Tornadoes Ravage Oklahoma and Surrounding Regions: High Alert for Severe Weather
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Multiple tornadoes ravaged several counties in Oklahoma on Saturday night, leaving a trail of destruction with several people injured and at least one person dead. The region remains on high alert for severe weather after storms and tornadoes swept through on Friday and Saturday, from Texas to the Great Lakes. Authorities reported about 106 tornadoes detected in six states on Friday, with Nebraska and Iowa bearing the brunt, they said.
In Oklahoma, emergency officials confirmed that a tornado struck the western part of Hughes County around 11 p.m. on Saturday, destroying or damaging several buildings in its path. Mike Dockrey of the Hughes County Emergency Management confirmed to CBS News that at least four people were injured and one died.
In the neighboring Sulphur, a small town of about 5,000 residents 130 kilometers south of Oklahoma City, at least two tornadoes were reported, while another hit Marietta and crossed directly over Interstate 35. Videos and photos emerging on social media on Sunday morning showed extensive damage in Sulphur, including scattered bricks, toppled wooden beams, and downed trees. Buildings in the downtown area had broken windows and missing walls.
The Oklahoma Red Cross said it was opening a shelter in Sulphur and was in contact with authorities to assist with the immediate needs of affected residents statewide. Communities in Garfield, Grant, Kay, Payne, and several other counties in Oklahoma also suffered damage to homes and other structures, authorities said. The National Weather Service in Norman said on Sunday morning that flooding was now the primary threat after tornado warnings were lifted. Over 39,000 people in Oklahoma and Texas were without power on Sunday morning. In Kansas, the National Weather Service confirmed that a “large and dangerous tornado” touched down near the city of Howard on Saturday afternoon.
The National Weather Service confirmed on Saturday that several tornadoes hit at least three counties in northern Texas the previous day, including three tornadoes in Navarro County. Two of them were EF1 tornadoes with winds exceeding 160 kilometers per hour. The third tornado, an EF0, touched down north of Frost. Some homes are leveled with trees and metal lining the area. The Friday night tornadoes wreaked havoc in the Midwest, particularly in Nebraska and Iowa, causing the collapse of a building with dozens of people inside and destroying and damaging hundreds of homes. The sounds of chainsaws filled the air on Saturday in the Elkhorn neighborhood of Omaha, a city of 485,000 residents with a metropolitan area population of about 1 million.
“We watched it touchdown about 200 yards over there,” said Pat Woods, Elkhorn resident, to CBS News. “After seeking refuge, we returned, only to hear it passing by. When we came back, our fence was gone, and we looked to the northwest and the whole neighborhood was gone.” The National Weather Service was still assessing the number and strength of the twisters. Nearly 47 million people are at risk of severe weather on Sunday, from East Texas northward to the upper Mississippi River Valley.
