Arcadia, LA F3 Tornado – November 3, 1992

16 tornadoes were confirmed on November 3, 1992.  All but 1 in the state of Louisiana. The strongest for the day is the topic of this summary.  It was an F3 that traveled seven miles through parts of Bienville Parish. The town of Arcadia, population 3400 at the time, was the hardest hit.  

Per Storm Data, the tornado developed six miles west of Bryceland. It had an intermittent path through open country before striking Arcadia. It lifted 1.5 miles northeast of town. 12 homes and two businesses were destroyed. 75 other homes had moderate to severe damage. There were no fatalities. No injuries are in the official record but newspaper accounts say differently.

The steeple of the First Baptist church fell onto the vehicle of Police Jury President Bill Sims. Debris also fell onto another car. A woman and two kids were in that car. All were injured. Here is an account from The Times (Shreveport, LA) from November 5, 1992 followed by a picture of the church.