Tornadoes and Fleetwood Mac: an interesting fact

[DavidMn]

I just realized this. The Fleetwood Mac show in Tulsa on 5-3-09 will be the 10th anniversary of the Oklahoma City/Moore Tornado on 5-3-99. That tornado had the highest recorded winds of any tornado on earth at 315 mph!:eek:

[estranged4life]

How could one (If one is an Oklahoman) forget the May 3rd tornadoes? Everytime I drive to Chickasha I recall where that monster first touched down at, and how it went from Chickasha towards Bridge Creek (Which took a direct hit and was devastated), Over the I-44 toll gate at Goldsby and towards Moore and finally Midwest City.

I remember Deb & I watching the news live as it hit 'the City', thankfully Oklahoma has the best weather forecasters in the world or many more people would have died that day (If I recall around 46 died that day - most in Bridge Creek).

[David]

What a horrifying storm that was, that fateful day.

I missed the Tri-State monster of '25, too.

[estranged4life]

There's a large tornado on the ground at this moment in Northern OKC and Edmond - just proof that the weather here in Oklahoma can change at any minute.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/29125653


Okla. tornado kills at least 8
Several unusual February twisters touch down across the state

OKLAHOMA CITY - Emergency teams planned to resume searching early Wednesday for survivors of a rare February tornado in southern Oklahoma, with at least eight deaths and dozens of injuries confirmed from the estimated half-mile-wide twister. Severe weather also caused damage and power outages in Oklahoma City and western Texas.

Lone Grove, a town of 5,000 about 100 miles south of Oklahoma City, appeared to have been the hardest-hit by what the National Weather Service described as a large and violent tornado.

Searchers were pulled out of Lone Grove overnight because of numerous power lines down in the area, Carter County Emergency Manager Ed Reed said. Reed said electric company officials weren't able to guarantee that the lines are dead, and they did not want to add to the casualties.

The storm that hit Lone Grove was one of several unusual February twisters that touched down in Oklahoma, including in the Oklahoma City metropolitan area, where homes and businesses were damaged but only three minor injuries were reported.

"It looks just like any tornado footage you see on TV," said Oklahoma State Trooper Bryant Harris, who lives in Lone Grove, told The Oklahoman newspaper.

"There's nothing left ... twisted metal, cars turned upside down, cars in trees," he told the paper.

NBC News has confirmed that the tornado killed eight people. The Oklahoman earlier quoted state officials as saying the death toll had reached 15 in Lone Grove, but that figure could not be independently confirmed.

Meanwhile, the National Weather Service planned later Wednesday to dispatch a team of meteorologists to Lone Grove and to the Oklahoma City area to survey the damage and determine the size of the twisters.

'It's just surreal'
Six homes were destroyed near the Oklahoma City suburb of Edmond, where a car mechanic shop and the vehicles inside were twisted into a ball of metal.

"It's just surreal," said shop manager Michael Jerry, who had waited out the storm at home. "You just don't believe it. ... The steel girders are in a ball."

In northwest Oklahoma City, the twister apparently developed near Wiley Post Airport and headed northeast, damaging shopping centers, restaurants and an apartment complex. Signs were stripped, and cars were damaged.

Tornado sirens warned residents the storm was approaching, but some were still caught off guard.

"I can't believe we didn't hear it. You know how you normally hear it coming," said Traci Keil, 37.

Between downpours of rain, some residents wandered out to snap pictures of the wreckage or to clear debris blocking cars.

"My kids are still in the closet and won't come out," Keil said as a third wave of downpours approached her apartment complex, more than an hour after the twister hit.

Power lines littered an intersection where motorists were told to stay in their cars until crews could clear the lines.

Oklahoma Gas and Electric reported about 8,900 customers without power, nearly 3,500 in Lone Grove, according to its Web site. Less than 1,000 Oklahoma City area customers were still in the dark. Eighteen power poles were snapped.

The Oklahoma County Election Board was preparing to tally votes for a school board election when a large area north of the state Capitol lost power about an hour before the polls closed. Election board secretary Doug Sanderson said election materials would be locked up overnight, and workers would start tallying on Wednesday.


Besides the tornadoes, one of which was reported in north-central Oklahoma, strong winds caused damage in southern and central Oklahoma, according to state emergency management officials.

In the area of the fatal tornado, one house was damaged in the town of Wilson, officials said. In Logan County, 20 homes were damaged near Henney, east of Guthrie. No injuries were reported in either town.

Tornadoes are most numerous in Oklahoma in the spring, but can occur at any time, Smith said. The threat for twisters extended into early Wednesday, with the weather service issuing a tornado watch for southeastern Oklahoma and northeast Texas.

Winds of more than 60 mph caused dust storms in western Texas that reduced visibility so much some roads have been closed, the National Weather Service said. It said wind speeds reached 88 mph in parts of Texas, leaving downed trees and power outages Tuesday night.

[estranged4life]

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/29125653?GT1=43001

Victims face scenes of devastation after deadly storm strikes town

LONE GROVE, Okla. - Rescuers sorted through bricks and shattered plywood Wednesday in search of more victims of a deadly tornado that blasted through a small Oklahoma town where many people in a trailer park had nowhere to escape the howling winds.

Some people were killed by flying debris. One man died when a pickup truck fell on him. At least eight bodies were recovered.

There were also miraculous tales of survival: People taking shelter in a closet pulled a little girl to safety after the tornado blew part of the roof off and threatened to carry her away. One woman was found injured but alive beneath an overturned mobile home.

Residents of Lone Grove, a town of 4,600 about 100 miles south of Oklahoma City, awoke Wednesday to find much of their community in ruins.

Shirley Mose was not at home when the tornado struck, but she returned to find the house destroyed and her pickup wrecked.

"I had a little Chihuahua that stayed in there," Mose said. "We found her bed, but not her. I guess she's gone."

Cluster of twisters
The Lone Grove tornado was among a cluster of unusual February tornadoes that touched down Tuesday in Oklahoma. A half-dozen homes and several businesses were also damaged in Oklahoma City and suburban Edmond, but no serious injuries were reported there.

Lone Grove firefighters methodically searched each damaged or destroyed structure, spray-painting a large "X" on homes after inspection. Residents were then allowed to check for belongings.

Authorities gave as much as 35 minutes of warning that a twister was approaching.

The National Weather Service issued a tornado warning at 6:50 p.m., meaning a twister was imminent and residents should take shelter. Another warning was issued at 7:15 p.m. when the actual tornado was spotted. It hit Lone Grove at 7:25 p.m.

"A lot of people just didn't leave," Carter County Sheriff Ken Grace said.

Most of the bodies were found in the mobile home wreckage. A trucker driving through town was also killed when winds slammed into his rig. Fourteen other people were seriously injured.


On Wednesday, all that was visible of the mobile homes were the cinder blocks they sat on. Trees were uprooted or snapped in half. Cars were flung around like children's toys. Hoods of vehicles were ripped off. And debris was scattered everywhere.

Cherokee Ballard, a spokeswoman for the state medical examiner's office, said some of the victims appeared to have been inside their homes when the tornado hit. Others had fled outdoors.

Most died from blows to the head.

"One victim was found underneath a pickup truck the tornado had lifted and dropped on him," Ballard said.

There was no shelter near the mobile home park for the residents to seek refuge.

'We have lost many lives'
Surveying the wreckage, Wade Talieferro pointed to a section of the park where six mobile homes had once stood.

"They're all gone," said Talieferro, whose uncle lives in the area. "I found a dead body in the pasture last night."

Thirty National Guard troops helped police provide security.

"We know we have lost many lives in Lone Grove, and we pray the losses do not rise any higher," Gov. Brad Henry said.

Along the main road in Lone Grove, homes and businesses were destroyed. Trees were splintered. Roofs were missing. Power lines were on the ground, and electricity was out.

Trina Quinton stood next to a pile of rubble that used to be John's Furniture, which was owned by her cousin.

"This is where I was raised," Quinton said as tears rolled down her cheek. "This is where I grew up."

She was grateful that the business was closed at the time of the twister, but she doubted the family would be able to rebuild.

Joe Hornback, 42, said the roof was blown off a post office a few blocks from his home.

"We were very fortunate," he said. "We went into the only cellar on our block. There were 30 of us in a 6-by-6 underground cellar."

'I was in shock'
Lana Hartman rode out the storm with seven other people in a small clothes closet of the rental house she moved into on Monday.

"We were all in the closet. The suction was so unreal," Hartman said.

The tornado blew part of the roof off the house and lifted one of her daughters into the air. Everyone grabbed the girl to keep her from flying off.

"I was in shock. I think I still am," Hartman said. "We're alive. That's all that matters."

Tornadoes in Oklahoma are most frequent in the spring but can occur anytime.

Since 1950, the state has been struck by 44 February tornadoes, according to the National Weather Service in Norman. The most recent one before Tuesday happened Feb. 25, 2000, when a twister damaged a barn and power lines in western Oklahoma.

A twister also touched down Tuesday in Oklahoma City, where homes and businesses were damaged. The tornado then moved into the suburb of Edmond, where a body shop and the vehicles inside were twisted into a ball of metal by the winds.

"It's just surreal," shop manager Michael Jerry said. "You just don't believe it. Especially knowing you were just there minutes before."

NBC News and The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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