Arkansas hail
Every recorded hail report since 1955 · 75 counties with a record
NOAA's Storm Events Database records 12,515 hail reports in Arkansas from 1955 through June 30, 2026, about 287 a year since 2000. The costliest was the March 31, 2008 hail ($117 million in 2025 dollars). Arkansas ranks 10th of 52 states and territories by count and 6th of 51 per square mile.
Hail in Arkansas, 1955 to 2026
Hail records per year (NOAA Storm Events); 2026 to June 30, 2026. NOAA recorded every event type only from 1996.
- recorded, no damage figure
- under $1 million
- $1 million or more
- $10 million or more
- $100 million or more, or 10 deaths
- $1 billion or more, or 100 deaths
- a year's colour: its recorded damage or deaths
- a year with a death
- 1996: all 48 event types recorded from 1996
- Records
- 12,5151955 to June 30, 2026
- A year since 2000
- 287average
- Deaths
- 052 injuries
- Damage, 2025 dollars
- $355Mas filed
- Busiest year
- 2011603 records
Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, records through June 30, 2026; deaths and damage as filed, damage in 2025 dollars. Search the record at NCEI.
Are hail reports common in Arkansas?
Arkansas averages about 287 hail reports a year since 2000, 10th of 52 states and territories by count. The busiest year on record was 2011 (603). Per 10,000 square miles of land, Arkansas records 2407 hail reports since 1955, 6th of 51 states and territories by that measure.
Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, records since 1955, per 10,000 square miles of land area (Census Bureau 2024 Gazetteer; places under 1,000 square miles not ranked). Damage colours: Storm Events damage, 2025 dollars.
Which counties in Arkansas have the most hail reports?
Per square mile, Sebastian County leads Arkansas: 219 days with a hail report since 1955, 412.3 per 1,000 square miles of land. By raw count, Pulaski County has the most hail records (688 since 1955); large counties collect more records simply by covering more ground, so the ranking counts days with a record per unit of area (a storm filed for several forecast zones adds several records but one day).
Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, days with a record in the county since 1955 per 1,000 square miles of land (Census Bureau 2024 Gazetteer); in brackets, the count of records.
When is hail season in Arkansas?
47% of its hail reports since 1955 fell in April and May. The busiest month is April (3,503 records).
The values, month by month
Jan 424 · Feb 527 · Mar 1,947 · Apr 3,503 · May 2,439 · Jun 1,253 · Jul 692 · Aug 495 · Sep 215 · Oct 428 · Nov 374 · Dec 218 (records).
Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, records by the month they began, since 1955.
The costliest hail reports in Arkansas
| Date | Record | Character | Killed | Injured | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2008-03-31 | HailTexarkana Airport, Miller County | 4.00 in hail | 0 | 0 | $117M |
| 2009-06-30 | HailOak Grove, Pulaski County One storm episode: 5 records in 2 places; the totals are the episode's. | 2.75 in hail | 0 | 0 | $100M |
| 2003-07-13 | HailFayetteville, Washington County | 2.75 in hail | 0 | 0 | $80M |
| 1996-04-22 | HailFayetteville, Washington County | 1.75 in hail | 0 | 0 | $17M |
| 2002-04-30 | HailLepanto, Poinsett County | 1.75 in hail | 0 | 0 | $4.9M |
| 2006-03-12 | HailDecatur, Benton County | 4.00 in hail | 0 | 0 | $3.7M |
| 1999-03-05 | HailAlma, Crawford County One storm episode: 3 records in 2 places; the totals are the episode's. | 4.50 in hail | 0 | 1 | $2.5M |
| 2008-02-05 | HailWhite, Ashley County One storm episode: 2 records in 2 places; the totals are the episode's. | 2.75 in hail | 0 | 0 | $2.2M |
Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database: property and crop damage as estimated by the National Weather Service, in 2025 dollars.
Are hail reports becoming more frequent in Arkansas?
Arkansas's count per decade against the whole country's, and its share. NOAA recorded every event type only from 1996, so earlier decades are not comparable; the share of the national total is the fairer comparison across decades.
| Decade | Arkansas | United States | Arkansas's share |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1955-59 | 65 | 2,477 | 2.6% |
| 1960s | 183 | 7,651 | 2.4% |
| 1970s | 345 | 11,007 | 3.1% |
| 1980s | 988 | 26,555 | 3.7% |
| 1990s | 3,328 | 75,581 | 4.4% |
| 2000s | 3,756 | 137,396 | 2.7% |
| 2010s | 2,364 | 107,281 | 2.2% |
| 2020-26 | 1,486 | 56,491 | 2.6% |
Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database.
The most recent hail reports in Arkansas
| Date | Record | Character | Killed | Injured | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026-06-13 | HailCord, Independence County | 2.00 in hail | 0 | 0 | – |
| 2026-06-13 | HailCord, Independence County | 2.50 in hail | 0 | 0 | – |
| 2026-06-13 | HailMelbourne, Izard County | 1.00 in hail | 0 | 0 | – |
| 2026-06-13 | HailMaysville, Benton County | 1.00 in hail | 0 | 0 | – |
| 2026-06-11 | HailBella Vista, Benton County | 1.25 in hail | 0 | 0 | $50K |
| 2026-06-01 | HailFisher, Craighead County | 1.00 in hail | 0 | 0 | – |
| 2026-06-01 | HailArgo, Van Buren County | 1.00 in hail | 0 | 0 | – |
| 2026-06-01 | HailBatesville, Independence County | 1.25 in hail | 0 | 0 | – |
| 2026-05-31 | HailSearcy, White County | 1.00 in hail | 0 | 0 | – |
| 2026-05-31 | HailScott, Pulaski County | 1.00 in hail | 0 | 0 | – |
| 2026-05-08 | HailCentral City, Sebastian County | 0.88 in hail | 0 | 0 | – |
| 2026-05-08 | HailBarling, Sebastian County | 1.00 in hail | 0 | 0 | – |
Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, records through June 30, 2026; the newest months are revised by NCEI as reports arrive. Search the record at NCEI.
Federal disaster declarations for hail reports in Arkansas
FEMA files hail and wind disasters under the incident type Severe Storm: 33 declarations in Arkansas, 32 of them major disasters; the latest on May 8, 2025.
| Declared | Number | Title | Areas named |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025-05-08 | DR-4865 | Severe Storms and Tornadoes | 9 |
| 2025-04-05 | EM-3627 | Severe Storms, Tornadoes, and Flooding | 75 |
| 2024-05-30 | DR-4788 | Severe Storms, Straight-Line Winds, Tornadoes, and Flooding | 11 |
| 2023-11-14 | DR-4748 | Severe Storms, Straight-Line Winds, and Tornadoes | 4 |
| 2023-04-02 | DR-4698 | Severe Storms and Tornadoes | 3 |
| 2017-06-15 | DR-4318 | Severe Storms, Tornadoes, Straight-Line Winds, and Flooding | 32 |
| 2016-05-06 | DR-4270 | Severe Storms, Tornadoes, Straight-Line Winds, and Flooding | 12 |
| 2016-02-05 | DR-4254 | Severe Storms, Tornadoes, Straight-Line Winds, and Flooding | 38 |
| 2015-06-26 | DR-4226 | Severe Storms, Tornadoes, Straight-Line Winds, and Flooding | 29 |
| 2014-04-29 | DR-4174 | Severe Storms,Tornadoes, and Flooding | 12 |
| 2013-09-04 | DR-4143 | Severe Storms and Flooding | 6 |
| 2013-06-25 | DR-4124 | Severe Storms, Tornadoes, and Flooding | 11 |
Source: FEMA OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations Summaries (v2), through October 2, 2026. OpenFEMA dataset page.
Next
- Sebastian County: the county's whole recordThe Arkansas county with the most hail reports per square mile
- Hail across the United StatesEvery state ranked, by year and month
- Every natural hazard in ArkansasTornadoes, floods, storms, heat and the federal declarations
- Severe thunderstorm wind in Arkansas16,540 records
- Floods in Arkansas5,685 records
- Winter storms in Arkansas4,674 records