Tornadoes and Flash Flooding in Oklahoma, May 8, 2007

Local media reported 8 to 12 inches of water over the roadway at Sarah Rd. and 10th Street.

Broadcast media and emergency managers reported widespread flash flooding over Oklahoma City. One to two feet of water was reported on roadway at Morgan Rd. and Reno Ave. 8 to 12 inches of water was reported on roadway at Morgan Rd. and 10th Street. Two feet of water was over the westbound ramp of Interstate 40 at Council Rd. Ramps on Interstate 40 were also closed at Virginia, Reno, and Western Avenues due to very high water. Approximately two feet of water was over roadway at 45th and Independence streets. High water rescues were reported at SW 59th and County Line Road, SW 51st and Independence, SW 29th and Council Road, Britton and Rockwell Avenues, Hefner Village and Britton Avenue, NW 88th and Harvey, NW 45th and Young, and NW 91st and Walker Avenue. Monetary damages were estimated.

A high water rescue was reported at SW 15th and Mustang Road. Water was also rising into home in the northern portions of Yukon. Monetary damages were estimated.

High water rescues reported at SW 15th and Sarah Road, SW 15th and Kilpatrick Turnpike, SW 89th and Mustang Road, and 2 miles west of Northwest Highway and 192nd Street. Spitler Dam, a pond dam, broke at Quail Creek Estates. Water reportedly rose into homes. Monetary damages were estimated.

Several streets closed due to high water.

Street flooded at 34th and Interstate 35.

Two vehicles swept into North Canadian River near Sooner Road. Monetary damages were estimated.

A vehicle was stranded in high water near SW 149th and Meridian Avenue. A child was rescued from the vehicle. Monetary damages were estimated.

Hardesty Road and Donna Lane were closed due to a culvert collapsing. The roads were closed between HWY 102 and Stevens Road.

Reported on the south side of Snyder.

An Oklahoma City television storm chaser observed a brief tornado from a supercell thunderstorm west of Lake Ellsworth. No damage was reported from this tornado.

Several city streets were closed due to high water. Box Elder Creek overflowed its banks, with some home evacuated. Monetary damages were estimated.

Forty people had to be evacuated due to the rapidly rising water. A creek bridge was reported washed out near the Wichita Mountain Estates. Five horses drowned after a failed rescue attempt. Several roads were closed due to the high water. Monetary damages were estimated.

Damage was first observed to dairy facility 2.7 miles southwest of Minco where the western portion of the south wall was pushed in which in turn pushed the roof and the northern wall of the building to the north. To the northwest, a farm sustained roof damage to the house, and damage to three metal storage buildings and two barns. Fences and trees were also damaged along the path. Monetary damages were estimated.

A tornado formed near EW112 Road just east of Reformatory Road. Trees were knocked over or snapped on two properties. The most significant damage occurred near the intersection of EW111 Road and Reformatory Road where a wood and metal garage was essentially destroyed and a barn sustained some damage to a wall panel, however a car inside the garage suffered minimal damage. A grain bin was blown to the north, and power poles were pushed from upright in this area. Trees were damaged from this location to about 1 mile north-northwest. Monetary damages were estimated.|

A tornado developed and moved north through parts of El Reno. The first damage occurred in a complex of industrial/commercial buildings is located on the southwest corner of I-40 and Hwy 81. One building suffered minor roof damage with the roofing peeled away. Another metal building had partial peeling of the side paneling, a large garage door blown in and the business’s dumpster was rolled 100 ft to the west. An outbuilding supply business had its several garage doors blown in and a display outbuilding collapsed and was moved. Some trees in the area were damaged and the damage varied over a wide range. Trees closer to the interstate had large branches and trunks snapped, while trees closer to Hwy 81 were either tipped or limbs up to 6 were snapped. Farther to the west, a building that was under construction had some building material blown to the north northeast towards the area of apparent touchdown. Two businesses just south southwest of the touchdown point also had damage to their garage doors.

Directly across I-40 from the touchdown point was a car dealership. The main building at the dealership had minimal damage and most vehicles in the lot had no damage. One light pole was knocked over and a large sign for the dealership was damaged. A double wide mobile home, which was used as an office at the dealership, was knocked over on its side. Several cars towards the extreme northwest corner of the lot exhibited damage though the original locations of the vehicles are in question. Billboards around the lot were either destroyed or folded over. Farther to the northwest a farm house with outbuildings sustained damage. Most damage appeared to be suffered by the outbuildings. The damage appeared minor with roof and side panels peeled, though one of the buildings sustained some damage to its structure. The tornado then entered into an industrial area. A building west of the farm house sustained damage to its office area and a section of side paneling was peeled. Roofing from the Oklahoma Gas and Electric building, which was across the street, also impacted the northeast corner of the building with enough force to cause a significant dent in the panel. A flag pole at this building was also bent about 50 degrees. The building seemed to have sustained the most damage in the area. It appeared most of the roof was gone, a tree was snapped in two and the power lines were snapped in two. Further, the roof of the small office area appeared to have been partially lifted. A pole near the building also appears to have bent a bit. Other buildings near the building had other damage to siding and roofs.

Along Hwy 81, north of Oklahoma Gas and Electric, several buildings in the industrial/commercial area sustained damage. A convenience store had its windows blown out, a garage door blown out, and a portion of the roof was removed. Metal framed buildings to the west of this area failed at the ends of the buildings but the center portions of the framing remained intact. One structure in particular lost most of its roof and it is believed that this roof actually scraped along and removed the roof to a small strip mall. A metal building to the north of this strip mall had a garage door blown in and two panels were pushed in towards the bottom of the panel on its south side. On the north side the building had 3 garage doors blown in and the northeast corner sustained side panel damage. Across Hwy 81, a snow cone hut was spun about 270 degrees and a metal lining peeled off. Two metal light poles near the hut were damaged; one was bent and another was snapped off its base. To the north of this area a building sustained damage to its roof. People were present inside the building when it was struck but no one was injured. Three power poles, one towards the highway and two near the building were snapped. A storage shed on the north side of the building's parking lot had a garage door blown in; also, plastic skylights were blown out to locations unknown. Power poles just to the north along a side road were blown over and one was snapped. West of this location was a farm supply store which had grain bins blown over and some into a nearby pond. North of the store was a cluster of trees which had a variety of damage. The final damage points were along Choctaw Rd. At the corner of Choctaw and Elm, a metal building had its roof rotated on top it and a power pole near it was snapped. The neighborhood west of Choctaw Rd had some tree and power pole damage. Also the neighborhood northeast of Hwy 81 and Elm sustained probable microburst damage. Monetary damages were estimated.

A short narrow damage path from a tornado was observed between Gregory Road and Cimarron Road, and just south of Northwest Expressway. A few trees were downed, a tin shed was destroyed, and two roofs were damaged.

A brief tornado caused mainly minor damage north northwest of Piedmont. Most of the damage was confined to an area along and near Duboise Road. A car was pushed into another car, denting the fender. Homes suffered shingle damage. One brick home was shifted on its foundation. Another car was rotated 90 degrees by the wind. Monetary damages were estimated.

HWY 33 was closed due to high water.