Tornadoes and Flash Flooding in Oklahoma, May 31, 1999

Severe thunderstorms affected much of western Oklahoma and portions of central Oklahoma during the afternoon and evening of May 31st, and the early morning of June 1st. Although 7 tornadoes were confirmed across western Oklahoma, all on the 31st, only 2 of them caused damage. The most extensive damage during this severe weather outbreak was caused by straight-line winds and occurred across southern Kiowa and western Comanche Counties during the evening of the 31st. A very large swath of damaging straight-line winds developed on the west side of Tom Steed Lake in southern Kiowa County and expanded in coverage as it moved through all of southern Kiowa County, at times 10 to 15 miles wide. Power poles and power lines were downed, and a house received 2 broken windows and minor roof damage 3 miles west of Mountain Park. Power lines were downed 4 miles south of Roosevelt. Several trees were downed, and windows were broken at a lumber yard in Snyder, and power lines were reported down on Highway 183 between Snyder and Roosevelt. Major damage was also reported to wheat and cotton crop. Winds across southern Kiowa County were estimated between 80 and 100 mph. This 10-15 mile-wide area of damaging winds continued to move east out of southern Kiowa County and across much of western and central Comanche County. Winds were mostly in the 80 to 100 mph range, however in the Pecan Valley Subdivision located just outside of the northwest Lawton city limits, winds are believed to have reached 110 mph to 130 mph. As the thunderstorm winds spread east across Lawton and Fort Sill, they gradually decreased, but still caused tree, power line, and roof damage. In total, across Comanche County, 5 single family homes were destroyed; 4 single family homes under construction were destroyed; 58 single family homes and 8 businesses sustained major damage; and 150 single family homes sustained minor damage. Damage was estimated at 5 million dollars. Three injuries were also reported.The 1st tornado was reported by the Beckham County Emergency Manager doing no damage (F0) 9 miles south of Erick in Beckham County. The 2nd tornado was reported by a storm chaser 8 miles southeast of Erick in Beckham County and was captured on video. No damage was reported (F0). The 3rd tornado was witnessed by several persons and formed 3 miles southwest of Brinkman in Greer County, however no damage was observed (F0). The 4th tornado was reported by Greer County Emergency Management 3 miles south-southwest of Hester in Greer County. In Hester, a porch roof was ripped off from a house; house siding was blown off, and trees and power lines were downed. No damage was associated with the tornado as it moved into Jackson County and dissipated 1 mile southwest of Martha. This tornado was rated F1 in Greer County and F0 in Jackson County. Two storm chasers observed the 5th tornado as it formed in an open field, 5 miles northeast of Altus in Jackson County. No damage was reported (F0). The 6th tornado was captured on video as it formed about 1/2 mile south of Highway 19 near the North Red River in Kiowa County, or about 9 miles southwest of Roosevelt. Although this tornado was reported to be 1/4 of a mile wide, no structures or trees were affected, so it was rated F0. The last tornado, the 7th of the outbreak, was confirmed by a post-storm damage survey, performed by local law enforcement officials from Alfalfa County. They determined a weak tornado (F0), touched down 3 miles west of Jet. Trees were knocked down from 2 miles west of Jet to 1.5 miles north of Jet, while in a local cemetery, trees were downed, and marble headstones were moved 30 to 40 feet across the street.Straight-line winds were responsible for blowing over 5 aircraft and blowing off 11 hangar doors at Altus Municipal Airport in Jackson County. In addition, 2 barns near the airport were destroyed, and roof damage was reported to several buildings. Also in Jackson County, 1 vehicle sustained major damage in Blair, while several barns were destroyed. In Kiowa County, 3 campers were overturned, and several outbuilding were destroyed near Tom Steed Resorvoir, while in Mountain View, a small building was destroyed, and some tree damage was reported. In Stephens County, several power poles were downed in Duncan, and several trees and power lines were downed in Marlow. A shop was destroyed, and several trees were uprooted 3 miles east of Hunter in Garfield County; 2 power poles were blown down 2 miles north of Cherokee in Alfalfa County, and large tree limbs were downed in Rush Springs in Grady County. Hail to the size of softballs (4.5 inches in diameter) damaged hundreds of homes and vehicles in Alva in Woods County. Lightning struck the back of a 2-story residence in Enid in Garfield County, setting it on fire. Lightning also struck 2 oil tank batteries, 1.5 miles west of Rush Springs in Grady County, setting them on fire. Finally, flooding was reported across portions of Kiowa and Beckham Counties. In Beckham County, a road 2 miles southwest of Delhi was flooded by fast-moving, high water, while in Kiowa County, street flooding was reported in Roosevelt.Only a few reports of large hail occurred during the morning of June 1st, and the specifics can be accessed in June Storm Data.