Numerous thunderstorms developed along and ahead of a cold front moving through eastern Oklahoma on the evening of the 30th. These thunderstorms produced widespread damaging winds and some large hail.
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.
Numerous thunderstorms developed along and ahead of a cold front moving through eastern Oklahoma on the evening of the 30th. These thunderstorms produced widespread damaging winds and some large hail.
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 May 30, 7:02 PM CST, 3 hours 1 minute earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TULSA OK 802 PM CDT WED MAY 30 2012 ...UPDATE... .DISCUSSION... STRONG TO SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS CONTINUE TO DEVELOP ALONG A COLD FRONT PUSHING SOUTHWARD ACROSS KANSAS. THIS ACTIVITY IS EXPECTED TO CONTINUE TO PUSH SOUTH WITH THE FRONT AND LOOKS TO MOVE INTO EASTERN OKLAHOMA AND NORTHWEST ARKANSAS A LITTLE QUICKER THAN ORIGINALLY THOUGHT. LOOKS LIKE STORMS CELLS COULD BE CROSSING THE BORDER INTO OKLAHOMA AFTER O2Z. ESTIMATED WINDS UP TOWARDS 70 MPH HAVE BEEN SEEN WITH THESE STORMS AS THEY ARE PUSHING THROUGH KANSAS. DAMAGING WINDS SHOULD CONTINUE TO BE THE MAIN THREAT WITH THESE STORMS...THOUGH A HAIL THREAT ALSO EXISTS. THE TORNADO THREAT LOOKS TO BE DECREASING AS THESE STORMS HAVE BEEN FORMING INTO MORE OF A BOW/MCS OVER THE PAST HOUR. EVENING UPDATE WILL BE TO ADJUST POPS/WIND GUSTS/SKY GRIDS AS THE MCS AND COLD FRONT MOVE THROUGH THE REGION. UPDATE WILL BE OUT SHORTLY. && .PRELIMINARY POINT TEMPS/POPS... TUL 68 77 51 74 / 80 30 0 0 FSM 69 80 53 76 / 70 50 10 0 MLC 69 79 53 76 / 80 40 10 10 BVO 64 75 49 74 / 80 20 0 10 FYV 63 75 48 71 / 80 40 10 0 BYV 64 74 49 70 / 80 50 10 0 MKO 67 77 51 75 / 80 40 10 0 MIO 67 74 51 72 / 80 30 10 0 F10 67 77 52 74 / 80 40 10 10 HHW 70 82 56 79 / 50 30 10 0 && .TSA WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... OK...NONE. AR...NONE. && SHORT TERM...20 LONG TERM....99
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TULSA OK
837 PM CDT WED MAY 30 2012
ARZ001-002-010-011-019-020-029-OKZ049-053>076-311345-
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-
837 PM CDT WED MAY 30 2012
...STRONG TO SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS TO MOVE THROUGH TONIGHT...
THIS OUTLOOK IS FOR NORTHWEST AND WEST CENTRAL ARKANSAS AS WELL AS
MUCH OF EASTERN OKLAHOMA.
.DAY ONE...TONIGHT.
SEVERE THUNDERSTORM.
RISK...SIGNIFICANT.
AREA...EASTERN OKLAHOMA AND NORTHWEST ARKANSAS.
ONSET...ONGOING.
FLASH FLOOD.
RISK...LIMITED.
AREA...EASTERN OKLAHOMA AND NORTHWEST ARKANSAS.
ONSET...ONGOING.
HEAVY RAIN.
RISK...LIMITED.
AREA...EASTERN OKLAHOMA AND NORTHWEST ARKANSAS.
ONSET...ONGOING.
DISCUSSION...
STRONG TO SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS CONTINUE TO DEVELOP ALONG A COLD
FRONT PUSHING SOUTH ACROSS CENTRAL AND SOUTHERN KANSAS. THIS
ACTIVITY WILL CONTINUE TO PUSH SOUTHWARD WITH THE FRONT INTO
NORTHEAST OKLAHOMA THIS EVENING AND SPREAD ACROSS THE REST OF THE
REGION OVERNIGHT AS A COMPLEX OF THUNDERSTORMS. DAMAGING TO
DESTRUCTIVE WINDS WILL BE THE PRIMARY THREAT AS THESE STORMS MOVE
THROUGH...WITH ALSO A HAIL THREAT INCLUDED. PERIODS OF HEAVY
RAINFALL WITHIN THE THUNDERSTORM COMPLEX WILL BE POSSIBLE WHICH
COULD CREATE A POTENTIAL FOR FLASH FLOODING CONDITIONS.
SPOTTER AND EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT ACTION STATEMENT...
ACTIVATION OF THE REGIONAL SPOTTER NETWORK EXPECTED.
.DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...THURSDAY THROUGH TUESDAY.
THURSDAY...THUNDERSTORM POTENTIAL.
FRIDAY AND SATURDAY...THUNDERSTORM POTENTIAL.
SUNDAY THROUGH TUESDAY...THUNDERSTORM POTENTIAL.
EXTENDED DISCUSSION...
THUNDERSTORMS ARE EXPECTED TO BE ONGOING THURSDAY MORNING AS THE
COLD FRONT CONTINUES TO PUSH THROUGH EASTERN OKLAHOMA AND
NORTHWEST ARKANSAS. A LIMITED SEVERE POTENTIAL WILL BE POSSIBLE
WITH THE ACTIVITY AHEAD OF THE COLD FRONT. THE COLD FRONT SHOULD
EXIT THE REGION THURSDAY AFTERNOON AND EVENING WITH COOLER AND
DRIER AIR FILTERING INTO THE REGION IN ITS WAKE.
CHANCES FOR SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS LOOK TO RETURN TO EASTERN
OKLAHOMA AND NORTHWEST ARKANSAS FRIDAY NIGHT AND SATURDAY AS A
WEAK WARM FRONT TRIES TO PUSH NORTHWARD INTO THE REGION. THIS
FRONTAL BOUNDARY COULD REMAIN NEAR THE REGION SUNDAY AND MONDAY
WITH THE POTENTIAL TO RETURN SOUTHWARD AS A COLD FRONT TUESDAY.
THIS WILL ALLOW FOR SMALL CHANCES OF SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS TO
CONTINUE THROUGH TUESDAY.
WWW.SRH.NOAA.GOV/TULSA CONTAINS ADDITIONAL INFORMATION.The Tulsa radar (KINX), 79 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 04:04 UTC.
11 thunderstorm wind, 3 hail. Local standard time, as filed.
Strong thunderstorm wind estimated to around 60 mph blew down large tree limbs near Pershing.
Strong thunderstorm wind blew down large tree limbs.
Strong thunderstorm wind blew down large trees onto a road.
Strong thunderstorm wind blew down large trees.
Strong thunderstorm wind estimated to around 60 mph snapped large tree limbs.
Strong thunderstorm wind blew a large dumpster about one half of a block.
Strong thunderstorm wind snapped large tree limbs.
Strong thunderstorm wind blew down trees and power lines on the west side of town.
Strong thunderstorm wind blew down a large tree near E 61st Street South and South Trenton Avenue.
Strong thunderstorm wind estimated to near 60 mph snapped large tree limbs.
Strong thunderstorm wind snapped 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, May 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: 383412, 383413, 383414, 383415, 383416, 383417, 383418, 385495, 383420, 383421, 383422, 383425, 383426, 383431.