Tornado outbreak of April 2–3, 1982
|duration= parameter from the infobox header or from another 'History' box instead.Overview of the outbreak | |
| Tornado outbreak | |
|---|---|
| Tornadoes | 62 |
| Maximum rating | F5 tornado |
| Duration | April 2–3, 1982 |
| Highest winds | 78 kn (90 mph; 144 km/h) |
| Largest hail | 3 in (7.6 cm) |
| Overall effects | |
| Fatalities | 30 |
| Injuries | 415 |
| Damage | $176,811,500 ($589,880,000 in 2025 USD) |
| Areas affected | Midwestern and Southern United States (primarily Ark-La-Tex region: Red River Valley, Piney Woods) |
Part of the tornadoes and tornado outbreaks of 1982 | |
From April 2–3, 1982, a major tornado outbreak resulted in over 60 tornadoes and 30 fatalities, primarily over portions of Northeast Texas and Southwest Arkansas, as well as Southeastern Oklahoma. Three of the tornadoes were rated F4, and one officially was recorded as an F5 near Broken Bow, Oklahoma, all on April 2. Beginning on April 2, a series of tornado-producing supercells formed across portions of northeastern Texas and southeastern Oklahoma. One produced an F5 tornado, the first since April 4, 1977, which crossed mostly rural areas near Speer and Broken Bow, and deposited a motel sign from Broken Bow 30 miles (48 km) away in Arkansas. However, reanalysis a decade later found the rating to be lower, owing to unsound construction practices. The F5 tornado resulted in no fatalities, but an F4 tornado in Paris, Texas, resulted in 10 fatalities and 170 injuries. Additionally, the Storm Prediction Center, known then as the Severe Local Storms Unit, issued its first officially documented high risk on April 2, as well as the first tornado watch to contain the wording Particularly Dangerous Situation (PDS).