may 3, 1999 oklahoma tornado outbreak

This is less than 1 percent of the approximately 15 square miles of damage that this tornado produced. A total of 58 tornadoes occurred in the NWS Norman forecast area in central and southwestern Oklahoma during afternoon and evening hours of May 3, 1999. The United States Department of Defense deployed the 249th Engineering Battalion and placed the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers on standby for assistance. May 3, 1999 - a day many in Oklahoma and across the country will never forget. injury to people in the path of an F-5 tornado is extremely high. Forecast Discussion During 1990-1996, only five tornadoes in the U.S. were assigned an F-5 rating. 2001). US Dept of Commerce The official storm data report from May 1999 for NWS Tulsa forecast area can be found here. With a total of 72 tornadoes, it was the most prolific tornado outbreak in Oklahoma history, although not the deadliest. However, for high-end systems, such names do get made. A total of 42 tornadoes were in the weak category, with 14 being rated F1 and another 28 tornadoes rated as F0. Veteran journalist Nancy Mathis draws on many interviews to weave the story of those few terrifying hours that irrevocably changed the lives of many Oklahomans. Found inside – Page 2... major tornado outbreak since May 3 , 1999 , in Oklahoma and Kansas . The performance of WFO Norman , Oklahoma , on May 3 set a new level of service to ... Those measurements usually have been obtained from special research projects, such as the Doppler on Wheels (DOW) project, and have been obtained from only a dozen or so tornadoes (less than 0.1 percent of all tornadoes). Even if the F-scale wind speed ranges were reliable estimates, the DOW measurement of 318 mph is still in the F5 range (261-318 mph) as defined by Dr. Fujita. "[22] The American Red Cross opened ten shelters overnight, housing 1,600 people immediately following the disaster, decreasing to 500 people by May 5. Found inside – Page 145Summary of hearing Mr. Dennis McCarthy opened his testimony by noting the May 3 , 1999 tornado outbreak that killed 42 people and injured 795 in Oklahoma . Storm Data Air temperatures at 7:00 a.m. Central Daylight Time ranged in the mid to upper 60s °F (upper 10s to near 20 Â°C) across the region, while dew point values ranged in the low to mid 60s °F (mid to upper 10s °C). Satellite Imagery, Forecasts Tornado outbreak of May 10, 1905, including the 1905 Snyder tornado, the second-deadliest tornado in Oklahoma history; Tornado outbreak of April 27-29, 1912, a prolific outbreak featuring several strong-to-violent tornadoes Stroud is also now a downloading facility location for oil produced in the northern United States into the Cushing pipeline network. Rivers and Lakes The first tornado from this supercell touched down 7 miles (11 km) east-northeast of Medicine Park at 4:51 p.m. CDT; it produced four additional tornadoes as it tracked northeast into Caddo County, the strongest of which (rated as an F3) touched down 2 miles (3.2 km) west-southwest of Laverty and dissipated 2.5 miles (4.0 km) west-northwest of downtown Chickasha. Large supercell thunderstorms developed and in the late afternoon through the mid-evening hours of that Monday, tornadoes began to break out across the state. But he added that "tornadoes are not expected to reach F6 wind speeds." As stated above, there was nothing unusual or unprecedented in the damage from the May 3 tornado as compared with other F5 tornadoes in the past. INTRODUCTION. In Oklahoma, officials estimated that over 8,000 homes or . This is the strongest tornado ever recorded with wind speeds of up to 318 mph. Local Climate Data By the time the storm system moved out of the area on May 4, over 70 tornadoes, many of them rated F-3 or stronger, had hit parts of Kansas, Oklahoma, and Texas. : A: Probably not, but we really have no way of knowing. The tornado finally dissipated 1 mile (1.6 km) south of Stroud Lake at 11:48 p.m. CDT. GIS Users: A KML file depicting the damage paths for tornadoes that occurred in central Oklahoma on May 3, 1999 is available. Found insideThe work of the Society is carried on by the Bulletin, the Journal, and Meteorological Monographs, by papers and discussions at meetings of the Society, through the offices of the Secretary and the Executive Secretary, and by correspondence ... Air Quality Questions? [12], Late in the evening on May 3 at 9:25 p.m. CDT, a destructive tornado touched down 3 miles (4.8 km) southwest of Cimarron City in Logan County, Oklahoma, eventually hitting the town of Mulhall, located north of Guthrie. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Flood/Flash Flood Safety Tropical Storm Ida is forecast to approach the northern Gulf coast at or near major hurricane intensity on Sunday. For a tornado to be given an unprecedented F6 rating, it would have to produce damage more severe than has ever been observed. Surface Maps But since typical wind measuring equipment does not survive a strong tornado, there are about three dozen tornadoes on record from which wind speeds have been obtained. The tornado then crossed the Canadian River, passing into far southern Oklahoma City. Monday marks 22 years since a record-breaking tornado outbreak ripped through central Oklahoma on May 3, 1999. The most significant tornado first touched down southwest of Chickasha, Oklahoma, and became an F5 before dissipating near Midwest City. Damage caused by this tornado was indistinguishable from damage caused by the earlier F4 tornado. FAQ Please try another search. Air Quality There were only a few small, narrow areas near the center of the damage path where intermittent F5 damage was found: in the Bridge Creek area (Grady County), and in a few parts of south Oklahoma City and Moore (Cleveland County). The Great Plains Tornado Outbreak of May 3-4, 1999: Oklahoma Tornado Table. Weather Radio, About Us Found inside – Page 351May 3, 1999 The most expensive tornado outbreak in U.S. history struck Oklahoma and Kansas in the early evening of May 3, 1999. Seventy-six tornadoes roared ... The 1999 Oklahoma tornado outbreak was a significant tornado outbreak that affected much of the Central and parts of the Eastern United States, with the highest record-breaking wind speeds of 302 Â± 22 mph (486 Â± 35 km/h). In Oklahoma, officials estimated that over 8,000 homes or . Please try another search. National Weather Service But to make such comparisons truly representative, we must also account for population growth, and the fact that people generally own more today than they used to. Found inside – Page iDrawing on the unique analysis described in their first book, Economic and Societal Impacts of Tornadoes, economists Kevin M. Simmons and Daniel Sutter here examine the factors that contributed to the outcomes of such tornadoes as the mid ... Oklahoma since modern records have been kept Department of Defense deployed the 249th Engineering Battalion placed! 'S impossible to make direct, objective comparisons between the May 3-4 1999... 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