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Saline County, Arkansas severe weather history spans 842 recorded events between 1952 and 2026. The dominant hazard is thunderstorm wind, accounting for 39.7% of all recorded events. It ranks #255 nationally and #7 in Arkansas.
842
Recorded events
15
Direct deaths
127
Direct injuries
$137.3M
Property damage
The record
What the Saline County, Arkansas severe weather history record shows
Across the archive, Saline County, Arkansas severe weather history averages 11.4 recorded events a year. The busiest stretch on record is the 2010s, with 263 events logged in that decade alone. Roughly 97 events fall before 1990 and 745 from 1990 onward — a gap that reflects the expansion of NOAA reporting practice as much as the weather itself.
The deadliest hazard in the Saline County, Arkansas record is tornado, responsible for 12 direct deaths. The costliest is tornado, with $120.9M 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 Saline County
| Hazard | Events | Deaths | Damage | Max | Span |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thunderstorm Wind | 334 | 1 | $1.8M | 78 | 1955–2026 |
| Hail | 287 | 0 | $10K | 4 | 1955–2026 |
| Flash Flood | 80 | 1 | $4.2M | 0 | 1996–2025 |
| Tornado | 56 | 12 | $120.9M | F4 | 1952–2025 |
| Flood | 53 | 0 | $8.6M | 0 | 1996–2025 |
| Heavy Rain | 17 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 2006–2025 |
| Lightning | 9 | 1 | $1.8M | 0 | 1996–2019 |
| Funnel Cloud | 6 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 2011–2016 |
Decade by decade
Saline County, Arkansas severe weather history by decade
Reporting practice changed over time — early decades are undercounted, not calmer.
Tornado tracks
Paths crossing this county
61 mapped tornado paths intersect this county: 47 touched down inside it and 14 crossed in from a neighbouring county. This comes from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
| Date | Scale | Deaths | Injuries | Path length | Origin |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1997-03-01 | EF4 | 10 | 40 | 14.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 1997-03-01 | EF4 | 5 | 180 | 11.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 1999-01-21 | EF3 | 3 | 72 | 39.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 1982-12-02 | EF3 | 2 | 53 | 18.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 2011-04-25 | EF3 | 1 | 20 | 16.8 mi | Crossed in |
| 2005-11-27 | EF3 | 0 | 0 | 19.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 1955-05-26 | EF3 | 0 | 3 | 28.8 mi | Crossed in |
| 1952-03-21 | EF3 | 0 | 0 | 17.7 mi | Touched down here |
| 1988-11-15 | EF2 | 5 | 60 | 49.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 2008-05-02 | EF2 | 1 | 3 | 40.7 mi | Crossed in |
Significant events
Deadliest events on record in Saline County
| Date | Type | Location | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mar 1, 1997 | Tornado | BENTON | 10 | 40 | $25.0M |
| Dec 2, 1982 | Tornado | 1 | 28 | $25.0M | |
| Mar 15, 1959 | Tornado | 1 | 7 | $250K | |
| May 2, 2010 | Flash Flood | NEW SUMMIT | 1 | 0 | $30K |
| Aug 3, 1998 | Lightning | BENTON | 1 | 0 | $0 |
| Aug 23, 1988 | Thunderstorm Wind | 1 | 0 | $0 | |
| Oct 18, 2004 | Tornado | SARDIS | 0 | 11 | $0 |
| Feb 18, 2000 | Tornado | BENTON | 0 | 9 | $0 |
From the record
What the reports say
Written by National Weather Service staff at the time of the event · public domain
The thunderstorm that produced the tornado across Clark and Hot Spring County earlier spawned another tornado in Saline County. The tornado touched down 5 miles southeast of Benton and traveled northeastward, damaging a number of homes and downing numerous trees and power lines. As the tornado approached Shannon Hills, the tornado expanded to 0.8 mile wide. Dozens of homes were either damaged or destroyed in the area around the Shannon Hills, Vimy Ridge and Sardis communities. 10 people were killed, with most victims inside their homes when the storm hit.The tornado exhibited characteristics of F2 to F3 strength prior to moving into the Shannon Hills area. After that, the tornado reached F4 intensity as it moved across the Shannon Hills area and eventually into Pulaski County.
Flash flooding occurred on several roads in Bryant. According to a police report, several men went to the Midland Soccer Fields in Bryant to look at the flood waters. One of the men, 45 years old, wanted to see how deep the water was, so he waded into it. The current of the water swept him into a culvert. A 911 call was received form the park just before 11:45 PM CDT. Despite the efforts of several people, he drowned, During the rescue attempt, a firefighter was also pulled through the culvert by the force of the water, but he was not injured.
A tornado began northwest of Bryant and ended northwest of Alexander. The tornado caused major damage in the Hurricane Meadows subdivision, and then continued on to the northeast. Altogether, six houses were destroyed, and approximately 30 others suffered varying degrees of damage.
Context
Risk, population and federal disasters
Relatively Low
FEMA NRI risk rating
127,479
Population (ACS)
$221K
Median home value
23
Federal declarations
| Declared | Incident | Title | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jan 24, 2026 | Winter Storm | SEVERE WINTER STORM | EM |
| May 21, 2025 | Flood | SEVERE STORMS, TORNADOES, AND FLOODING | DR |
| 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 |
Within the county
Most affected places
- Benton Saline Co Arp 192
- Benton 140
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many severe weather events have been recorded in Saline County, Arkansas?
842 events are on record between 1952 and 2026, causing 15 direct deaths and $137.3M in property damage.
What is the most common severe weather hazard in Saline County?
Thunderstorm Wind, with 334 recorded events — 39.7% of everything in the archive for this county.
How many tornadoes have crossed Saline County?
61 mapped tornado paths intersect the county boundary; 47 of them touched down inside it. This is derived from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
How many federal disaster declarations cover Saline County?
23 federal disaster declarations from FEMA include Saline County, each tied to a specific incident period.
How risky is Saline County compared with the rest of the country?
FEMA's National Risk Index rates Saline County as relatively low risk, placing it in the 78 percentile of its state for expected annual loss.
Where does the Saline 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
- St. Francis County 240
- Scott County 344
- Randolph County 343
- Searcy County 303
- Pulaski County 1,897
- Sebastian County 1,038
Cite this page
“Saline County, Arkansas.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/arkansas/saline-county/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.