Lake City, Arkansas

Lake City, Arkansas
City
Craighead County Courthouse, Eastern District in Lake City
Location of Lake City in Craighead County, Arkansas.
Coordinates: 35°49′13″N 90°27′17″W
Country	United States
State	Arkansas
County	Craighead
Area
• Total	3.18 sq mi (8.24 km2)
• Land	3.15 sq mi (8.17 km2)
• Water	0.03 sq mi (0.08 km2)
Elevation	233 ft (71 m)
Population  (2020)
• Total	2,326
• Density	737.71/sq mi (284.83/km2)
Time zone	UTC−06:00 (Central (CST))
• Summer (DST)	UTC−05:00 (CDT)
ZIP Code	72437
Area code	870
FIPS code	05-37780
GNIS feature ID	2404860
Website	http://lakecityar.com/

Lake City is a city in Craighead County, Arkansas, United States, along the St. Francis River. Lake City is one of two county seats in Craighead County. The population was 2,326 as of the 2020 census. It is included in the Jonesboro, Arkansas Metropolitan Statistical Area.

History

On April 2, 2025, a large multiple-vortex wedge tornado hit the western portions of the town, causing severe damage to homes. This area had previously experienced an EF-4 tornado which hit the city back on December 10, 2021.

Geography

Lake City is located in eastern Craighead County at 35°49′4″N 90°26′24″W (35.817866, -90.439927), along the west bank of the St. Francis River. It is 16 miles (26 km) east of downtown Jonesboro.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 3.1 square miles (7.9 km²), of which 3.0 square miles (7.8 km²) is land and 0.04 square miles (0.1 km²), or 1.35%, is water.

List of highways

• U.S. Highway 78
• Highway 18
• Highway 135
• Highway 158

Notable facts and former residents

The St. Francis River Bridge in Lake City is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

The St. Francis River Bridge located in Lake City is the only lift bridge in the world that has been raised only once since its construction. To construct a four-lane highway, a new bridge was constructed in 2002 and the lift bridge was moved to a location just south of the new bridge where it remains as a landmark.

Bart Barber, 64th President of the Southern Baptist Convention, was born and raised in Lake City.

Gavin Stone, professional baseball pitcher for the Los Angeles Dodgers of Major League Baseball (MLB/2023-), was born and attended Riverside High School in Lake City.

Demographics

Historical population

Census	Pop.	Note	%±
1900	434		—
1910	448		3.2%
1920	635		41.7%
1930	760		19.7%
1940	786		3.4%
1950	783		−0.4%
1960	850		8.6%
1970	948		11.5%
1980	1,842		94.3%
1990	1,833		−0.5%
2000	1,956		6.7%
2010	2,082		6.4%
2020	2,326		11.7%
U.S. Decennial Census

2020 census

Lake City racial composition

Race	Number	Percentage
White (non-Hispanic)	2,112	90.8%
Black or African American (non-Hispanic)	42	1.81%
Native American	13	0.56%
Asian	5	0.21%
Pacific Islander	1	0.04%
Other/Mixed	92	3.96%
Hispanic or Latino	61	2.62%

As of the 2020 United States census, there were 2,326 people, 936 households, and 651 families residing in the city.

2000 census

As of the census of 2000, there were 1,956 people, 731 households, and 546 families residing in the town. The population density was 881.9 inhabitants per square mile (340.5/km²). There were 776 housing units at an average density of 349.9 per square mile (135.1/km²). The racial makeup of the town was 98.67% White, 0.05% Black or African American, 0.36% Native American, 0.05% Asian, 0.26% from other races, and 0.61% from two or more races. 1.02% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.

There were 731 households, out of which 37.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 55.8% were married couples living together, 15.2% had a female householder with no husband present, and 25.3% were non-families. 23.0% of all households were made up of individuals, and 12.3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.57 and the average family size was 3.00.

In the town, the population was spread out, with 27.0% under the age of 18, 8.4% from 18 to 24, 27.8% from 25 to 44, 20.7% from 45 to 64, and 16.1% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 35 years. For every 100 females, there were 94.4 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 84.4 males.

The median income for a household in the town was $30,844, and the median income for a family was $33,477. Males had a median income of $27,798 versus $19,205 for females. The per capita income for the town was $14,126. About 11.4% of families and 14.6% of the population were below the poverty line, including 21.1% of those under age 18 and 9.1% of those age 65 or over.

Education

Lake City is part of the Riverside School District, formed as a result of consolidation with the Lake City School District with that of nearby Caraway on July 1, 1985. The Riverside High School mascot and athletic teams are known as "the Rebels". There are two elementary schools associated with the school: one is located in Lake City and the other in Caraway.

2025 Lake City Tornado

On April 2, 2025, Lake City was directly impacted by an EF-3 tornado, with winds up to 150 mph. This tornado was apart of a severe weather outbreak, which also caused many other tornados in the surrounding area.

Local authorities reported at least two dozen homes were significantly damaged in Monette and Lake City, with seven people receiving treatment for injuries.

Meteorological synopsis

Forecasts for April 1

[edit] April 1 was denoted as having "potential too low" by the Storm Prediction Center on March 28, being explicitly described as "relative down day in terms of severe potential" while an upper-level system would be organizing for the next day. However, on March 29, a 15% risk for severe weather was outlined over a small area of Nebraska, Iowa, Kansas, and Missouri, as the ECMWF model began showing a much stronger cyclone developing over the High Plains, resulting in the warm sector expanding further north and harboring higher atmospheric instability than the GFS model. The risk was introduced for the threat of isolated instances of hail with stronger storms that develop.

On March 30, a larger risk area was outlined, including a larger portion of Iowa, northern Missouri, and western Illinois, as the threat of multiple instances of cyclogenesis fueling a threat for elevated convection, specifically producing large hail, would be present over a large warm front through the overnight hours. The mid-day update expanded the slight risk into much of Oklahoma and parts of Texas and Arkansas due to a conditional severe threat through the overnight hours.

The day before the event, multiple models had still been in disagreement over the extent of moisture over the Plains, but ensemble runs came to the solution that widespread dew points from the upper 50s to lower 60 degrees Fahrenheit were likely across the area; cooling in the middle levels of the atmosphere would lead to destabilization of the atmosphere, and strong mid-level lapse rates and forecasted hodographs were expected to focus on a primary risk for hail over Kansas and Nebraska, as well as from overnight elevated convection. Further south, a 5% risk for tornadoes was introduced over parts of Kansas, Missouri, and Oklahoma, as well as small parts of Arkansas and Texas, due to the conditional threat of supercell development before sunset potentially curtailed by cloud cover and a strong capping inversion. As confidence increased in the presence of storms over east central Kansas, an Enhanced (3/5) risk was introduced in that day's mid-day outlook.

Forecasts for April 2

[edit] Starting on March 28, 2025, the Storm Prediction Center began monitoring the risk of a severe weather event on April 2. Following a lack of expected severe potential the previous day, strong moisture return and the development of an upper-level system was discussed, with a 15% risk for severe weather being outlined over much of the middle Mississippi and Ohio Valleys. The next day, as forecast models came into greater agreement about the mode and timing of the system, a 30% risk was introduced over parts of Arkansas, Missouri, Mississippi, Tennessee, Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio, with forecasters describing that confidence existed for "a widespread, potentially substantial severe event". On March 30, the forecast was expanded to include parts of Texas, Louisiana, and Michigan in the risk area, as forecasted shear would support a primarily supercell-focused storm mode.

Three days out from the event, on the morning of March 31, an enhanced (3/5) risk was outlined over an area overlapping the previous 30% zone, now also including small parts of Oklahoma, Iowa, and Alabama, while now covering the majority of Kentucky, Illinois, Arkansas, and Indiana. The system, now described as a negatively-tilted trough, was expected to produce a widespread outbreak of severe weather over the region. A large warm sector over the Great Lakes region, a powerful jet streak of 100 kn (120 mph; 190 km/h), and an intense cold front, were all expected to contribute to the event, with the forecast outlining the risk for significant tornadoes, strong wind, and large hail. A higher risk category for the forecast was discussed over the middle Mississippi Valley, fueled by the threat of "multiple long-lived significant supercells", but was ultimately decided against due to a lack of confidence in how the storm system would develop throughout the day.

An outlook on April 1 introduced a moderate (4/5) risk over small parts of Mississippi, Arkansas, Tennessee, Missouri, Kentucky, Illinois, and Indiana, driven by the threat of "significant to intense tornadoes", as outlined in updated model guidance. Due to significantly less uncertainty regarding the development of the storms, the Storm Prediction Center issued a high risk (5/5) convective outlook over southern Illinois, eastern Missouri, western Kentucky and Tennessee, eastern Arkansas, and extreme northwest Mississippi for "multiple EF3+ tornadoes".

April 2

[edit] A mid-level trough was positioned over the central United States and will move northeastward, while at the surface, a strong surface cyclone will move through the upper Mississippi Valley, accompanied by a jet streak ejection of 120 knots (140 mph; 220 km/h), while a cold front moves through much of the region. A moist airmass will move into the Ozarks and middle Mississippi Valley region, which was expected to rapidly destabilize throughout the day while convection along the cold front remains ongoing. MLCAPE, a measure of atmospheric instability, was forecast to reach 2500–3500 J/kg in the middle Mississippi Valley, while a rapid ejection of the mid-level jet will bring strong ascent into the warm sector, which will be conducive to intense storm development. The initiation of discrete storms was initially expected to occur east of the cold front inside of an unstable airmass, a region expected to, around 4 to 7 p.m. CDT, harbor around 400m²s² of storm-relative helicity in the first 3 kilometers of the atmosphere, alongside deep-layer shear of 60 knots. These conditions will be conducive to the development of discrete tornadic supercells, the strongest of which were expected to be capable of producing intense (EF3–EF5) tornadoes. Multiple intense tornadoes were forecasted throughout the evening. More supercells, potentially producing tornadoes, were outlined as a risk in the southern Ozarks and lower Ohio River valley.

More supercells, focused on the threat of strong winds exceeding 70 mph (110 km/h) and large hail exceeding 2 in (5.1 cm) were expected to develop in the region extending from Texas through the Great Lakes region, which were expected to develop bowing line segments producing further severe wind gusts as storms develop. Atmospheric recovery across the Red River valley in Texas may support further supercells producing large hail after the main event concludes in the region.

Development of storms

[edit] Linear convection from the previous day persisted after midnight, with embedded supercells within the line posing a threat for tornadic activity due to the strongly sheared and destabilizing atmosphere over parts of Kansas and Missouri. At 2 a.m., a surface-based cold front was still present, positioned from central Kansas towards Texas' southern plains, moving southeast. As moisture entered central Oklahoma, fueled by a strong southwesterly jet and steep mid-level lapse rates, the capped environment would erode, which would create an environment conducive towards surface convection, including supercells capable of producing large hail and tornadoes. Later on, at 4:30 a.m., as the line had migrated further east ahead of the cold front, forecasters noted that the potential for embedded supercells capable of wind, hail, and tornadoes, was increasing over much of Missouri and bordering regions of Kansas, Arkansas, and Oklahoma. Shortly before 7 a.m., storms had been moving across Oklahoma, with a storm in the northeastern part of the state attaining a super cellular structure, producing a brief tornadic debris signature in the vicinity of Tulsa and Rogers counties. The line of storms moved parallel to the cold front into a region with an atmospheric capping inversion, which reduced the threat of further organization. Over central Missouri, a "somewhat messy storm mode" near the cold front moved towards an area marked by a relatively stable and capped atmosphere, which reduced the risk of severe hazards by 7:17 a.m.

Elevated storms had developed over parts of Ohio and Illinois, which produced a minor threat for hail and damaging winds throughout the later morning hours Further south, in northeastern Texas and surrounding areas, storms had begun forming on a pre-frontal confluence in an area with a minor capping inversion and moderate instability levels around 2500j/kg. As these storms developed, the hazard of hail and strong tornadoes was noted by forecasters, despite the uncertainty of timing and ability to overcome the cap.