Thunderstorms developed over western Kansas during the evening of the 21st, to the north of a low pressure system centered over the Oklahoma Panhandle. These storms moved east-southeast and organized into a squall line as they moved into eastern Oklahoma during the early morning hours of the 22nd.
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.
Thunderstorms developed over western Kansas during the evening of the 21st, to the north of a low pressure system centered over the Oklahoma Panhandle. These storms moved east-southeast and organized into a squall line as they moved into eastern Oklahoma during the early morning hours of the 22nd. The strongest storms produced damaging wind. Strong to severe thunderstorms redeveloped over southeastern Oklahoma during the evening near a stationary frontal boundary, as an upper level disturbance approached the region. A strongly unstable air mass across the area combined with strong deep layer wind shear to promote the development of supercell thunderstorms, several of which produced large hail up to baseball size and tornadoes.
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 22, 2:14 AM CST, 2 hours 21 minutes earlier.
Area Forecast Discussion National Weather Service Tulsa OK 314 AM CDT Fri May 22 2020 .DISCUSSION... The main forecast concern will be severe/heavy rain potential today and tonight. A shortwave trough, currently over the central/southern High Plains, will eject northeast across the central lower Plains today. At the surface, a warm front extends east/southeast from a surface low over the northern TX Panhandle across eastern OK. A cold pool generated by an ongoing MCS over NW OK/SW KS is surging toward the south and east. The forecast for today and into tonight will hedge largely on the mesoscale details, namely the track of the ongoing MCS and the position of the outflow boundary by this afternoon. The current gridded forecast reflects the latest trends in the data, but subtle changes may be needed by later today. The ongoing MCS is expected to track east/southeast across northeast OK this morning and into northwest AR by early afternoon. Severe potential will be low as the storms enter our far western areas early this morning, but will likely ramp up thru the morning with daytime heating and advancing warm front ahead of the feature. Damaging winds and possibly a quick spin-up tornado are possible, especially where the outflow intersects the warm front. As we head into the afternoon, the left over outflow boundary should be draped from west central AR across southeast OK where more convection is likely to be focused. H5 winds will increase some during the day in the basal portion of the ejecting shortwave trough, so the initial cellular convection could be supercellular. Any discrete storms that have time to interact with the outflow boundary could produce a tornado, along with large hail and damaging winds. The latest CAMs suggest that cellular mode may not last long, growing upscale into a southeastward moving complex by late this afternoon or early this evening. Other scattered convection is likely to develop this evening across eastern OK/northwest AR as the low level jet interacts with the outflow boundary. The greatest heavy rain potential will exist across northeast OK and northwest AR thru early afternoon, especially in areas that get affected by a developing band of storms in association with the retreating warm front ahead of the MCS and by the MCS itself. As we head into the afternoon and evening, the heavy rain potential shifts down across southeast OK, where the outflow boundary could focus multiple rounds of convection over the same areas. The beginning of the holiday weekend looks fairly tame, with our area in the wake of the ejecting shortwave trough and rising heights aloft. Expect potential for rain/storms to increase, however, by the end of the weekend as an upper trough approaches from the west. Unsettled weather continues into next week as an upper low closes off overhead and becomes cutoff from the flow. We may finally see an end to precip chances by the following weekend when a cold front is expected to push thru, but we'll just have to wait and see. While organized severe weather is not expected, pockets of locally heavy rainfall, falling on areas likely to have received rounds of heavy rainfall previous, may begin to cause river flooding and localized flash flooding. Lacy && .PRELIMINARY POINT TEMPS/POPS... TUL 81 66 86 70 / 90 30 20 20 FSM 82 66 88 69 / 70 50 20 10 MLC 82 66 85 69 / 70 40 20 10 BVO 78 65 85 69 / 90 30 20 20 FYV 78 65 84 68 / 70 50 20 10 BYV 77 64 84 67 / 80 40 20 10 MKO 81 66 84 69 / 90 40 20 10 MIO 77 64 84 69 / 90 50 20 20 F10 81 66 84 69 / 80 30 20 10 HHW 83 67 85 69 / 60 40 20 10 && .TSA WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... OK...None. AR...None. && LONG TERM....30
Hazardous Weather Outlook National Weather Service Tulsa OK 451 AM CDT Fri May 22 2020 ARZ001-002-010-011-019-020-029-OKZ049-053>076-231000- 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- 451 AM CDT Fri May 22 2020 ...SEVERE STORMS AND LOCALLY HEAVY RAINFALL POSSIBLE TODAY... 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 Western Arkansas. ONSET...Northeast Oklahoma this morning, Southeast Oklahoma and Western Arkansas this afternoon and early evening. SEVERE THUNDERSTORM. RISK...Significant. AREA...Eastern Oklahoma and Western Arkansas. ONSET...Northeast Oklahoma this morning, Southeast Oklahoma and Western Arkansas this afternoon. AREA AT GREATEST RISK...West of highway 75 this morning, Southeast Oklahoma and West Central Arkansas this afternoon and evening. FLASH FLOOD. RISK...Limited. AREA...Far Northeast Oklahoma and Northwest Arkansas, portions of Southeast Oklahoma. ONSET...Northeast Oklahoma and Northwest Arkansas this morning into the early afternoon, Southeast Oklahoma this afternoon evening. HEAVY RAIN. RISK...Elevated. AREA...Far Northeast Oklahoma and Northwest Arkansas, portions of Southeast Oklahoma. ONSET...Northeast Oklahoma and Northwest Arkansas this morning into the early afternoon, Southeast Oklahoma this afternoon evening . DISCUSSION... A complex of storms will sweep across northeast Oklahoma this morning and into western Arkansas by early this afternoon. Damaging winds and a quick spin-up tornado are possible with these storms. More storms are expected to develop from west central Arkansas down into southeast Oklahoma along an outflow boundary this afternoon. These storms could become severe quickly, and will pose a large hail, damaging wind and tornado risk while cells remain discrete. A strong tornado is possible. Widely scattered storms are possible during the evening across eastern Oklahoma with some threat for large hail and damaging winds. Locally heavy rainfall and flash flooding is possible across northeast Oklahoma and northwest Arkansas this morning into the early afternoon, and across southeast Oklahoma this afternoon and evening. SPOTTER AND EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT ACTION STATEMENT... Activation of the Regional Spotter Network Expected. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...Saturday through Thursday. SATURDAY...Thunderstorm Potential. SUNDAY AND MONDAY...Thunderstorm Potential...Heavy Rain Potential. TUESDAY THRU THURSDAY...Thunderstorm Potential. EXTENDED DISCUSSION... An unsettled weather pattern will bring daily thunderstorm chances mainly from the latter part of the holiday weekend on into the following week. While organized severe weather is not expected, pockets of locally heavy rainfall, falling on areas likely to have received rounds of heavy rainfall previous, may begin to cause river flooding and localized flash flooding by early next week. weather.gov/tulsa contains additional information. Lacy
Special Weather Statement
National Weather Service Tulsa OK
459 AM CDT Fri May 22 2020
OKZ054-059-221045-
Osage OK-Pawnee OK-
459 AM CDT Fri May 22 2020
...SIGNIFICANT WEATHER ADVISORY FOR WESTERN OSAGE AND PAWNEE COUNTIES
UNTIL 545 AM CDT...
At 459 AM CDT, strong thunderstorms were located along a line
extending from 7 miles west of Hardy to 5 miles north of Marland to 4
miles north of Lake Mcmurtry. Movement was east at 40 mph.
Wind gusts up to 50 mph will be possible with these storms.
Locations in or near the path include...
Pawnee... Fairfax...
Shidler... Jennings...
Ralston... Burbank...
Hallett... Blackburn...
Maramec... Elgin...
Skedee... Grainola...
Foraker... Pearsonia...
Sooner Lake... Southern Kaw Lake...
Webb City... Apperson...
PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...
To report severe weather, contact your nearest law enforcement
agency. They will relay your report to the National Weather Service
office in Tulsa.
&&
LAT...LON 3700 9626 3699 9626 3616 9657 3616 9682
3624 9682 3625 9692 3633 9693 3634 9703
3651 9703 3658 9689 3660 9692 3659 9705
3668 9706 3670 9703 3668 9694 3675 9689
3674 9683 3677 9682 3678 9675 3700 9675
TIME...MOT...LOC 0959Z 269DEG 33KT 3697 9693 3664 9714 3624 9719The Tulsa radar (KINX), 110 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 10:37 UTC.
8 thunderstorm wind, 7 hail, 5 tornado. Local standard time, as filed.
The Oklahoma Mesonet station near Pawnee measured 65 mph thunderstorm wind gusts.
Strong thunderstorm wind blew down several large trees, and snapped a power pole.
Strong thunderstorm wind snapped large tree limbs, and blew down power lines.
Thunderstorm wind gusts to 71 mph were measured along the Keystone Expressway, west of Tulsa.
Strong thunderstorm wind blew down a tree near W 17th Street and S Denver Avenue.
Strong thunderstorm wind blew down trees in Turley.
Strong thunderstorm wind blew down power lines and snapped large tree limbs.
Ping pong ball size hail damaged vehicles and homes.
Golf ball size hail damaged vehicles and homes.
Baseball size hail damaged vehicles, homes, and businesses.
This tornado was observed by several storm chasers. It occurred over heavily-wooded terrain that was inaccessible by road, thus a storm survey team was unable to review any damage that may have been produced by the tornado.
A tornado briefly developed over heavily-wooded terrain. It was witnessed by several storm spotters. A damage survey team could not access the area where the tornado likely occurred.
This tornado developed north of Highway 63, and east of Blagg Road, where softwood trees were snapped and uprooted. The tornado moved north-northeast, crossing Green Hill Road, where hardwood trees were uprooted, and large tree limbs were snapped. It dissipated in open country south of Highway 271. Based on this damage, maximum estimated wind in the tornado was 95 to 105 mph.
This tornado developed south of Highway 63, and west of Flag Lake Road, where trees were uprooted. It moved east-northeast damaging a home, destroying an outbuilding, and uprooting more hardwood trees on 374th Avenue, before crossing Highway 63. The tornado continued east-northeast, uprooting trees on Camp Tom Hale Road and Bohannon Creek Lane, and then dissipated in heavily-wooded terrain north and west of NF6027. Based on this damage, maximum estimated wind in the tornado was 90 to 100 mph.
This tornado developed in heavily-wooded terrain. It uprooted a few softwood trees as it crossed NF6027, and uprooted numerous softwood trees as it crossed NF6152. It was observed by a storm spotter. Based on this damage, maximum estimated wind in the tornado was 90 to 95 mph.
Strong thunderstorm wind blew down a peach tree, snapped large tree limbs, and blew shingles from the roof of a home.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Oklahoma in 2020Every state in 2020This day in weather historyThe tornado archive for Oklahoma, 2020Warnings in Oklahoma, May 2020
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: 890934, 891952, 891956, 891961, 891964, 891971, 891972, 891976, 891977, 891978, 891979, 891980, 897789, 897794, 891639, 891652, 891655, 891983, 891984, 890936.