Thunderstorm over the far western Oklahoma Panhandle produced deadly lightning during the early evening hours.
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.
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 episode as NWS AMA wrote it up.
Thunderstorm over the far western Oklahoma Panhandle produced deadly lightning during the early evening hours.
The Amarillo radar (KAMA), 183 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 23:04 UTC.
1 lightning. Local standard time, as filed.
A man was riding a horse at Black Mesa StatePark around Lake Carl Etling and were struck by lightning.Both the man and the horse were killed instantly.
As the offices recorded each death: direct deaths were caused by the weather itself, indirect ones by something it set in motion.
| Event | Date | Age | Sex | Where | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lightning, Cimarron | 1997-08-18 | 45 | Male | Outside/Open Areas | Direct |
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Oklahoma in 1997Every state in 1997This day in weather historyWarnings in Oklahoma, August 1997
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: 5615823.