard in the Conway County, Arkansas record is tornado, responsible for 8 direct deaths. The costliest is tornado, with $30.8M in reported property damage. In total, 9 distinct hazard types appear in this county archive, each listed with its own dated record below.
By hazard type
Every hazard type recorded in Conway County
| Hazard | Events | Deaths | Damage | Max | Span |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thunderstorm Wind | 220 | 0 | $5.4M | 75 | 1957–2025 |
| Hail | 189 | 0 | $10K | 2.75 | 1957–2025 |
| Tornado | 42 | 8 | $30.8M | F3 | 1956–2021 |
| Flash Flood | 33 | 0 | $2.0M | 0 | 1998–2025 |
| Flood | 29 | 0 | $4.2M | 0 | 2008–2025 |
| Heavy Rain | 16 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 2009–2025 |
| Lightning | 12 | 0 | $802K | 0 | 1998–2023 |
| Funnel Cloud | 5 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 1996–2024 |
| Heavy Snow | 1 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 2021–2021 |
Decade by decade
Conway County, Arkansas severe weather history by decade
Reporting practice changed over time — early decades are undercounted, not calmer.
Tornado tracks
Paths crossing this county
48 mapped tornado paths intersect this county: 42 touched down inside it and 6 crossed in from a neighbouring county. This comes from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
| Date | Scale | Deaths | Injuries | Path length | Origin |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2008-02-05 | EF4 | 13 | 139 | 121.8 mi | Crossed in |
| 2008-05-02 | EF3 | 5 | 24 | 45.3 mi | Touched down here |
| 2010-04-30 | EF3 | 1 | 15 | 20.3 mi | Touched down here |
| 2005-11-27 | EF3 | 1 | 8 | 15.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 1988-11-15 | EF3 | 1 | 10 | 29.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 1960-05-06 | EF3 | 1 | 30 | 26.7 mi | Touched down here |
| 1956-02-14 | EF3 | 1 | 5 | 33.0 mi | Crossed in |
| 2005-11-27 | EF3 | 0 | 0 | 19.0 mi | Crossed in |
| 2005-11-27 | EF3 | 0 | 0 | 2.0 mi | Crossed in |
| 1971-05-23 | EF3 | 0 | 4 | 5.6 mi | Touched down here |
Significant events
Deadliest events on record in Conway County
| Date | Type | Location | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 2, 2008 | Tornado | BIRDTOWN | 2 | 6 | $5.0M |
| Feb 5, 2008 | Tornado | HATTIEVILLE | 2 | 5 | $14.5M |
| May 6, 1960 | Tornado | 1 | 24 | $2.5M | |
| Nov 28, 2005 | Tornado | MORRILTON | 1 | 8 | $0 |
| Feb 15, 1956 | Tornado | 1 | 3 | $250K | |
| May 28, 1982 | Tornado | 1 | 0 | $250K | |
| May 24, 1971 | Tornado | 0 | 4 | $25K | |
| Mar 20, 2012 | Thunderstorm Wind | LEWISBURG | 0 | 1 | $400K |
From the record
What the reports say
Written by National Weather Service staff at the time of the event · public domain
The tornado moved out of Pope County, northeast of Atkins, into Conway County, west of Hattieville. According to the Federal Emergency Management Agency, 56 residences (both houses and mobile homes) suffered damage. Altogether, 32 residences were destroyed, 6 had major damage, and 18 had minor damage. Several chicken houses were destroyed, and approximately 80,000 chickens were killed. Numerous trees, power lines, and power poles were blown down. An elderly couple was killed about 3.2 miles south-southwest of Cleveland when their mobile home was destroyed. The tornado then moved into Van Buren County, south-southeast of Beverage Town.
Fifteen homes, three chicken houses, kennels, at least six vehicles, and at least six outbuildings were destroyed. There was major damage to nine houses, at least four chicken houses, five outbuildings, vehicles, and farm equipment. Minor damage occurred to multiple houses and roofs, vehicles, a cemetery, community building, ball field, and multiple outbuildings and barns. A man and his teen-aged son were killed when their mobile home was destroyed on M&M Rd. The tornado exited Conway County, east of Center Ridge, and entered Van Buren County, west-southwest of Damascus.
A strong tornado was spawned in southern Conway County about 2.5 miles southeast of Morrilton. The tornado tracked northeast across Interstate 40 and overturned several vehicles. In one of the vehicles, a person was killed and seven people were injured roughly 1 mile west of Plumerville. In the same area, a lumber company was badly damaged. The tornado also destroyed a large barn that contained several bass boats and vehicles. Homes and businesses were heavily damaged or destroyed. A fire station, numerous barns, outbuildings and chicken houses were damaged. Mobile homes were overturned. There were hundreds of trees, power lines and power poles downed. The tornado dissipated 1 mile east of Springfield.
Context
Risk, population and federal disasters
Relatively Low
FEMA NRI risk rating
21,054
Population (ACS)
$154K
Median home value
29
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 |
| Jun 8, 2019 | Flood | SEVERE STORMS AND FLOODING | DR |
Within the county
Most affected places
- Morrilton 129
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many severe weather events have been recorded in Conway County, Arkansas?
547 events are on record between 1956 and 2025, causing 8 direct deaths and $43.1M in property damage.
What is the most common severe weather hazard in Conway County?
Thunderstorm Wind, with 220 recorded events — 40.2% of everything in the archive for this county.
How many tornadoes have crossed Conway County?
48 mapped tornado paths intersect the county boundary; 42 of them touched down inside it. This is derived from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
How many federal disaster declarations cover Conway County?
29 federal disaster declarations from FEMA include Conway County, each tied to a specific incident period.
How risky is Conway County compared with the rest of the country?
FEMA's National Risk Index rates Conway County as relatively low risk, placing it in the 57 percentile of its state for expected annual loss.
Where does the Conway 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
- Columbia County 464
- Craighead County 646
- Cleveland County 269
- Crawford County 788
- Cleburne County 367
- Crittenden County 319
Cite this page
“Conway County, Arkansas.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/arkansas/conway-county/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.