Desha County, Arkansas

What hazards hit Desha County most?

The most frequent records are severe thunderstorm wind events: 124 since 1956. The rank column places the county among Arkansas's counties by days with a record per 1,000 square miles of land over each hazard's complete period.

Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database (county and forecast-zone records attributed to the county; a zone record shows its own totals on each county it covers). Days: dates with at least one record of the hazard in the county. Ranks: days with a record per 1,000 square miles of land (Census Bureau 2024 Gazetteer), since 1950 for tornadoes, 1955 for hail and thunderstorm wind, 1996 for the rest.

How many tornadoes has Desha County had?

NOAA records 26 tornadoes in Desha County from 1953 to 2023, the strongest rated EF3, with 0 deaths and 33 injuries recorded in the county. A tornado that crossed a county line is counted in each county it touched, with the length of its path inside the county.

Counted as whole tornadoes rather than county records, the Storm Prediction Center's database holds 27 tornadoes whose track touched Desha County since 1950 (NOAA's county records number 26: they file a crossing tornado once per county segment, and the two databases differ on some tracks); along their whole tracks they killed 0 people.

Map of the strongest tornado tracks in Arkansas.

Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, tornado records by county (path length in the county, maximum width); ratings as published: F scale before February 1, 2007, EF scale after. Whole-track figures: NOAA Storm Prediction Center tornado database (1950-2025). SPC severe weather database.

When was the last damaging storm in Desha County?

The most recent record with damage, injuries or deaths is the January 2, 2023 tornado ($4,843 in damage in 2025 dollars).

This tornado crossed the Chicot/Desha County line around 744 PM CST, and did sparse damage along Arkansas Highway 35, knocking over a few telephone poles along the road, More conclusive evidence was noted in the cotton fields alongside the road, where swaths of convergent flow and damaged cotton were observed for around a half mile, between the county line and the town of Halley, with the tornado dissipating just before reaching Halley. This track is a continuation of a tornado that was ongoing, originating in Ashley County and moving through Chicot County. Peak wind speed was 80 mph.
National Weather Service event narrative, NOAA Storm Events Database (search the full record, event 1069158)

Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database; every record of 2025-2026 is listed, earlier ones when they caused deaths, injuries or $250,000 of damage (2025 dollars), and every tornado.

The deadliest and costliest records

A damage figure marked "step" is a record from before 1993: NOAA then filed damage by category, and the figure is the category as entered, in the dollars of that year, not an estimate of the loss.

Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database: deaths and injuries direct and indirect; damage is property plus crops as estimated by the National Weather Service, converted to 2025 dollars.

Is it getting more frequent?

Records per decade for Desha County's most frequent hazards. Counts rose everywhere after 1996, when NOAA began recording every event type, so compare decades within a hazard's complete period only (the shaded cells come before it).

Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, records per calendar decade; zone records from the CZ_TYPE field (Z).

What time of year?

Records by month in Desha County. The two busiest months are in violet.

Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, records by the month they began.

Federal disaster declarations for Desha County

FEMA's register lists 21 declarations that include Desha County: 14 major disasters, 7 emergencies and 0 fire management assistance declarations. Most were for flood (6) and severe storm (5).

Source: FEMA OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations Summaries (v2), declarations through October 2, 2026; one declaration is counted once however many areas it names. OpenFEMA dataset page.

How many floods has Desha County had?

NOAA's Storm Events Database holds 49 flood or flash flood records for Desha County from 2000 to 2025, on 36 days, with 0 deaths. By flood insurance claims since 1978 (OpenFEMA, as of September 8, 2026), Desha County ranks 928th of 2,942 U.S. counties.

The National Flood Insurance Program has paid $3.6 million on 206 claims filed in Desha County; the most in one year was 31 in 1994. Claims count insured losses only: uninsured flood damage is not in this file.

Source: FEMA OpenFEMA NFIP Redacted Claims, as of September 8, 2026; claims by year of loss, payments in the dollars of the year paid. OpenFEMA dataset page.

FEMA's modeled risk for Desha County

FEMA's National Risk Index rates Desha County Very Low overall, with an expected annual loss of $6.5 million. These are FEMA's model estimates of future loss from 18 hazards, not a count of what happened; they can differ from the record above.

Source: FEMA National Risk Index, county table, December 2025 release. FEMA's National Risk Index map.

Counties that share a border with Desha County

1. Bolivar County, MS 682
2. Arkansas County 587
3. Chicot County 555
4. Drew County 480
5. Phillips County 409
6. Desha County 359
7. Lincoln County 336

Source: U.S. Census Bureau county adjacency file; NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, records since 1950. The Census Bureau's adjacency file.

Next

• Tornadoes in ArkansasEvery Arkansas tornado since 1950 and the counties with the most per square mile
• Severe thunderstorm wind in ArkansasThe state's severe thunderstorm wind events, by county, year and month
• The Arkansas recordEvery hazard in the state, its deadliest events and its federal declarations
• FEMA's risk rating for each hazard in Desha CountyThe hazard risk calculator: 18 hazards beside the county's record
• Download Desha County's FEMA declarations (CSV)21 rows: every declaration that named the county, for your own analysis