States › Arkansas › Stone County

Stone 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 05137 · 12,481 residents (2021) · 606 sq mi · dominant hazard Wind

Hail · 83Tornado · 24Flood · 43Wind · 121Winter · 81

Stone 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.

Between 1950 and 2026, NCEI recorded 400 storm events in Stone County, Arkansas, led by damaging wind.

That is 66.0 events per 100 square miles, below the Arkansas figure of 94.2, and 320.5 per 10,000 residents against 161.8 statewide.

2 events fall in the 12 months to 30 Jun 2026. NCEI attributes 7 deaths and 18 injuries to events in the county, with property damage estimated at $101M and crop damage at $380K.

FEMA has designated the county in 30 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 8 claims since 1978, of which 4 were paid, totalling $197K (about $49K per paid claim). FEMA counts 4 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" ($10M a year across 18 hazards).

6 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.

2events, last 12 monthsto 30 Jun 2026

400events since 19507 deaths, 18 injuries recorded

30disaster declarationslast 24 Jan 2026

8NFIP flood claims$197K paid

Compared with Arkansas and the United States

Measure	Stone County	Arkansas	US
Recorded events since 1950	400	48,966	1,977,440
Events per 100 square miles	66.0	94.2	56.0
Events per 10,000 residents	320.5	161.8	59.6
Events in the last 12 months	2	1,151	62,008
Deaths recorded by NCEI	7	668	26,435
Property damage (NCEI estimates)	$101M	$6.4B	$575B
NFIP claims per 1,000 residents	0.6	3.4	8.1
Average paid NFIP claim	$49K	$27K	$43K
Claims per 100 policies in force, last 10 years	0.0	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

Tornado: 1

Hail: 1Wind: 1

Hail: 3Tornado: 5Wind: 1

Hail: 5Tornado: 3Wind: 6

Hail: 26Tornado: 4Flood: 3Wind: 39Winter: 5Other: 1

Hail: 32Tornado: 6Flood: 20Wind: 36Winter: 20Tropical: 2Heat: 1Cold: 3Drought: 1Wildfire: 1Lightning: 1

Hail: 10Tornado: 2Flood: 15Wind: 29Winter: 38Tropical: 2Heat: 7Cold: 2Drought: 16Wildfire: 1Other: 4

Hail: 6Tornado: 3Flood: 5Wind: 9Winter: 18Other: 6

11950s21960s91970s141980s781990s1232000s1262010s472020s

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

Trend: 224 events in the 20 years to 2025 against 155 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

Wind121

Hail83

Winter81

Flood43

Tornado24

Drought17

Other11

Heat8

Cold5

Tropical4

Wildfire2

Lightning1

Hazard	Events	Deaths	Share of state's events
■ Wind	121	—	0.7%	detail
■ Hail	83	—	0.7%	detail
■ Winter	81	—	1.7%	detail
■ Flood	43	1	0.8%	detail
■ Tornado	24	6	0.9%	detail
■ Drought	17	—	0.9%
■ Other	11	—	1.6%
■ Heat	8	—	0.3%
■ Cold	5	—	1.1%
■ Tropical	4	—	1.5%
■ Wildfire	2	—	1.1%
■ Lightning	1	—	0.3%

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
14 Apr 1996	Tornado	Tornado	F4	$2.5M	—	5	5	County
5 Feb 2008	Tornado	Tornado	EF4	$29M	—	1	7	County
18 Mar 2008	Flash Flood	Flood	—	$2.0M	—	1	—	County
26 Jan 2009	Ice Storm	Winter	—	$50M	—	—	—	Forecast zone
15 Nov 1988	Tornado	Tornado	F2	$250K	—	—	4	County
3 Apr 1999	Tornado	Tornado	F0	—	—	—	2	County
18 Mar 2008	Flood	Flood	—	$6.0M	$20K	—	—	County
2 Dec 1982	Tornado	Tornado	F3	$2.5M	—	—	—	County
1 May 2011	Flood	Flood	—	$1.0M	$250K	—	—	County
25 Dec 2012	Winter Storm	Winter	—	$1.0M	—	—	—	Forecast zone
13 Sep 2008	Tropical Storm	Tropical	—	$750K	—	—	—	Forecast zone
31 May 2013	Flash Flood	Flood	—	$600K	—	—	—	County
3 May 1993	Thunderstorm Wind	Wind	0 mph	$500K	—	—	—	County
30 Aug 2012	Tropical Depression	Tropical	—	$500K	—	—	—	Forecast zone
26 Apr 2011	Flood	Flood	—	$400K	—	—	—	County
4 Dec 2002	Winter Storm	Winter	—	$360K	—	—	—	Forecast zone
14 Mar 1953	Tornado	Tornado	F2	$250K	—	—	—	County
14 May 1974	Tornado	Tornado	F1	$250K	—	—	—	County
12 May 1978	Tornado	Tornado	F2	$250K	—	—	—	County
11 Apr 1979	Tornado	Tornado	F1	$250K	—	—	—	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
8 May 2025	DR-4865	Major disaster	Severe Storm	Severe Storms And Tornadoes	Individual assistance
5 Apr 2025	EM-3627	Emergency	Severe Storm	Severe Storms, Tornadoes, And Flooding	Public assistance
4 Apr 2023	DR-4700	Major disaster	Winter Storm	Severe Winter Storm	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
5 Feb 2016	DR-4254	Major disaster	Severe Storm	Severe Storms, Tornadoes, Straight-Line Winds, And Flooding	Public assistance
25 Jun 2013	DR-4124	Major disaster	Severe Storm	Severe Storms, Tornadoes, And Flooding	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
16 Jun 2009	DR-1845	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
7 Feb 2008	DR-1744	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
7 May 2004	DR-1516	Major disaster	Severe Storm	Sever Storms, Flooding And Landslides	Public assistance
6 Jan 2003	DR-1450	Major disaster	Severe Ice Storm	Severe Ice Storm	Public assistance
24 Jan 2002	DR-1400	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
14 Apr 1997	DR-1176	Major disaster	Flood	Flooding, Severe Storms	Public assistance
30 May 1991	DR-907	Major disaster	Flood	Severe Storms & Flooding	Public assistance
15 May 1990	DR-865	Major disaster	Flood	Severe Storms & Flooding	Individual assistance, Public assistance
23 Nov 1988	DR-817	Major disaster	Tornado	Severe Storms & Tornadoes	Individual assistance
13 Dec 1982	DR-673	Major disaster	Severe Storm	Severe Storms, Tornadoes & 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
15 Feb 1969	DR-254	Major disaster	Flood	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 Stone County, 1978 to 2026 (hover for the amount paid).

Claims since 19788

Paid claims4

Total paid$197K

Average paid claim$49K

Repetitive-loss properties0

Residential policies in force40.1% of 7,545 structures

Year of loss	Claims	Paid claims	Amount paid	Average paid
2015	1	1	$100,000	$100,000
2008	5	2	$95,023	$47,512
1985	2	1	$1,661	$1,661

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 49.9 of 100

Expected annual loss$10MVery Low

Social vulnerabilityVery High

Community resilienceVery Low

Hazard (NRI)	Risk rating	Expected annual loss
Inland flooding	Relatively Low	$3,873,831
Ice storm	Very High	$2,297,607
Tornado	Relatively Moderate	$1,975,451
Earthquake	Relatively Low	$627,777
Cold wave	Relatively Low	$525,293
Strong wind	Relatively Low	$285,854
Heat wave	Relatively Low	$281,249
Lightning	Relatively Low	$157,304
Wildfire	Relatively Low	$96,563
Hail	Very Low	$49,600
Winter weather	Relatively Low	$48,421
Drought	Relatively Low	$18,888
Hurricane	Very Low	$17,411
Landslide	Relatively Low	$7,742

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 miles6

Tracks within 50 miles2

Hurricane strength within 50 miles0

Storm	Year	Closest approach	Max wind while within 100 mi
Ike	2008	91 mi	40 mph
Carla	1961	88 mi	40 mph
Unnamed Atlantic storm	1941	59 mi	40 mph
Unnamed Atlantic storm	1923	43 mi	52 mph
Unnamed Atlantic storm	1915	48 mi	40 mph
Unnamed Atlantic storm	1909	76 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.

Questions and answers

How often does it hail in Stone County, AR?

NCEI records 83 hail events in Stone County since 1950, in 29 different years; that is about 1.1 recorded events a year. 18 reports were golf-ball size (1.75 in) or larger.

Has Stone County had a tornado?

Yes. NCEI records 24 tornadoes in Stone County since 1950, 8 of them rated (E)F2 or stronger. Tornado deaths recorded: 6.

When was the last federal disaster declaration for Stone County?

24 Jan 2026: Severe Winter Storm, a emergency declaration for winter storm. The county appears in 30 declarations since 1953.

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

8 NFIP claims since 1978, 4 of them paid, for $197K in total. FEMA publishes these figures redacted and aggregated; individual properties are not identified.

Is Stone 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 Stone County compare with the rest of Arkansas?

66.0 recorded events per 100 square miles against 94.2 statewide, and 0.6 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.