Tornadoes in Oklahoma, May 20, 1957

Name: Tornadoes in Oklahoma, May 20, 1957
Start: 1957-05-20T17:00
End: 1957-05-20T23:10
Location: Oklahoma

May 20, 1957 · 12 events in 11 counties and zones

12 tornado, as filed by the National Weather Service.

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it. Tap one for its entry below.

Tornadoes
Tropical storms and surge
Floods
Wind
Hail
Winter weather
Heat and drought
Cold
Fire, smoke and dust
Marine and coastal
Other

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The toll

Deaths: 0
Injuries: 1
Property damage: $283,000
Crop damage: None recorded
Events: 12

Deaths and injuries are direct and indirect together, as the offices filed them. Damage is property and crops in the dollars of the year, not adjusted for inflation, and only where an office estimated it.

Event by event

12 tornado. Local standard time, as filed.

Tornado, Pawnee

When: May 20, 5:00 PM CST
Where: Pawnee County
Rating: F0
Path length: 0.5 mi
Path width: 100 yd
Property damage: $30
Coordinates: 36.350, -96.800

Tornado, Osage

When: May 20, 5:45 PM CST
Where: Osage County
Rating: F2
Path width: 33 yd
Property damage: $25,000
Coordinates: 36.420, -96.380

Tornado, Lincoln

When: May 20, 6:00 PM CST
Where: Lincoln County
Rating: F2
Path width: 33 yd
Property damage: $3,000
Coordinates: 35.500, -96.700

Tornado, Creek

When: May 20, 7:00 PM CST
Where: Creek County
Rating: F0
Path width: 33 yd
Coordinates: 35.950, -96.080

Tornado, Nowata

When: May 20, 7:00 PM CST
Where: Nowata County
Rating: F0
Path width: 33 yd
Property damage: $30
Coordinates: 36.700, -95.770

Tornado, Tulsa

When: May 20, 7:30 PM CST
Where: Tulsa County
Rating: F1
Path length: 3.6 mi
Path width: 500 yd
Property damage: $250,000
Coordinates: 36.070, -95.800

Tornado, Okmulgee

When: May 20, 8:04 PM CST
Where: Okmulgee County
Rating: F0
Path width: 33 yd
Property damage: $30
Coordinates: 35.700, -96.120

Tornado, Rogers

When: May 20, 10:30 PM CST
Where: Rogers County
Rating: F1
Path width: 33 yd
Coordinates: 36.530, -95.470

Tornado, Craig

When: May 20, 11:00 PM CST
Where: Craig County
Rating: F1
Path width: 33 yd
Property damage: $30
Coordinates: 36.800, -95.380

Tornado, Craig

When: May 20, 11:00 PM CST
Where: Craig County
Rating: F1
Path width: 33 yd
Property damage: $30
Coordinates: 36.650, -95.130

Tornado, Delaware

When: May 20, 11:00 PM CST
Where: Delaware County
Rating: F3
Path length: 15.2 mi
Path width: 200 yd
Property damage: $3,000
Coordinates: 35.380, -95.000

Tornado, Mayes

When: May 20, 11:10 PM CST
Where: Mayes County
Rating: F3
Path length: 5.2 mi
Path width: 200 yd
Injuries: 1 direct, 0 indirect
Property damage: $3,000
Coordinates: 35.350, -95.080

What these are

Tornado: A violently rotating column of air in contact with the ground and extending from a thunderstorm, filed with its path, width and Fujita or Enhanced Fujita rating from the damage survey.

After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.

The same day elsewhere

Every storm in Oklahoma in 1957 Every state in 1957 This day in weather history The tornado archive for Oklahoma, 1957

Sources

NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Storm Events Database, compiled from the National Weather Service’s monthly Storm Data. Complete through 2026-06; NCEI adds each month about 75 days after it ends and revises past years a few times a year. Rebuilt 2026-09-24. Each event’s entry at NCEI: 10094125, 10094126, 10094127, 10094128, 10094129, 10094130, 10094131, 10094132, 10094133, 10094134, 10094135, 10094136.