ROGERS, Ark. — Memorial Day weekend 2024 was supposed to be a time of enjoying the water the natural way in the Natural State, but a Sunday storm damaged sites across Beaver Lake.
Campers started their weekends early, setting up their tents and campers at Prairie Creek Campgrounds on Thursday. David Lamer of Bella Vista anticipated the park would be full this Memorial Day.
"The beauty is unbelievable, and so the parks are full," Lamer said on May 23. "There should be a really busy weekend here."
Lamer picked out his spot early to make it through the waves of Memorial Day visitors. He said he was thankful he did so in a hybrid camper, so he could comfortably see waves of forecasted severe weather.
"This is definitely a weekend where things can change quickly, and we'll deal with it one way or another," Lamer said.
It's not the same sentiment for campers like Kailey John, who had been camping with her husband and children in tents.
"It worries me," John said. "As long as we have, you know, the ability to be notified if something were to happen, we have a plan."
John had already spent some time out on the campgrounds with her family, even through a tornado watch. She had stayed up and kept up to date on the weather coverage on her phone.
U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) Spokesperson Jay Townsend advised anyone on the lake to stay updated on the weather for the region. The Corps of Engineers advises anyone in the water to get out during a lightning storm. For anything severe, officials said to seek shelter in a hardened structure.
"Those are the vault restroom buildings. Those are probably the safest places in those areas. But if you have enough time, you know get to a place with a basement or a public shelter," Townsend said.
Campers after the weather
5NEWS reconnected with campers who spoke to us about severe weather preparations, not knowing they'd have to use them.
Lamer had his brother come into town to help barbecue and hang out. Lamer said on Saturday, he "wanted to show him some good entertainment from the area so decided to take him to Railyard Live."
It was late Saturday night when Lamer saw severe weather forecasts.
"I said, 'Why chance it, you know, let's go to the house,'" he said. "I live in Bella Vista, and it's close. And it was a very good decision on my part."
Lamer was miles away in his Bella Vista home when storms came through, unlike Kailey John.
"The camper rocked a little bit, not too much, you know, you could feel it," John said. "We heard things hitting. We kept hearing it from both ends from the back toward the front. We kept hearing lens hit, but we had no idea like, where it was going or what was happening because it was dark outside."
With power going out across Benton County, Lamer had no idea what he would find when he drove back out to the campsite.
"My camper had a huge tree come down right on the back side of my camper, where my brother probably would have been sleeping," Lamer said.
A story being retold over and over. The damage throughout the area should've shown Northwest Arkansas' weakness to nature, instead it only made us stronger.
"People just started rallying together and pulling the trees out, getting their straps, you know, taking turns if needed, just working together as a whole," John said.
Lamer said the community banded together to help out those at the campsite.
"The local government, the first responders, the firemen, the law enforcement, utility companies, everybody was just awesome," Lamer said. "There was a lot of help out here in the park."
On Sunday evening, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and Beaver Lake Project Office announced they closed Rocky Branch, Horseshoe Bend, and Prairie Creek campgrounds after the storms created extensive damage. While these campsites are closed, USACE said they will assess the damage, clear debris, and remove any damaged vehicles or campers.
"It's nerve-wracking to know, you know, that we were in the middle of really whatever happened," he said. "I don't know if it was a confirmed tornado, or if it was just the straight-line winds. But I feel better that we made it out. We're all safe. We're all still together. And we can talk about it. You know, we can help our community clean up after we can do what we need to do on that side of things as well."
Watch 5NEWS on YouTube.
Download the 5NEWS app on your smartphone:
Stream 5NEWS 24/7 on the 5+ app: How to watch the 5+ app on your streaming device
To report a typo or grammatical error, please email KFSMDigitalTeam@tegna.com and detail which story you're referring to.