Tornadoes and Hail in Oklahoma, June 1, 1999

A report of dime-sized hail at 452 PM CDT was upgraded to a report of golfball-sized hail at 455 PM CDT.

A strong tornado, rated an F3, touched down in far western Cherokee County, possibly as a waterspout on Fort Gibson Lake. The tornado moved south onshore and through the rural Amber Hills housing area, crossing OK Hwy 51, and lifting after tracking through much of the Sequoyah State Park.In the Amber Hills and Hammer Hill Road areas, a total of 68 homes sustained some form of damage. Of that, 17 single family dwellings and 13 mobile homes were destroyed. Eight single family dwellings sustained major damage and 11 others had minor damage. One mobile home sustained minor damage. Fourteen other single family dwellings and four other mobile homes were affected. In one of the destroyed mobile homes, an elderly man and woman were inside. The woman was killed immediately, and the man was seriously injured, dying one week later in a hospital of tornado-related complications. This becomes eastern Oklahoma's first killer tornado since the April 1994 Catoosa tornado.Across OK Hwy 51 in Sequoyah State Park, between 400 and 500 trees were lost to the tornado. The carport at the park manager's residence was destroyed, and an RV was turned on its side. Fortunately, most Memorial Day campers had cleared out, therefore there were no injuries in the park.

Several trees were blown down near Taylor Ferry on the west side of Lake Fort Gibson.

Golfball-sized hail near Fort Gibson caused some damage to automobiles.

An F1 tornado touched down near the Port of Muskogee and moved south for 2.25 miles, lifting just south of Three Forks Park. This tornado destroyed three structures belonging to one business, destroyed two business outbuildings at 3-Forks Park, caused minor damage to one business under construction, and affected eight single family dwellings. The most newsworthy result of this tornado was damage directly inflicted upon the OG&E electrical generation plant. The tornado damaged a coal conveyor belt and a cooling tower. The damage was enough to shut down two of the plant's four coal-powered generating units. At the Fansteel plant, six buildings were torn down by the tornado, causing up to $1.5 million damage there.

The F1 tornado described here was the first of two tornadoes to touch down in Checotah on the evening of June 1. Each tornado was spawned from the same parent thunderstorm. The first tornado travelled through a more densely populated area of Checotah and therefore caused more damage, even though the second tornado had a stronger intensity rating of F3 on the Fujita scale. The first tornado touched down at 646 PM CDT on the west side of Checotah near the intersection of US Hwys 69 and 266 (West Gentry Avenue). The tornado then moved southeast through town, eventually lifting near the 700 block of South Broadway Street at 649 PM CDT. Spotters described the tornado as having a rope-like appearance. Damage assessments in Checotah combined the effects of the first and second tornadoes. Overall for both tornadoes, there were a total of 75 homes that had some sort of damage. Here is the breakdown: six homes were destroyed, 21 homes sustained major damage, 48 homes sustained minor damage, three businesses sustained minor damage, and 28 head of cattle were killed. All of the business damage occurred with the first tornado. Most notably, a Wal-Mart near US Hwys 69 and 266 sustained roof and window damage, while a Pizza Hut on South Broadway Street sustained roof damage. In addition, numerous trees were blown down, with some trees falling onto vehicles and homes.

The F3 tornado described here was the second of two tornadoes to touch down in the Checotah area on the evening of June 1. Both tornadoes were spawned from the same parent thunderstorm. Even though this tornado had a stronger F-rating than the first, it caused less widespread damage since it travelled through a less densely populated area. The second tornado touched down on the southeast side of Checotah near I-40 and Grapevine Road at 650 PM CDT. The tornado travelled southeast for 4.5 miles and then lifted at 706 PM CDT.Damage assessments in Checotah combined the effects of the first and second tornadoes. For details of the damage assessment, see the third paragraph of the narrative for the Tornado entry immediately preceding this entry. This tornado, the second of the two, was rated an F3 based based on the near-complete destruction of a farm house 3 to 4 miles southeast of Checotah.

Spotters reported a tornado touchdown in open rangeland, moving due south for about 2 miles. Along the way, this tornado killed 28 head of cattle when they were hurled into a fence line. This tornado also caused minor damage to a home near Onapa.

Spotters reported a tornado in open country. The tornado moved east-southeast for over two miles.

Spotters reported a brief tornado touchdown in open country.

Spotters reported a brief tornado touchdown in open country.

Several trees were blown down over OK Hwy 9 near Keota.

Numerous trees were blown over near Warner.

Strong winds knocked down numerous trees and power poles in Spiro. One very large tree branch fell onto a house, causing significant roof damage. Several business awnings and canopies were blown down and destroyed. A commercial garage had its roof blown off. At the Spiro ballfield, a power pole fell onto 3rd base, and the visitors' dugout back wall was blown out. An amateur radio spotter two miles south of Spiro reported winds gusting to 60 miles an hour.

Strong winds damaged three mobile homes in Pocola. Trees falling onto power lines caused power outages to 2,000 electric customers in Pocola, Scullyville, and Murry Spur.

Tree limbs and power lines were blown down in Vian.

Numerous trees were blown down near Porum.

Winds peeled the roof off of a mobile home.

At least 15 large trees were uprooted along old Hwy 59 between Poteau and Howe. One tree fell onto a storage shed, and a home lost numerous shingles.

A very large tree branch fell onto a pickup truck and a car on the Old Pike. Four power lines were blown over, knocking out power to Heavener for a time. Several other utility poles and tree branches were blown down in Heavener.

Several large tree limbs were blown down in Summerfield.

Numerous trees were blown down near Kinta.