States › Arkansas › Lonoke County

Lonoke 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 05085 · 74,722 residents (2021) · 771 sq mi · dominant hazard Wind

Hail · 275Tornado · 89Flood · 86Wind · 383Winter · 65

Lonoke 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 1 Oct 2026; NFIP claims as of 8 Sep 2026.

Lonoke County, Arkansas, has 976 weather events in the NCEI Storm Events record since 1950, most of them damaging wind.

That is 126.5 events per 100 square miles, above the Arkansas figure of 94.2, and 130.6 per 10,000 residents against 161.8 statewide.

4 events fall in the 12 months to 30 Jun 2026. NCEI attributes 26 deaths and 132 injuries to events in the county, with property damage estimated at $149M and crop damage at $14M.

FEMA has designated the county in 29 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 89 claims since 1978, of which 68 were paid, totalling $1.3M (about $20K per paid claim). FEMA counts 180 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 "Relatively Low" ($41M a year across 18 hazards).

9 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.

4events, last 12 monthsto 30 Jun 2026

976events since 195026 deaths, 132 injuries recorded

29disaster declarationslast 24 Jan 2026

89NFIP flood claims$1.3M paid

Compared with Arkansas and the United States

Measure	Lonoke County	Arkansas	US
Recorded events since 1950	976	48,966	1,977,440
Events per 100 square miles	126.5	94.2	56.0
Events per 10,000 residents	130.6	161.8	59.6
Events in the last 12 months	4	1,151	62,008
Deaths recorded by NCEI	26	668	26,435
Property damage (NCEI estimates)	$149M	$6.4B	$575B
NFIP claims per 1,000 residents	1.2	3.4	8.1
Average paid NFIP claim	$20K	$27K	$43K
Claims per 100 policies in force, last 10 years	7.2	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

Hail: 2Tornado: 4Wind: 5

Hail: 1Tornado: 5Wind: 3

Hail: 4Tornado: 13Wind: 10

Hail: 18Tornado: 9Wind: 35

Hail: 67Tornado: 12Flood: 3Wind: 78Winter: 5Heat: 1Lightning: 1Other: 1

Hail: 98Tornado: 24Flood: 25Wind: 110Winter: 15Tropical: 3Heat: 1Cold: 4Drought: 1Lightning: 2Other: 3

Hail: 38Tornado: 16Flood: 49Wind: 105Winter: 32Tropical: 2Heat: 11Cold: 2Drought: 18Wildfire: 1Lightning: 5Other: 18

Hail: 47Tornado: 6Flood: 9Wind: 37Winter: 13Tropical: 1Lightning: 1Other: 2

111950s91960s271970s621980s1681990s2862000s2972010s1162020s

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

Trend: 574 events in the 20 years to 2025 against 308 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

Wind383

Hail275

Tornado89

Flood86

Winter65

Other24

Drought19

Heat13

Lightning9

Tropical6

Cold6

Wildfire1

Hazard	Events	Deaths	Share of state's events
■ Wind	383	3	2.2%	detail
■ Hail	275	—	2.2%	detail
■ Tornado	89	18	3.5%	detail
■ Flood	86	1	1.5%	detail
■ Winter	65	2	1.4%	detail
■ Other	24	—	3.5%
■ Drought	19	—	1.0%
■ Heat	13	2	0.5%
■ Lightning	9	—	2.3%
■ Tropical	6	—	2.2%
■ Cold	6	—	1.3%
■ 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
21 Mar 1952	Tornado	Tornado	F3	$250K	—	9	9	County
29 Mar 1976	Tornado	Tornado	F3	$25M	—	5	64	County
15 Nov 1988	Tornado	Tornado	F2	$25M	—	2	8	County
21 Mar 1952	Tornado	Tornado	F4	$250K	—	2	6	County
25 Jun 2023	Thunderstorm Wind	Wind	64 mph	—	—	2	1	County
1 May 2011	Flood	Flood	—	$2.0M	$7.0M	1	—	County
29 Jan 2008	Strong Wind	Wind	55 mph	$250K	—	1	—	Forecast zone
4 Feb 2014	Ice Storm	Winter	—	$200K	—	1	—	Forecast zone
22 Dec 1998	Ice Storm	Winter	—	—	—	1	—	Forecast zone
28 Jul 1999	Heat	Heat	—	—	—	1	—	Forecast zone
10 Jul 2015	Excessive Heat	Heat	—	—	—	1	—	Forecast zone
17 Apr 1978	Tornado	Tornado	F2	$250K	—	—	5	County
24 Sep 2005	Tornado	Tornado	F2	—	—	—	5	County
11 Mar 1986	Thunderstorm Wind	Wind	0 mph	—	—	—	4	County
1 Mar 1997	Tornado	Tornado	F2	$150K	—	—	3	County
20 Feb 1951	Tornado	Tornado	F2	$25K	—	—	3	County
19 Nov 1988	Thunderstorm Wind	Wind	0 mph	—	—	—	3	County
24 Feb 2001	Tornado	Tornado	F1	—	—	—	3	County
15 Nov 1988	Tornado	Tornado	F2	$25M	—	—	—	County
2 May 2008	Tornado	Tornado	EF2	$3.0M	—	—	2	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
21 May 2025	DR-4873	Major disaster	Flood	Severe Storms, Tornadoes, And Flooding	Public assistance
5 Apr 2025	EM-3627	Emergency	Severe Storm	Severe Storms, Tornadoes, And Flooding	Public assistance
14 Nov 2023	DR-4748	Major disaster	Severe Storm	Severe Storms, Straight-Line Winds, And Tornadoes	Public assistance
2 Apr 2023	DR-4698	Major disaster	Severe Storm	Severe Storms And Tornadoes	Individual assistance, 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
29 Jan 2013	DR-4100	Major disaster	Severe Ice Storm	Severe Winter Storm	Public assistance
2 May 2011	DR-1975	Major disaster	Severe Storm	Severe Storms, Tornadoes, And Associated Flooding	Individual assistance, Public assistance
4 Feb 2010	DR-1872	Major disaster	Severe Storm	Severe Storms And Flooding	Public assistance
28 Jan 2009	EM-3301	Emergency	Severe Ice Storm	Severe Winter Storm	Public assistance
20 May 2008	DR-1758	Major disaster	Severe Storm	Severe Storms, Flooding, And Tornadoes	Individual assistance, 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
6 Jun 2003	DR-1472	Major disaster	Severe Storm	Severe Storms, Tornadoes, And Flooding	Individual 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 Jan 1999	DR-1266	Major disaster	Severe Storm	Ar Severe Weather 1-21-99	Individual assistance
14 Apr 1997	DR-1176	Major disaster	Flood	Flooding, Severe Storms	Individual assistance, Public assistance
2 Mar 1997	DR-1162	Major disaster	Severe Storm	Severe Storms And Tornadoes	Individual assistance, Public assistance
23 Nov 1988	DR-817	Major disaster	Tornado	Severe Storms & Tornadoes	Individual assistance
31 Dec 1987	DR-807	Major disaster	Flood	Severe Storms & Flooding	Individual assistance
23 Apr 1982	EM-3085	Emergency	Tornado	Severe Storms & Tornadoes	Individual assistance
16 Apr 1980	DR-617	Major disaster	Tornado	Severe Storms & Tornadoes	Individual assistance
22 Apr 1978	EM-3062	Emergency	Tornado	Tornadoes	Individual assistance, Public assistance
1 Apr 1976	DR-498	Major disaster	Tornado	Tornadoes	Individual assistance, Public assistance
15 Feb 1969	DR-254	Major disaster	Flood	Severe Storms & Flooding	Individual assistance, Public assistance
29 May 1968	DR-239	Major disaster	Tornado	Tornadoes, Severe Storms & Flooding	Individual assistance, 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 Lonoke County, 1978 to 2026 (hover for the amount paid).

Claims since 197889

Paid claims68

Total paid$1.3M

Average paid claim$20K

Repetitive-loss properties121 severe

Residential policies in force1800.7% of 27,577 structures

Year of loss	Claims	Paid claims	Amount paid	Average paid
2025	6	5	$207,117	$41,423
2018	5	3	$20,852	$6,951
2017	2	2	$92,178	$46,089
2016	1	1	$8,874	$8,874
2015	1	1	$669	$669
2011	20	16	$462,792	$28,924
2010	1	0	$0	—
2009	32	25	$433,333	$17,333
2008	4	4	$7,850	$1,963
2003	1	1	$44,881	$44,881
2001	1	0	$0	—
1999	2	2	$27,169	$13,584
1998	1	0	$0	—
1990	2	2	$5,494	$2,747
1988	1	1	$4,410	$4,410
1987	3	1	$10,032	$10,032
1984	2	1	$1,071	$1,071
1979	2	1	$713	$713
1978	2	2	$4,872	$2,436

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 75.1 of 100

Expected annual loss$41MRelatively Low

Social vulnerabilityVery Low

Community resilienceRelatively Low

Hazard (NRI)	Risk rating	Expected annual loss
Inland flooding	Relatively Low	$15,255,946
Earthquake	Relatively Moderate	$9,933,894
Tornado	Relatively Moderate	$6,743,865
Heat wave	Relatively Moderate	$2,432,623
Ice storm	Very High	$2,081,099
Strong wind	Relatively High	$2,050,114
Cold wave	Relatively Low	$932,464
Hail	Relatively Low	$717,469
Lightning	Relatively Moderate	$537,104
Winter weather	Relatively Moderate	$132,002
Hurricane	Very Low	$115,556
Drought	Relatively Low	$78,775
Wildfire	Very Low	$63,441
Landslide	Very Low	$805

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 miles9

Tracks within 50 miles5

Hurricane strength within 50 miles0

Storm	Year	Closest approach	Max wind while within 100 mi
Laura	2020	42 mi	40 mph
Unnamed Atlantic storm	1941	97 mi	40 mph
Unnamed Atlantic storm	1923	71 mi	52 mph
Unnamed Atlantic storm	1915	42 mi	40 mph
Unnamed Atlantic storm	1909	38 mi	46 mph
Unnamed Atlantic storm	1905	46 mi	40 mph
Unnamed Atlantic storm	1891	77 mi	40 mph
Unnamed Atlantic storm	1879	47 mi	46 mph
Unnamed Atlantic storm	1865	82 mi	46 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

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 Lonoke County, AR?

NCEI records 275 hail events in Lonoke County since 1950, in 46 different years; that is about 3.6 recorded events a year. 57 reports were golf-ball size (1.75 in) or larger.

Has Lonoke County had a tornado?

Yes. NCEI records 89 tornadoes in Lonoke County since 1950, 28 of them rated (E)F2 or stronger. Tornado deaths recorded: 18.

When was the last federal disaster declaration for Lonoke County?

24 Jan 2026: Severe Winter Storm, a emergency declaration for winter storm. The county appears in 29 declarations since 1953.

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

89 NFIP claims since 1978, 68 of them paid, for $1.3M in total. FEMA publishes these figures redacted and aggregated; individual properties are not identified.

Is Lonoke 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, "Relatively Low" for expected annual loss, "Very Low" for social vulnerability and "Relatively Low" for community resilience. These ratings are FEMA's relative comparison across all US counties.

How does Lonoke County compare with the rest of Arkansas?

126.5 recorded events per 100 square miles against 94.2 statewide, and 1.2 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 1 Oct 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 1 Oct 2026; see the methodology and corrections pages. Hazard hubs: Hail · Tornado · Flood · Wind · Winter.