82
Recorded events
3
Direct deaths
1
Direct injuries
$4.5M
Property damage
Flash Flood in Craighead County, Arkansas: 82 recorded events between 1997 and 2025. The strongest on record measured 0. That places the county #258 nationally and #7 statewide for this hazard.
Decade by decade
Flash Flood in Craighead County, Arkansas: events per decade
Reporting practice changed over time — early decades are undercounted, not calmer.
The busiest decade for flash flood in Craighead County is the 2000s, when 36 of the county's 82 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 Craighead County archive, flash flood makes up 12.7% of all recorded severe weather across 7 hazard types. Nationally the county sits at #258 for this hazard and #7 within Arkansas, putting it in the 91.5 percentile of all U.S. counties.
Seasonality
Events by month
May is the peak month for flash flood in Craighead County with 14 recorded events, while Nov 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 24, 2009 | GREENSBORO | 0 | 2 | 0 | $25K |
| May 24, 2009 | JONESBORO | 0 | 1 | 0 | $50K |
| May 24, 2016 | OAK RIDGE | 0 | 0 | 1 | $2.1M |
Most recent
Latest recorded events
| Date | Location | Magnitude | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jan 30, 2025 | WHITBURG | 0 | $0 |
| Feb 8, 2023 | NETTLETON | 0 | $200K |
| Aug 5, 2022 | BROOKLAND | 0 | $20K |
| Aug 13, 2021 | OAK RIDGE | 0 | $20K |
| Mar 18, 2021 | TUNIS | 0 | $10K |
| Mar 18, 2021 | RIDGE | 0 | $0 |
| Mar 18, 2021 | VALLEY VIEW | 0 | $0 |
| Mar 18, 2021 | JONESBORO | 0 | $50K |
| Sep 1, 2020 | JONESBORO | 0 | $5K |
| Jan 11, 2020 | NETTLETON | 0 | $0 |
Other hazards here
More from Craighead County
- Thunderstorm Wind 300
- Hail 194
- Tornado 54
From the record
What the reports say
Written by National Weather Service staff at the time of the event · public domain
Heavy rain produced flash flooding across Northern Craighead County in Eastern Arkansas. County roads 785, 791 and 792 along with Highway 49 were flooded. A sport utility vehicle was pulling into a flooded driveway off county road 785, which had a bridge over a creek, and was swept downstream. At least 2 feet of water covered the bridge. The SUV was swept 100 yards downstream. A portion of the bridge was washed out. Two people inside the SUV were killed.
Heavy rain produced flash flooding in northern parts of Jonesboro in Eastern Arkansas. A boy was swept into a drainage ditch near Burke Avenue and Vine Street and was killed. Several homes were flooded along Burke Avenue and North Patrick Street.
Street flooding reported in west Jonesboro with 6 to 8 inches of water covering roadways at the intersection of Matthews and Madison roads. Several roadways across town have been closed by Law Enforcement. Stranded cars in flood water have also been reported. One child was swept into a storm drain and suffered injuries in the Wesley Court section of Jonesboro.
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many flash flood events are on record in Craighead County, Arkansas?
82 flash flood events are recorded in Craighead County between 1997 and 2025, causing 3 direct deaths.
What is the strongest flash flood recorded in Craighead County?
The strongest flash flood on record in Craighead County measured 0.
Where does the flash flood data for Craighead County 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
“Flash Flood in Craighead County, Arkansas.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/arkansas/craighead-county/flash-flood/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.