Tornado Outbreak of May 15, 1968

A series of tornadoes that struck Arkansas on May 15, 1968, killed forty-five people in four Arkansas counties, with Jonesboro (Craighead County) suffering especially severe damage and the majority of the deaths.

The tornado that hit Jonesboro touched down at Valley View (Craighead County) and traveled northeast, slamming into the city just before 10:00 p.m. and “scattering homes like dominoes.” The twister also hit Nettleton (Craighead County), where the “shopping district…was heavily damaged” and the elementary school was destroyed. In all, thirty-four people were killed and 450 were injured in Jonesboro. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration data indicated that the tornado was an E4, with winds between 207 and 260 miles per hour.

A twister also “virtually destroyed” Oil Trough (Independence County), where seven people were killed and fifty injured. Around sixty people were sheltering in a Church of Christ there and were hiding under pews when the storm hit; only one person was injured in the building. The wounded from the Oil Trough tornado were transported to hospitals in Batesville (Independence County) and Newport (Jackson County). Another person was killed at Tuckerman (Jackson County), and at least nine people were injured there.

Baxter County was also hard hit, with two people killed at a fishing lodge near Mountain Home (Baxter County) and one near Gamaliel (Baxter County).

Downtown Manila (Mississippi County) was destroyed, though no deaths or injuries were reported. Tornadoes were also reported at Marion (Crittenden County) and Black Oak (Craighead County). The same storm system tore through nine states, killing at least fourteen people in Iowa, ten in Illinois, and one each in Missouri and Indiana.

In the end, thirty-five counties were included in a federal disaster area declaration that also addressed widespread flooding across Arkansas. The Baxter Bulletin estimated damages as totaling $2.5 million in Baxter County, while other sources predicted overall damages ranging from $3.5 million to $8 million. Red Cross assessments reported that in Jonesboro 130 homes were destroyed, eighty-two sustained major damage, and 131 received minor damage. Inmates from Cummins Prison Farm were sent to Jonesboro to assist in clearing storm damage.

The Jonesboro tornado may have had one future benefit: a journalist reporting on a May 26–27, 1973, tornado that hit the city surmised that only three people were killed in that disaster because more people sought shelter when tornado warnings went off, having learned from the devastating 1968 storm.

For additional information:
“$2.5 Million Storm Damage in County.” Baxter Bulletin, May 23, 1968, p.1.

“35 Counties Declared in Disaster Area.” Hope Star, May 30, 1968, p. 1.

“450 Injured in Jonesboro Storm.” Northwest Arkansas Times, May 22, 1968, p. 10.

“Arkansas Tornado Damage Estimated at $3.5 Million,” Northwest Arkansas Times, May 18, 1963, p. 1.

“Damage Estimate.” Northwest Arkansas Times, May 20, 1968, p. 6.

“A History of Twisters: Tornadoes in Arkansas since 1950.” Southwest Times Record. https://data.swtimes.com/tornado-archive/ (accessed May 8, 2024).

“Jonesboro Begins Tremendous Cleanup Job.” Northwest Arkansas Times, May 17, 1968, p. 1.

“State Briefs.” [Helena] Daily World, May 21, 1968, p. 2.

“Tornadoes Cut Deadly Swath.” El Dorado Times, May 16, 1968, p. 1.

Mark K. Christ
Central Arkansas Library System