A warm front lifted northward across the area ahead of a strong upper level storm system, resulting in widespread thunderstorms in eastern Oklahoma. These storms produced damaging wind as they moved across the region during the late evening of the 28th.
Every event with a place to put it. 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 TSA wrote it up.
A warm front lifted northward across the area ahead of a strong upper level storm system, resulting in widespread thunderstorms in eastern Oklahoma. These storms produced damaging wind as they moved across the region during the late evening of the 28th.
The local office's own words before the first event, as it sent them, from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service text.
NWS Tulsa, OK wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Feb 28, 9:20 PM CST, 1 hour 4 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TULSA OK 920 PM CST TUE FEB 28 2012 ...UPDATE... .DISCUSSION... AS A COLD FRONT AND LINE OF STRONG STORMS ENTER THE NW PORTION OF THE FORECAST AREA... HAVE UPDATED THE FORECAST TO INCREASE POPS AND WIND GUSTS ACROSS THE NORTHERN HALF OF THE REGION. UPDATED PRODUCTS HAVE ALL BEEN SENT. && .TSA WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... OK...NONE. AR...NONE. && SHORT TERM...06
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TULSA OK 504 PM CST TUE FEB 28 2012 ARZ001-002-010-011-019-020-029-OKZ049-053>076-291100- ADAIR OK-BENTON AR-CARROLL AR-CHEROKEE OK-CHOCTAW OK-CRAIG OK- CRAWFORD AR-CREEK OK-DELAWARE OK-FRANKLIN AR-HASKELL OK-LATIMER OK- LE FLORE OK-MADISON AR-MAYES OK-MCINTOSH OK-MUSKOGEE OK-NOWATA OK- OKFUSKEE OK-OKMULGEE OK-OSAGE OK-OTTAWA OK-PAWNEE OK-PITTSBURG OK- PUSHMATAHA OK-ROGERS OK-SEBASTIAN AR-SEQUOYAH OK-TULSA OK-WAGONER OK- WASHINGTON OK-WASHINGTON AR- 458 PM CST TUE FEB 28 2012 ...SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS POSSIBLE THIS EVENING AND OVERNIGHT... THIS OUTLOOK IS FOR NORTHWEST AND WEST CENTRAL ARKANSAS AS WELL AS MUCH OF EASTERN OKLAHOMA. .DAY ONE...TODAY AND TONIGHT. TORNADO. RISK...LIMITED. AREA...EASTERN OKLAHOMA AND NORTHWEST ARKANSAS. ONSET...AFTER 8 PM. SEVERE THUNDERSTORM. RISK...ELEVATED. AREA...EASTERN OKLAHOMA AND NORTHWEST ARKANSAS. ONSET...AFTER 8 PM. SIGNIFICANT WINDS. RISK...LIMITED. AREA...EASTERN OKLAHOMA AND NORTHWEST ARKANSAS. ONSET...ONGOING.. DISCUSSION... THE RISK FOR SEVERE WEATHER WILL INCREASE THIS EVENING INTO THE OVERNIGHT HOURS AS A COOL FRONT APPROACHES IN RESPONSE TO A POTENT UPPER LEVEL TROUGH MOVING INTO THE CENTRAL PLAINS. THUNDERSTORM DEVELOPMENT IS POSSIBLE AHEAD OF THE SURFACE BOUNDARY IN RESPONSE TO A STRENGTHENING LOW LEVEL JET AFTER SUNSET. INSTABILITY AND DEEP LAYER SHEAR ARE MORE THAN SUPPORTIVE FOR SEVERE THUNDERSTORM DEVELOPMENT... WITH LARGE HAIL AND DAMAGING WINDS THE PRIMARY THREATS. ALTHOUGH MOST OF THE THUNDERSTORM ACTIVITY IS EXPECTED TO REMAIN SLIGHTLY ELEVATED... STRONG LOW LEVEL WIND FIELDS WILL ALLOW FOR AN INCREASED TORNADO THREAT WITH ANY SUPERCELLS THAT DO DEVELOP. THE PRIMARY SEVERE THREAT WILL BEGIN AROUND MID EVENING AND CONTINUE WELL INTO THE OVERNIGHT HOURS BEFORE THE FRONT SWEEPS SOUTHEAST OF THE AREA AROUND 3 AM. SPOTTER AND EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT ACTION STATEMENT... ACTIVATION OF THE REGIONAL SPOTTER NETWORK LIKELY. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...WEDNESDAY THROUGH MONDAY. WEDNESDAY...VERY HIGH FIRE WEATHER POTENTIAL. THURSDAY...THUNDERSTORM POTENTIAL...VERY HIGH FIRE WEATHER POTENTIAL...HIGH WIND POTENTIAL. FRIDAY...THUNDERSTORM POTENTIAL...VERY HIGH FIRE WEATHER POTENTIAL. SATURDAY...NO HAZARDS. SUNDAY...NO HAZARDS. MONDAY...VERY HIGH FIRE WEATHER POTENTIAL. EXTENDED DISCUSSION... GUSTY WESTERLY WINDS...CONTINUED ABOVE NORMAL TEMPERATURES...AND DRIER LOW LEVEL AIR WILL LEAD TO INCREASED FIRE DANGER WEDNESDAY. WINDS WILL SHIFT TO A MORE SOUTHERLY DIRECTION FOR THURSDAY AND INCREASE IN SPEED...LEADING TO A CONTINUED ELEVATED FIRE DANGER. A STRONGER COLD FRONT WILL MOVE TOWARD THE AREA LATE THURSDAY AND INTO FRIDAY...AND THUNDERSTORM CHANCES ARE EXPECTED TO INCREASE AHEAD OF THE BOUNDARY. THERE REMAINS SOME UNCERTAINTY AS TO WHEN THE FRONT WILL PASS THROUGH THE AREA...BUT IF THE SLOWER SOLUTION VERIFIES...A THREAT OF SEVERE STORMS WILL EXIST FOR FRIDAY. GUSTY NORTHWEST WINDS AND LOWER DEW POINTS BEHIND THE COLD FRONT ON SATURDAY WILL LEAD TO ANOTHER DAY OF INCREASED FIRE DANGER. AFTER A REPRIEVE ON SUNDAY...WARMER TEMPERATURES AND A RETURN TO STRONG SOUTHERLY WINDS WILL AGAIN LEAD TO ELEVATED FIRE SPREAD CONDITIONS ON MONDAY. WWW.SRH.NOAA.GOV/TULSA CONTAINS ADDITIONAL INFORMATION.
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TULSA OK
1015 PM CST TUE FEB 28 2012
OKZ054-059-060-064-290445-
CREEK OK-OSAGE OK-PAWNEE OK-TULSA OK-
1015 PM CST TUE FEB 28 2012
...SIGNIFICANT WEATHER ADVISORY...
THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN TULSA HAS ISSUED A
SIGNIFICANT WEATHER ADVISORY EFFECTIVE UNTIL 1045 PM CST
FOR THE FOLLOWING COUNTIES...
IN NORTHEAST OKLAHOMA
NORTHERN CREEK...SOUTHEASTERN OSAGE...EASTERN PAWNEE AND TULSA
AT 1015 PM CST...STRONG THUNDERSTORMS WERE LOCATED ALONG A LINE
EXTENDING FROM 2 MILES NORTH OF WALNUT CREEK STATE PARK TO 4 MILES
SOUTHWEST OF SHAMROCK...MOVING NORTHEAST AT 75 MPH.
SOME LOCATIONS IN OR NEAR THE PATH OF THESE STORMS INCLUDE...KEYSTONE
STATE PARK...SKIATOOK...KELLYVILLE...SPERRY...SAND SPRINGS...
SAPULPA...KIEFER...COLLINSVILLE...TULSA...JENKS AND OWASSO.
THESE STORMS WILL BE CAPABLE OF PRODUCING NICKEL SIZE HAIL AND WIND
GUSTS TO 50 MPH. RESIDENTS IN THESE AREAS SHOULD REMAIN ALERT IN CASE
THE SIGNIFICANT WEATHER ADVISORY IS UPGRADED TO A WARNING.
LAT...LON 3589 9662 3635 9624 3642 9593 3642 9582
3600 9582 3581 9662
TIME...MOT...LOC 0415Z 243DEG 66KT 3632 9620 3590 9655The Tulsa radar (KINX), 80 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 04:24 UTC.
11 thunderstorm wind. Local standard time, as filed.
Strong thunderstorm wind overturned a travel trailer and caused extensive damage to a carport.
Strong thunderstorm wind blew down large tree limbs and damaged large signs.
A tractor trailer truck was blown off the roadway and overturned, injuring the driver.
The Oklahoma Mesonet station north of Vinita measured 58 mph thunderstorm wind gusts.
Strong thunderstorm wind blew down large signs near E 31st Street South and S Memorial Drive.
Strong thunderstorm wind blew down a large tree and snapped some large tree limbs.
Strong thunderstorm wind damaged the roof of a home.
Strong thunderstorm wind blew down large tree limbs.
Strong thunderstorm wind blew down large tree limbs.
Strong thunderstorm wind blew down large tree limbs.
Strong thunderstorm wind blew down numerous large tree limbs.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Oklahoma in 2012Every state in 2012This day in weather historyWarnings in Oklahoma, February 2012
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: 362500, 362501, 362502, 362504, 362506, 362508, 362509, 362511, 362512, 362517, 362513.