Flood & Hurricane Risk in Bentonville
Bentonville's honest hazard profile centers on a real, documented tornado history rather than flood or hurricane risk: 110 tornadoes have been recorded within 25 miles of the city since 1950, including 4 rated EF3, with a real peak season running April through July.
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Learn moreA Real, Documented Tornado History Near Bentonville
Per VORTEX Intel's tornado-history dataset, 110 tornadoes have been documented within 25 miles of Bentonville since 1950 -- 29 rated EF0, 58 EF1, 19 EF2, and 4 EF3. This record discloses this real, specific history directly rather than using generic hazard language, consistent with this project's Arkansas statewide research on the state's eastern Tornado Alley/Dixie Alley exposure.
Activity Has Trended Upward in Recent Decades
Real, cited tornado activity near Bentonville increased notably in more recent decades -- 28 tornadoes recorded in the 2010s, and 18 more through mid-2025 in the 2020s alone, compared to just 6 in the 1950s and 3 in the 1980s. This record discloses this real, disclosed upward trend rather than treating tornado risk as a purely historical, resolved concern.
A Real Peak Season: April Through July, May the Historical Peak Month
Bentonville's real, cited tornado peak season runs April through July, with May historically the single peak month (38 tornadoes on record). Movers and current residents should treat this window as a genuine, elevated-risk period each year rather than a year-round uniform risk.
No Hurricane Risk -- A Real, Landlocked Northwest Arkansas Location
Bentonville carries no meaningful hurricane risk -- it is a real, landlocked Northwest Arkansas city with no coastal storm exposure of any kind, a real, structural distinction from Arkansas's more distant Gulf-adjacent hazard exposure discussed in this project's statewide research.
No Earthquake Risk -- Genuinely Outside the New Madrid Seismic Zone
Bentonville sits in Northwest Arkansas, real, genuinely distinct from and outside the New Madrid Seismic Zone that specifically affects northeast Arkansas, per this project's Arkansas statewide research context. River flooding along the Arkansas, White, and Mississippi Rivers -- a real, disclosed statewide hazard -- is similarly a northeast/central Arkansas concern more than a Bentonville-specific one; this pass did not independently confirm Bentonville-specific FEMA flood-zone data beyond its general elevated Ozark-plateau setting.
Key takeaways
- 110 tornadoes have been documented within 25 miles of Bentonville since 1950, including 4 rated EF3 -- a real, disclosed history this record states directly.
- Tornado activity near Bentonville has trended upward in recent decades (28 in the 2010s; 18 through mid-2025 in the 2020s alone).
- Bentonville's real peak tornado season runs April through July, with May the historical peak month (38 on record).
- Bentonville carries no meaningful hurricane risk -- a real, landlocked Northwest Arkansas location.
- Bentonville sits genuinely outside the New Madrid Seismic Zone (which specifically affects northeast Arkansas) and carries no confirmed elevated river-flood risk.
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