Large Tornadoes Hit Southwest Oklahoma, More Heavy Rain Falls In Metro

Updated 9:42 p.m.: Threat of severe weather moving out of central Oklahoma

Several hundred residential utility customers lost power, and high waters were blocking some city streets after a line of storms moved across the state Saturday evening.

Oklahoma Gas & Electric's System Watch map reports more than 4,000 outages, mainly in Moore and Oklahoma City. There are also several hundred outages in Edmond.

The City of Moore has demobilized its emergency operations center, and sent its spotters home for the evening.

The Oklahoma Meosnet reports Norman received a little over an inch of rain in less than an hour.

Credit National Weather Service / Oklahoma Mesonet

/

Oklahoma Mesonet

Early Saturday afternoon large tornadoes moved through mostly rural areas in southwestern Oklahoma near Altus, Elmer, and Tipton. Some mobile homes, vehicles and outbuildings were damaged, and trees were uprooted, but so far there are no reports of injuries.

National Weather Service meteorologists plan to survey storm damage along the preliminary track of the Elmer/Tipton tornado Sunday.

Credit Norman Forecast Office / National Weather Service

/

National Weather Service

Updated 9:22 p.m.: Heavy rain leading to more flooding.

Street flooding is becoming a concern due to ground that's been constantly saturated for the past two weeks. Brandon Pursell with the Del City Fire Department reports flooding along Sunnylane between SE 29th and 15th streets. Minor street flooding was also reported near Quail Springs Mall in Oklahoma City.

Most of the state south of Interstate 40 has seen more than 10 inches of rain in the past two weeks.

Credit National Weather Service / Oklahoma Mesonet

/

Oklahoma Mesonet

Updated 9:00 p.m.: Tornado Warning extended in Seminole County

A Tornado Warninghas been extended until 10:00 p.m. for areas east of the Oklahoma City metro. 

Sirens are also sounding in Newcastle due to winds in excess of 70 miles per hour. This storm could move through the Norman, Moore, and Oklahoma City area within the next hour.

Spotters are out, and the City of Moore has activated its emergency operations center. 

Updated 8:47 p.m.: Tornado Watch extended until 3 a.m. east of Oklahoma City metro

The National Weather Service has extended the Tornado Watch until 3 a.m. for eight counties east of the Interstate 35 corridor. Pontotoc, Seminole, Atoka, Bryan, Coal, Hughes, Johnston, and Marshall counties are all included in the prolonged risk area.

Credit Norman Forecast Office / National Weather Service

/

National Weather Service

Updated 8:36 p.m. Tornado Warning issued for Pottawatomie County

A Tornado Warning has been issued for Pottawatomie County due to a thunderstorm capable of producing a tornado. The warning area includes the communities of Shawnee and Tecumseh.

Radar indicates the storm could produce a tornado and hail up to the size of half dollars.

Updated 8:31 p.m.: Tornado Warning dropped for Grady County

The National Weather Service has dropped the Tornado Warning for the storm moving through Chickasha.

The new warning includes Cleveland, Oklahoma, McClain, Canadian, and Garvin counties.

Updated 8:06 p.m.: Tornado Warning issued for Grady County, Chickasha

Credit Norman Forecast Office / National Weather Service

/

National Weather Service

The National Weather Service has issued a Tornado Warning for Grady County as a line of thunderstorms with a confirmed tornado approaches the Chickasha, Verden, Amber , Bridge Creek, and Newcastle areas. If the storm continues on its current track, it could affect the Oklahoma City metro later this evening. Flying debris will be dangerous, mobile homes will likely be damaged or destroyed, and windows could be blown out.

The tornado is reportedly rain-wrapped, and difficult to see. Sirens are sounding in Chickasha.

Updated 7:40 p.m.: Tornado moving northeast through Meers

What meteorologists are calling a large, damaging tornado moving northeast through Meers could affect the Oklahoma City metro later Saturday evening.

A tornado was reported on the ground by the Edgewater Park fire department, moving northeast along Interstate 44.

Updated 6:18 p.m.: Large tornadoes moving through southwest Oklahoma

A large, wedge tornado was moving along the Red River near the Oklahoma-Texas border Saturday afternoon, affecting mostly rural areas near Altus, Elmer and Tipton but still causing damage.

A spotter in Altus reported a building with roof damage and power lines down just north along U.S. Hwy 283. Hail an inch-and-a-half in diameter was also reported. Dennis Cavanaugh with the National Weather Service's Fort Worth office reports power pole damage and large farm equipment twisted and thrown around several miles west of Tipton.

A separate tornado was moving along Interstate 40 west of Elk City. A caller to radio station KWOX in Woodward reported a mobile home destroyed four to five miles south of Carmargo, but the residents were okay. Oklahoma State Department of Health Local Emergency Response Coordinator Mike Potter says there was minor damage to an RV park just north of I-40 along Highway 34. One trailer was rolled, and several others were damaged. There are no reports of injuries.

Updated 4:18 p.m.: New Tornado Watch issued for Oklahoma City metro

The entire western half of the state is now covered by a Tornado Watch until midnight. A majority of the counties the National Weather Service's Norman Forecast Office is responsible for are under the advisory until midnight. The earlier, separate Tornado Watches still expires at 8 p.m.

David Andra, the Meteorologist In Charge at the National Weather Service's Norman Forecast Office, says higher instability, lower wind shear, and low lifting condensation levels will support increasingly favorable conditions for tornadoes. A line of supercells could reach western Oklahoma between 4 and 5 p.m., and if they maintain their speed and heading, they could arrive in the Oklahoma City metro between 7:30 and 8 p.m.

The State of Oklahoma has activated its emergency operations center, and several local municipalities have followed suit. On the advice of the weather service, the American Red Cross has closed its multi-agency centers in Oklahoma City and Bridge Creek.

Credit Norman Forecast Office/Storm Prediction Center / National Weather Service

/

National Weather Service

Updated 2:36 p.m.: Tornado Watch issued for Panhandle, far southwest Oklahoma

The National Weather Service has issued Tornado Watches for two counties in the Oklahoma Panhandle and several in the southwestern corner of the state.

Forecasters say it's likely more Tornado Watches could be issued for central Oklahoma later Saturday afternoon. Storms moved through northwest Oklahoma and the Texas Panhandle early Saturday morning, although none appeared to be severe, although a storm in Roger Mills County brought small hail, frequent lightning, and heavy rain.

Credit National Weather Service / Oklahoma Mesonet

/

Oklahoma Mesonet

Original Post

For the second Saturday in a row Oklahoma is gearing up for a round of severe weather that could bring tornadoes, large hail,  and damaging straight line winds.

The Norman Forecast Office of the National Weather Service has placed much of the region under a moderate risk for severe storms - that's the second-highest classification. There's also a medium potential for tornadoes.

The risk for severe weather has increased since late Friday. NWS Warning Coordination Meteorologist Rick Smith says there's still quite a bit of uncertainty, a lot of what we'll see Saturday afternoon depends on what transpires in the morning.

"If we do get the instability, if we see some clearing [Saturday] afternoon, and the atmosphere is able to become warm and humid and unstable, we'll see a higher potential for tornadoes, maybe some large damaging hail - golf ball to baseball-sized hail, perhaps - and gusty winds," Smith said.

Meteorologists say the first storms could develop between 1 and 4 p.m. in southwest Oklahoma or far western North Texas, putting the Altus, Lawton, Wichita Falls, Oklahoma City metro, Stillwater, and Ponca City areas potentially in the path of fast-moving supercells capable of tornadoes and large hail.

Credit Norman Forecast Office / National Weather Service

/

National Weather Service

Much of the state is also under a Flash Flood Watch through 7 a.m. Sunday.

"It's not going to take a lot of rain to cause flash flooding issues in the watch area," Smith said. "Even though we're only expecting maybe 1-2 inches to fall over most areas between now and Sunday morning, it won't take very much with saturated grounds already in place."

Credit National Weather Service / Oklahoma Mesonet

/

Oklahoma Mesonet

---------------------------------------------------------

KGOU is a community-supported news organization and relies on contributions from readers and listeners to fulfill its mission of public service to Oklahoma and beyond. Donate online, or by contacting our Membership department.