Editing Mena, Arkansas (section)

===Recent history===
In the 1950s, a government program to stockpile [[manganese]] led to the reopening of local mines closed since the 1890s. The program ended in 1959, and the mines again closed.<ref name="Lancaster" />

During the 1980s, drug smuggler [[Barry Seal]] moved his operations to the [[Mena Intermountain Municipal Airport]], where he owned and operated many planes and helicopters, as well as advanced radar equipment. Seal also flew gun and drug smuggling missions between Mena and Nicaragua as part of a [[Iran–Contra affair|CIA scheme]] to support the [[Contras]]. Local law enforcement claimed that attempts to investigate the operation were blocked by the White House.<ref name="Lancaster" />

On April 9, 2009, a large and violent [[April 2009 tornado outbreak|tornado]] devastated the town, killing three and injuring thirty.<ref name="AP">{{Cite news |date=January 23, 2008 |title=Tornado Devastates Small Arkansas Town, Killing 3 |url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/feedarticle/8449156 |access-date=May 20, 2013 |publisher=[[Associated Press]] via [[The Guardian]] |location=London |archive-date=September 3, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240903061419/https://www.theguardian.com/info/2015/dec/09/removed-news-agency-feed-article |url-status=live }}</ref> Many homes and businesses were damaged or destroyed. The [[Arkansas National Guard]] was deployed to the affected area.<ref name="AP" /> The tornado was rated as a high-end [[Enhanced Fujita Scale|EF]]3, with winds near {{convert|165|mi/h|abbr=on}}, and damages estimated at $25 million.

Mena is the eastern end of the [[Talimena Scenic Drive]], a route that extends to [[Talihina, Oklahoma]].<ref>{{cite web|url= https://www.talimenadrive.com/ |title =Talimena National Scenic Byway|publisher=Talimena Scenic Drive Association|accessdate=April 20, 2025}}</ref>