Damaging Wind in Oklahoma, April 28, 1996

Severe thunderstorms moved across extreme northeast Oklahoma during the very late evening of April 27th and early morning of April 28th. Thunderstorm winds estimated at 100 to 115 miles an hour caused extensive damage in the Carpin, Picher, and Quapaw areas in Ottawa County. Several mobile homes were blown over, roofs were damaged, and trees were uprooted in these areas. U.S. Highway 69 was closed from Picher to the Kansas state line due to debris across the roadway. In Picher, 1 mobile home was destroyed, numerous utility poles were downed, windows were blown out, and numerous trees were downed. Some of the fallen trees damaged houses in Picher. A broken gas main in Picher was also caused by an uprooted tree.Strong thunderstorm winds damaged a residential roof 2 miles west of Copan, and a barn roof was torn off 8 miles west of Nowata. Windows were blown out of a home 5 miles west of Welch, and many telephone poles were broken off by the wind in Lenapah. Numerous trees and power lines were blown down in Miami, and trees were blown down in Nowata and in Welch. Thunderstorm winds gusted to 100 miles an hour in Bowring, to 76 miles an hour at an automated observing site 2 miles northeast of Nowata, to 70 miles an hour in Copan, and to 68 miles an hour in Shidler. Thunderstorm winds gusted to 60 miles an hour 3 miles east of Burbank, 4 miles west of Nowata, and 10 miles west of Vinita, and to 59 miles an hour at an automated observing site 2 miles east northeast of Copan.Large hail also accompanied the storms. Golfball to tennis ball size hail fell 1 mile north of Shidler, golfball size hail fell 1 mile west of Foraker, and half dollar size hail fell 10 miles west of Pawhuska and 8 miles north of Pawhuska. Quarter size hail fell 2 miles east of Foraker and at Copan, and nickel size hail fell at Lenapah.