States › Arkansas › Franklin County

Franklin County, Arkansas

Recorded hazard history: storm events since 1950, federal disaster declarations since 1953, flood insurance claims since 1978, and FEMA's risk index.

FIPS 05047 · 17,173 residents (2021) · 609 sq mi · dominant hazard Wind

Hail · 239Tornado · 39Flood · 84Wind · 337Winter · 34

Franklin County within Arkansas. Dots: HailTornadoFloodWind event locations in the kept record. Boundaries: US Census Bureau.

NCEI notes that Storm Data is compiled from a variety of sources including the National Weather Service, other federal, state and local agencies, the media and the public; that property and crop damage figures are estimates; and that some events are recorded by NWS forecast zone rather than by county. FEMA notes that NFIP claim records are redacted and aggregated to protect the privacy of policyholders. NCEI storm records through 30 Jun 2026; OpenFEMA declarations refreshed 29 Sep 2026; NFIP claims as of 8 Sep 2026.

Franklin County, Arkansas, has 834 weather events in the NCEI Storm Events record since 1950, most of them damaging wind.

That is 137.0 events per 100 square miles, above the Arkansas figure of 94.2, and 485.6 per 10,000 residents against 161.8 statewide.

12 events fall in the 12 months to 30 Jun 2026. NCEI attributes 3 deaths and 28 injuries to events in the county, with property damage estimated at $14M.

FEMA has designated the county in 27 federal disaster declarations since 1953; the most recent is Severe Winter Storm (emergency, 24 Jan 2026).

National Flood Insurance Program policyholders in the county filed 48 claims since 1978, of which 39 were paid, totalling $716K (about $18K per paid claim). FEMA counts 11 residential flood policies in force.

FEMA's National Risk Index rates the county's overall risk as "Relatively Low" and its expected annual loss as "Very Low" ($9.6M a year across 18 hazards).

4 tropical storm or hurricane tracks in the HURDAT2 record passed within 100 miles of the county's centre at tropical-storm strength or more, 0 of them within 50 miles at hurricane strength.

12events, last 12 monthsto 30 Jun 2026

834events since 19503 deaths, 28 injuries recorded

27disaster declarationslast 24 Jan 2026

48NFIP flood claims$716K paid

Compared with Arkansas and the United States

Measure	Franklin County	Arkansas	US
Recorded events since 1950	834	48,966	1,977,440
Events per 100 square miles	137.0	94.2	56.0
Events per 10,000 residents	485.6	161.8	59.6
Events in the last 12 months	12	1,151	62,008
Deaths recorded by NCEI	3	668	26,435
Property damage (NCEI estimates)	$14M	$6.4B	$575B
NFIP claims per 1,000 residents	2.8	3.4	8.1
Average paid NFIP claim	$18K	$27K	$43K
Claims per 100 policies in force, last 10 years	27.3	23.0	16.1

County-recorded events plus zone-recorded events whose forecast zone is named for the county. State and US rows include events recorded only by forecast zone. Rates use 2021 Census population and land area.

Events by decade

Wind: 1

Hail: 2Tornado: 4Wind: 2

Hail: 1Wind: 3

Hail: 10Wind: 19

Hail: 45Tornado: 2Flood: 4Wind: 60Winter: 3Heat: 1Lightning: 3Other: 2

Hail: 96Tornado: 12Flood: 34Wind: 110Winter: 7Tropical: 1Heat: 6Cold: 1Drought: 7Lightning: 3

Hail: 55Tornado: 11Flood: 31Wind: 95Winter: 13Heat: 20Drought: 23Wildfire: 1Lightning: 2

Hail: 30Tornado: 10Flood: 15Wind: 47Winter: 11Heat: 23Drought: 8

11950s81960s41970s291980s1201990s2772000s2512010s1442020s

Recorded events in Franklin County by decade and hazard group. HailTornadoFloodWindWinterTropicalHeatColdDroughtWildfireLightningOther NCEI recorded only tornadoes, hail and thunderstorm wind before 1996.

Trend: 517 events in the 20 years to 2025 against 285 in the 20 years before. Reporting practice changed in 1996 and again with automated reports in the 2000s, so decade totals measure the record as much as the weather.

Events by type

Wind337

Hail239

Flood84

Heat50

Tornado39

Drought38

Winter34

Lightning8

Other2

Tropical1

Cold1

Wildfire1

Hazard	Events	Deaths	Share of state's events
■ Wind	337	—	2.0%	detail
■ Hail	239	—	1.9%	detail
■ Flood	84	—	1.5%	detail
■ Heat	50	—	1.9%
■ Tornado	39	3	1.5%	detail
■ Drought	38	—	2.1%
■ Winter	34	—	0.7%	detail
■ Lightning	8	—	2.1%
■ Other	2	—	0.3%
■ Tropical	1	—	0.4%
■ Cold	1	—	0.2%
■ Wildfire	1	—	0.6%

Hazard pages exist for hail, tornado, flood, wind and winter where the county has at least 10 recorded events. "Other" covers heavy rain, debris flow, dust, funnel clouds and similar reports.

Largest recorded events

Date	Event type	Group	Magnitude	Property damage	Crop damage	Deaths	Injuries	Geography
24 May 2011	Tornado	Tornado	EF3	$2.0M	—	2	10	County
24 May 2011	Tornado	Tornado	EF4	$1.5M	—	1	6	County
12 Mar 1961	Tornado	Tornado	F2	$250K	—	—	4	County
21 Apr 1996	Tornado	Tornado	F2	$500K	—	—	2	County
3 Apr 1964	Tornado	Tornado	F1	$250K	—	—	2	County
14 Apr 2011	Tornado	Tornado	EF1	$30K	—	—	2	County
1 Jun 2008	Thunderstorm Wind	Wind	70 mph	$25K	—	—	1	County
13 Aug 2006	Lightning	Lightning	—	—	—	—	1	County
23 Nov 2001	Tornado	Tornado	F1	$2.0M	—	—	—	County
5 Dec 2013	Ice Storm	Winter	—	$810K	—	—	—	Forecast zone
5 Mar 1999	Hail	Hail	2.75 in	$600K	—	—	—	County
22 Jun 2026	Tornado	Tornado	EF1	$400K	—	—	—	County
5 Oct 2000	Hail	Hail	1.75 in	$250K	—	—	—	County
22 Apr 2004	Flash Flood	Flood	—	$250K	—	—	—	County
17 Nov 2016	Wildfire	Wildfire	—	$250K	—	—	—	Forecast zone
18 Jul 2021	Flash Flood	Flood	—	$250K	—	—	—	County
17 Jun 2023	Thunderstorm Wind	Wind	81 mph	$250K	—	—	—	County
26 Mar 2000	Hail	Hail	2.75 in	$200K	—	—	—	County
23 Nov 2001	Tornado	Tornado	F1	$200K	—	—	—	County
13 Apr 2014	Tornado	Tornado	EF1	$200K	—	—	—	County

Ranked by deaths, then injuries, then NCEI's damage estimate. Deaths and injuries are NCEI counts (direct plus indirect); no personal details are recorded here.

Federal disaster declarations

Declared	Number	Type	Incident	Title	Programs
24 Jan 2026	EM-3636	Emergency	Winter Storm	Severe Winter Storm	Public assistance
5 Apr 2025	EM-3627	Emergency	Severe Storm	Severe Storms, Tornadoes, And Flooding	Public assistance
27 Aug 2020	EM-3541	Emergency	Hurricane	Hurricane Laura	Public assistance
3 Apr 2020	DR-4518	Major disaster	Biological	Covid-19 Pandemic	Individual assistance, Public assistance
13 Mar 2020	EM-3461	Emergency	Biological	Covid-19	Public assistance
8 Jun 2019	DR-4441	Major disaster	Flood	Severe Storms And Flooding	Public assistance
30 May 2019	EM-3414	Emergency	Flood	Severe Storms And Flooding	Public assistance
5 Feb 2016	DR-4254	Major disaster	Severe Storm	Severe Storms, Tornadoes, Straight-Line Winds, And Flooding	Public assistance
26 Jun 2015	DR-4226	Major disaster	Severe Storm	Severe Storms, Tornadoes, Straight-Line Winds, And Flooding	Public assistance
6 Jan 2014	DR-4160	Major disaster	Severe Ice Storm	Severe Winter Storm	Public assistance
8 Jul 2011	DR-4000	Major disaster	Severe Storm	Severe Storms, Tornadoes, And Flooding	Individual assistance, Public assistance
2 May 2011	DR-1975	Major disaster	Severe Storm	Severe Storms, Tornadoes, And Associated Flooding	Public assistance
3 Dec 2009	DR-1861	Major disaster	Severe Storm	Severe Storms, Tornadoes, And Flooding	Public assistance
6 Feb 2009	DR-1819	Major disaster	Severe Storm	Severe Winter Storm	Public assistance
28 Jan 2009	EM-3301	Emergency	Severe Ice Storm	Severe Winter Storm	Public assistance
26 Mar 2008	DR-1751	Major disaster	Severe Storm	Severe Storms, Tornadoes, And Flooding	Individual assistance, Public assistance
2 Sep 2005	EM-3215	Emergency	Hurricane	Hurricane Katrina Evacuation	Public assistance
30 Jun 2004	DR-1528	Major disaster	Severe Storm	Severe Storms And Flooding	Public assistance
7 May 2004	DR-1516	Major disaster	Severe Storm	Sever Storms, Flooding And Landslides	Public assistance
24 Jan 2002	DR-1400	Major disaster	Severe Storm	Severe Storms And Flooding	Public assistance
13 Mar 2001	DR-1363	Major disaster	Severe Storm	Severe Storms And Flooding	Public assistance
29 Dec 2000	DR-1354	Major disaster	Severe Ice Storm	Severe Winter Ice Storm	Individual assistance, Public assistance
28 Dec 2000	EM-3159	Emergency	Severe Ice Storm	Severe Winter Ice Storm	Public assistance
23 Apr 1996	DR-1111	Major disaster	Severe Storm	Severe Storms And Tornadoes	Individual assistance, Public assistance
15 May 1990	DR-865	Major disaster	Flood	Severe Storms & Flooding	Individual assistance, Public assistance
3 Dec 1976	EM-3019	Emergency	Drought	Drought	Public assistance
27 Jan 1972	DR-321	Major disaster	Flood	Severe Storms & Flooding	Public assistance

Declarations in which FEMA designated this county, from the OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations Summaries (v2). DR: major disaster; EM: emergency; FM: fire management assistance. Programs show whether individual or public assistance was made available.

Flood insurance claims

197820022026

NFIP claims by year of loss in Franklin County, 1978 to 2026 (hover for the amount paid).

Claims since 197848

Paid claims39

Total paid$716K

Average paid claim$18K

Repetitive-loss properties51 severe

Residential policies in force110.1% of 8,680 structures

Year of loss	Claims	Paid claims	Amount paid	Average paid
2023	1	1	$2,036	$2,036
2021	2	2	$12,517	$6,258
2016	2	2	$50,742	$25,371
2015	2	2	$142,637	$71,318
2009	5	5	$74,522	$14,904
2008	5	4	$62,847	$15,712
2007	6	5	$35,761	$7,152
2006	3	2	$118,687	$59,344
2004	12	8	$129,146	$16,143
2003	1	0	$0	—
2002	3	3	$19,125	$6,375
2000	2	2	$23,870	$11,935
1999	2	2	$31,354	$15,677
1998	1	0	$0	—
1990	1	1	$12,813	$12,813

OpenFEMA NFIP claims (v3, as of 8 Sep 2026), aggregated by year of loss; amounts are building, contents and increased-cost-of-compliance payments as recorded. Repetitive-loss counts from the NFIP Multiple Loss Properties file (2 Aug 2026); policies in force from the NFIP Residential Penetration Rates file (3 Aug 2026).

National Risk Index

Overall riskRelatively Lowscore 49.4 of 100

Expected annual loss$9.6MVery Low

Social vulnerabilityVery High

Community resilienceVery Low

Hazard (NRI)	Risk rating	Expected annual loss
Inland flooding	Relatively Low	$4,135,081
Heat wave	Relatively Moderate	$1,380,468
Tornado	Relatively Low	$1,270,883
Ice storm	Relatively High	$811,358
Cold wave	Relatively Low	$490,276
Wildfire	Relatively Low	$327,015
Earthquake	Relatively Low	$318,232
Lightning	Relatively Moderate	$240,494
Hail	Relatively Low	$190,634
Strong wind	Relatively Low	$179,742
Drought	Relatively Low	$152,078
Winter weather	Relatively Moderate	$88,409
Hurricane	Very Low	$33,673
Landslide	Very Low	$356

FEMA National Risk Index, December 2025 release. Ratings are FEMA's relative comparison of counties; expected annual loss is FEMA's modelled estimate of average yearly building, population and agriculture loss. See how to read the NRI.

Hurricane and tropical storm passes

Tracks within 100 miles4

Tracks within 50 miles2

Hurricane strength within 50 miles0

Storm	Year	Closest approach	Max wind while within 100 mi
Ike	2008	11 mi	40 mph
Carla	1961	72 mi	40 mph
Unnamed Atlantic storm	1915	87 mi	40 mph
Unnamed Atlantic storm	1902	40 mi	40 mph

HURDAT2 best-track positions at tropical-storm strength (34 kt) or more, measured from the county's Census centre point; through the 2025 season. Distance from a track is not the same as the extent of the storm's wind, rain or surge.

ZIP codes with flood claims

72949 39
72933 9

ZIP codes whose NFIP claims carry this county's code, with the number of claims. Five or more claims are needed for a ZIP page to be indexed.

Questions and answers

How often does it hail in Franklin County, AR?

NCEI records 239 hail events in Franklin County since 1950, in 45 different years; that is about 3.1 recorded events a year. 43 reports were golf-ball size (1.75 in) or larger.

Has Franklin County had a tornado?

Yes. NCEI records 39 tornadoes in Franklin County since 1950, 4 of them rated (E)F2 or stronger. Tornado deaths recorded: 3.

When was the last federal disaster declaration for Franklin County?

24 Jan 2026: Severe Winter Storm, a emergency declaration for winter storm. The county appears in 27 declarations since 1953.

How many flood insurance claims have been filed in Franklin County, and how much was paid?

48 NFIP claims since 1978, 39 of them paid, for $716K in total. FEMA publishes these figures redacted and aggregated; individual properties are not identified.

Is Franklin County in the National Risk Index's high-risk band?

FEMA's National Risk Index (December 2025) rates the county "Relatively Low" for overall risk, "Very Low" for expected annual loss, "Very High" for social vulnerability and "Very Low" for community resilience. These ratings are FEMA's relative comparison across all US counties.

How does Franklin County compare with the rest of Arkansas?

137.0 recorded events per 100 square miles against 94.2 statewide, and 2.8 NFIP claims per 1,000 residents against 3.4. The comparison table on this page shows each measure beside the state and national figures.

Provenance

Storm events: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, yearly details files through 30 Jun 2026 (public domain). Declarations: OpenFEMA DisasterDeclarationsSummaries v2, refreshed 29 Sep 2026. Flood claims: OpenFEMA NfipClaims v3 as of 8 Sep 2026; NfipMultipleLossProperties v1 (2 Aug 2026); NfipResidentialPenetrationRates v1 (3 Aug 2026). Risk index: FEMA National Risk Index, December 2025. Hurricane tracks: NHC HURDAT2 through 2025. Population and area: US Census Bureau, 2021 vintage. Built 30 Sep 2026; see the methodology and corrections pages. Hazard hubs: Hail · Tornado · Flood · Wind · Winter.