A Day of Destruction: The West Memphis Tornado of 1987

36 years ago today, violent storm brought havoc to community

By Ralph Hardin

A Times Staff Feature

I turned 14 years old in August of 1987, so I was old enough to be paying attention to the news that the tornado that tore a hole in West Memphis had left a path of destruction in its wake.

I lived in Marion, though, and the distance between the two cities was greater back then, and thus I didn’t really have any friends or family caught in the eye of the storm on December the 14th. My grandmother lived on Balfour, but thankfully, that end of town was largely spared any significant damage.

That would actually be important to me and my family less than two weeks later, although I didn’t know it at the time, as a Christmas Eve flood famously hit the area and forced us from our home.

But the damage to the area that was in the path of the tornado was extensive and it was indiscriminate. I remember driving around with my Dad and seeing some of the damage. I particularly remember heading to Memphis on a shopping trip to the Mall of Memphis (or it might have been the Southland Mall — I just remember it taking forever) and on the way, along the Interstate, you could see all of the shredded buildings and debris, particularly on the south side of the highway.

But like I said, it didn’t really impact me directly. I know that’s not the story for many folks that lived around here back then. There were a halfdozen fatalities, and many, many homes and businesses destroyed. Many of them have shared those stories over the years of West Memphis’s worst disaster.

It was also West Memphis’s “finest hour.” At least that’s is how former mayor Keith Ingram remembered it when he spoke about the devastating 200 mph tornado back in 2017 on the 30th anniversary of the deadly storm.

Ingram, who would go on to served as a state representative and state senator in the years to come, was a 31-yearold rookie mayor in just his his 11th month in office when the tornado swept though town. Looking back, he was still impressed with the community response to the disaster in 1987. “People just wanted to help,” said Ingram. “You know it was a tough time but the community did a great job together.”

He said it was eerily hot, humid, and still that night and then the call came out of the dark a little before 9:30 p.m.

“It was pretty apparent pretty quick that there was a lot of damage,” said Ingram. “It did $40 million in damage.”

The tornado struck quickly and cut a wide swath.

“It was like a B-52 had crash landed,” said Ingram. “I’ll never forget seeing a 4wheeler up in a tree around

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File photos The tornado that tore through West Memphis 36 years ago today left a trail of destruction that resulted in millions of dollars in damage and affected throusands of residents.

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27th and Sula Lane.”

But the response was just as quick.

The mayors from Memphis and Jonesboro were quick on the scene and offered help.

“We had 50 police officers from Memphis helping on our streets,” said Ingram.

The city quickly filled up with out of town gawkers taking tours all through the night. The streets were jammed so bad emergency vehicles had trouble navigating the streets. There were amazingly no tornado related fires.

But search and rescue efforts were underway and six fatalities were reported before everyone was accounted for.

Looters were a concern and so with the help from Memphis police the city set a perimeter around the damaged areas.

Identification was required to go in and out for residents and the contractors that came along later doing repair work.

“I was so proud of our first responders,” said Ingram. “Everybody pulled together, some worked 36 hours in a row. We set up the disaster enter at the Eugene Woods Civic Center.”

Service agency showed their mettle and community agency was born out of the tornado disaster. One great memory I have is what a great service agency the Salvation Army is,” said Ingram. I’m still a fan today. Unlike the American Red Cross, they came in and just asked what they could do to help.”

The response brought the city together around the dinner table too.

“We had a big community luncheon, Tyson provided the chicken,” said Ingram. “It was very spiritual; very, very wonderful.”

The tornado spawned giving that continues to impact the city today.

“That’s how the Good Neighbor Love Center got started,” said Ingram.

“Overall we raised $300,000 to help those displaced from their homes,” said Ingram. “People lost all the food in their refrigerator and we helped replace it. Southland donated $100,000.

That’s how charity days got started.”

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Former West Memphis city Councilwoman Ramona Taylor recalled the scene at Crittenden Memorial Hospital in the aftermath of the tornado.

“I was in the emergency room and there were injuries,” said Taylor. “They said what they needed help with opening up a shelter. So I went over to the civic center and we opened it as a triage and shelter place.”

Former West Memphis Fire Chief Wayne Gately remembered the tornado. Thirty-six years ago, he was on duty as a driver at Fire Station No. 1 when the emergency calls began to roll in that night.

“What a memory,” said Gately. “We had 80 businesses damaged, some totally wiped out. There were 300 to 400 homes wiped out, and several hundred apartments damaged. It was a wild night.

It hit at 9:30. The dog track was in season and there was probably 9,000 people at Southland that night. It missed the track by 300 yards, but wiped out the truck stops on both sides of the Interstates.”

It was Gately who discovered the first storm-related fatality, one of six from the deadly tornado, on 14th Street.

“It was a night like I don’t ever want to spend again,” said Gately.

Here in 2023, the city has a much-improved storm alert system as technology has improved greatly in the three decades-plus since that fateful night, including replacing a new siren on MLK Boulevard and creating an Office of Emergency Management with former WMFD assistant chief DeWayne Rose at the helm, all aimed at keeping the residents of West Memphis safe and informed in the event of another storm like the day of destruction on Dec. 14, 1987.

File photos