On Friday, April 29, 1983, severe weather struck portions of the western Ozarks region, including the cities of Republic and Springfield, Missouri, both of which were hit by tornadoes.
Southwest Missouri: Republic and Springfield
In southwest Missouri, in Greene County, a tornado touched down west of Republic at 7:55 p.m. CST, destroying three homes and damaging others. This tornado was later rated an F2 by the National Weather Service (NWS).
This tornado either lifted or a new tornado formed on the southwest side of Springfield, near Fort Street and Battlefield Road. It traveled northeast across Campbell Avenue toward Glenstone Avenue. The twister destroyed 55 houses, with 130 homes sustaining moderate damage and at least 660 homes sustaining minor damage. At least five businesses were completely destroyed and at least 25 more were damaged, including a Dillons grocery store near Campbell Avenue. One church and one school were also destroyed.
According to Michael Landis of KYTV 3, he described some of the damage: “Much of the building of Redeemer Lutheran Church was gone. It sat right in the middle of a five-square-mile disaster zone carved by a tornado…”
According to a sgfcitizen.org article by Steve Pokin: “Its trail was about 30 blocks long and four or five blocks wide. It caused an estimated $25 million in damage; 19 people were injured.” This tornado was later rated an F3 by the NWS.
Sadly, there were two weather-related fatalities: a 16-year-old girl who was killed by flying debris as she exited her car, and a 68-year-old man who died of a heart attack while running to take shelter.
Southwest Missouri (Elsewhere)
In Lawrence County, near Wentworth, a small building and a barn collapsed due to damaging winds at 7:15 p.m. CST. In Newton County, around 9:20 p.m. CST, minor wind damage was reported in Seneca. A tornado also briefly touched down in a rural area five miles south of Seneca; it was later rated an F0.
Northeast Oklahoma
Around 7:30 p.m. CST, near the community of Chelsea on the Rogers/Mayes county line, a tornado touched down along the county line. It downed power lines and trees, destroyed one farmhouse, and damaged four barns; some livestock were killed. Another tornado briefly touched down in Craig County, in a rural area northwest of Vinita. Further east, in Ottawa County near Peoria, strong winds downed trees and caused additional damage.
Northwest Arkansas
In Carroll County, hail up to quarter size fell at Holiday Island at 7:00 p.m. CST. Around 8:00 p.m. CST in Benton County, flash flooding occurred at the Bella Vista golf courses. In Bentonville, City Hall lost telephone service, and lightning damaged a local business, knocking out its phone system and computers.
Joplin
There is no record of Joplin having any severe weather reports.
Further Reading
35 Years Ago: A Deadly Tornado Tore Through Republic, Springfield https://www.ky3.com/content/news/35-years-ago-a-deadly-tornado-tore-through-Republic-Springfield-481723681.html
Tuesday Storm Hit 42 Years to Date After Deadly Springfield Tornado https://www.ozarksfirst.com/news/tuesday-storm-hit-42-years-to-date-after-deadly-springfield-tornado/
Four Decades of Destructive Tornadoes in Springfield and Greene County https://sgfcitizen.org/government/crime/four-decades-of-destructive-tornadoes-in-springfield-and-greene-county/
The Tornado Season of 1983 (Research Paper) https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Stephen_Corfidi2/publication/249619806_The_Tornado_Season_of_1983/links/5ca28612a6fdccab2f67b73a/The-Tornado-Season-of-1983.pdf