Lightning Strike in Oklahoma, April 25, 1997

Name: Lightning Strike in Oklahoma, April 25, 1997
Start: 1997-04-25T14:07
End: 1997-04-25T14:07
Location: Oklahoma

April 25, 1997 · NWS OUN · 1 event in 1 county or zone

1 lightning, as filed by the National Weather Service.

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it; 1 filed by county or forecast zone are drawn at its center, in a lighter ring. 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: 0
Property damage: None recorded
Crop damage: None recorded
Events: 1

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.

The radar

The Norman radar (KTLX), 70 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 20:06 UTC.

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

1 lightning. Local standard time, as filed.

Lightning, Garvin

When: April 25, 2:07 PM CST
Where: Garvin County, Pauls Valley
Coordinates: 34.705, -97.309 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Lightning struck a building near the intersection of Joy and Santa Fe in Pauls Valley. All of the electrical circuits in the building were destroyed, and an antenna on a neighboring building was melted. The thunder from the bolt shattered at least 4 windows at Pauls Valley High School. Falling glass from one of the windows fell onto and injured one student.

What these are

Lightning: A lightning strike that killed, injured or caused damage.

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

The same day elsewhere

Every storm in Oklahoma in 1997 Every state in 1997 This day in weather history Warnings in Oklahoma, April 1997

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: 5599355.