Portal:Tornadoes/Anniversaries/December 3

December 3

• 1978 – An outbreak produced strong tornadoes across Louisiana and Arkansas in the pre-dawn hours. An F4 tornado touched down in Shreveport, Louisiana and devastated a portion of Bossier City, destroying 75 homes and 51 businesses, with hundreds damaged. Two girls were killed in their sleep when a car was thrown into their home, and 266 other people were injured. Damage totaled $100 million (equivalent to $467 million in 2023). An F3 tornado killed two people north of Heflin, Louisiana and an F2 tornado killed another person west of El Dorado, Arkansas.
• 1983 – An F3 tornado hit Oxford and Golden Springs, Alabama. Both deaths and most of the 51 injuries occurred when the roof of a grocery store collapsed. Store shelves kept the roof from collapsing all the way to the floor. Victims were trapped in the store for several hours. A few houses and trailer homes were destroyed.