Tornadoes · United States · Oklahoma · 2002
F0 tornado, Burns Flat, Oklahoma, May 24, 2002
This F0 tornado ran 0.2 miles across Washita County on May 24, 2002, touching down at 6:27 PM CDT and reaching 25 yards wide. It killed nobody.
The rating scale
Tracks are drawn in the color of the rating. The Fujita scale rates the damage rather than measuring the wind: the speeds are what that damage is taken to imply.
F040 to 72 mphthis tornado
Light damage. Surface peeled off some roofs, gutters and siding damaged, branches broken, shallow-rooted trees pushed over.
F173 to 112 mph
Moderate damage. Roofs badly stripped, mobile homes overturned or badly damaged, exterior doors lost, windows broken.
F2113 to 157 mph
Considerable damage. Roofs torn off well-built houses, frame homes shifted on their foundations, mobile homes destroyed, large trees snapped or uprooted, cars lifted off the ground.
F3158 to 206 mph
Severe damage. Whole stories of well-built houses destroyed, large buildings badly damaged, trains overturned, trees debarked, heavy cars lifted and thrown.
F4207 to 260 mph
Devastating damage. Well-built houses leveled, structures with weak foundations moved some distance, cars thrown and large missiles generated.
F5261 to 318 mph
Incredible damage. Strong frame houses swept off their foundations, car-sized missiles thrown more than 100 meters, steel-reinforced concrete badly damaged, high-rise buildings deformed.
Unrated
The survey recorded a tornado but could not put a number on it, most often because it crossed open country and damaged nothing a rating can be read from.
The record
- Rating
- F0
- Date
- May 24, 2002
- Touchdown
- 6:27 PM CDT (23:27 UTC)
- Path length
- 0.2 miles (0.3 km)
- Path width
- 25 yards (23 m)
- Deaths
- 0
- Injuries
- 0
- County
- Washita County
- Touchdown point
- 35.320, -99.130
- Lift-off point
- 35.320, -99.130
- Record number
- 47
What the Weather Service recorded
Storm chasers reported a brief tornado wrapped in rain. No damage was observed or reported.
From NOAA NCEI's Storm Events Database, the narrative the local forecast office wrote for Storm Data.
The warnings
No tornado warning for this county appears in the archive as in force at the moment the tornado touched down.
| Issued (UTC) | Expired | Product | Office |
|---|---|---|---|
| 22:26 UTC | 23:00 UTC | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | OUN |
| 22:56 UTC | 23:45 UTC | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | OUN |
| 23:48 UTC | 00:30 UTC | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | OUN |
Every warning and watch covering the touchdown point that day, from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service products. Lead time is measured from the issue of the warning in force to the touchdown time in the database, both of which were recorded to the minute by different people.
The forecast that day
The Storm Prediction Center had this point in a Moderate Risk, with a 0.15 chance of a tornado within 25 miles. The outlook in force was issued at 22:52 UTC.
SPC's Day 1 convective outlook as it stood when the tornado began, read at the touchdown point. The same archive is on the radar archive.
What forecasters said that day
The local office's own words before the tornado touched down, as it sent them, from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service text.
NWS Norman, OK wrote its last area forecast discussion before the tornado touched down at May 24, 2:45 PM CDT, 3 hours 42 minutes earlier.
Area forecast discussion, May 24, 2:45 PM CDT, 3 hours 42 minutes before
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE NORMAN OK 245 PM CDT FRI MAY 24 2002 VERY BUSY EVENING ON TAP AS ONE SEVERE THUNDERSTORM HAD ALREADY DEVELOPED ACROSS NORTHERN OKLAHOMA AND THIS WILL BE THE BEGINNING OF A TREND THAT WILL CONT THROUGH MUCH OF THE UPCOMING EVENING AND NIGHT. STORMS ARE EXPECTED TO DEVELOP ALONG COLD FRONT...WHICH IS SLOWLY PUSHING SOUTH INTO WESTERN AND NORTHWESTERN OKLAHOMA. INITIALLY...THESE STORMS SHOULD REMAIN MORE SCATTERED/DISCREET IN NATURE ACROSS WRN/SWRN OK AND N TX...WHICH WILL KEEP TORNADO PROB HIGHER THIS EVENING. AS EVENING WEARS ON SHOULD DEVELOP A LARGE COMPLEX OF STORMS WHICH WILL MARCH SLOWLY SOUTH AND EAST ACROSS MUCH OF THE AREA. AS EVENING WEARS ON FOCUS SHIFTS TO MORE STRONG WINDS AND HEAVY RAIN THREATS. ALTHOUGH COULD SEE SOME ISOLATED FLASH FLOODING...WITH ANTECEDENT CONDITIONS WHAT THEY ARE AND THAT SYSTEM SHOULD BE PROGRESSIVE ENOUGH...DO NOT THINK IT WARRANTS FLASH FLOOD WATCH. MUCH OF THIS ACTIVITY SHOULD BE EXITING SE OKLAHOMA SAT MORNING AND MUCH OF THE DAY LOOKS DRY...ESPECIALLY ACROSS NW TWO-THIRDS OF AREA. WOULD LIKE TO BE ABLE TO FORECAST MORE SUNSHINE...BUT MOSTLY CLOUDY LOOKS TO BE THE WAY TO GO THROUGH MUCH OF THIS PACKAGE. WILL ALSO TRY TO REMOVE SOME POPS FOR PORTIONS OF THE AREA THIS WEEKEND...BUT THIS LOOKS TO BE SHORT-LIVED AS MOISTURE IS NOT GOING ANYWHERE THIS TIME AROUND AND MRF ADVERTISES CONT CHANCES THROUGH NEXT WEEK. WILL BUY OFF ON THE MRF DEVELOPING UPPER RIDGE BY LATE IN THE WEEK AND WILL KEEP FRI DRY FOR NOW. FCSTID =30 OKC 61 73 58 80 / 100 30 10 20 HBR 57 75 57 81 / 80 20 20 30 SPS 64 77 61 84 / 80 40 30 30 GAG 46 75 56 80 / 60 10 10 30 PNC 54 73 55 80 / 100 10 10 20 DUA 65 76 61 81 / 70 80 30 20 .OUN... OK...NONE TX...NONE
In the hours before
Local storm report, May 24, 1:46 PM CDT, 4 hours 41 minutes before
LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE NORMAN OK
146 PM CDT FRI MAY 24 2002
TIME (CDT) .....CITY LOCATION.....STATE ...EVENT/REMARKS...
....COUNTY LOCATION....
0145 PM 3 N BRAMAN OK .88 INCH HAIL
05/24/02 KAY PUBLIC REPORT
FMLocal storm report, May 24, 3:54 PM CDT, 2 hours 33 minutes before
LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE NORMAN OK
354 PM CDT FRI MAY 24 2002
TIME (CDT) .....CITY LOCATION.....STATE ...EVENT/REMARKS...
....COUNTY LOCATION....
0130 AM 2 SW GOODWIN OK 1.00 INCH HAIL
05/24/02 ELLIS PUBLIC REPORT
FMLocal storm report, May 24, 4:21 PM CDT, 2 hours 6 minutes before
LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE NORMAN OK
421 PM CDT FRI MAY 24 2002
TIME (CDT) .....CITY LOCATION.....STATE ...EVENT/REMARKS...
....COUNTY LOCATION....
0410 PM 8 NW HOLLIS OK .88 INCH HAIL
05/24/02 HARMON
FMLocal storm report, May 24, 4:33 PM CDT, 1 hour 54 minutes before
LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE NORMAN OK
433 PM CDT FRI MAY 24 2002
TIME (CDT) .....CITY LOCATION.....STATE ...EVENT/REMARKS...
....COUNTY LOCATION....
0433 PM HOLLIS OK 1.00 INCH HAIL
05/24/02 HARMON AMATEUR RADIO SPOTTER
FMLocal storm report, May 24, 5:35 PM CDT, 52 minutes before
LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE NORMAN OK
535 PM CDT FRI MAY 24 2002
TIME (CDT) .....CITY LOCATION.....STATE ...EVENT/REMARKS...
....COUNTY LOCATION....
0450 PM 11 W WILLOW OK .88 INCH HAIL
05/24/02 GREER PUBLIC REPORT
0506 PM SAYRE OK .75 INCH HAIL
05/24/02 BECKHAM EMERGENCY MGT.
0521 PM 4 W ELK CITY OK 1.00 INCH HAIL
05/24/02 BECKHAM SPOTTER REPORT
0501 PM 9 E HOLLIS OK .75 INCH HAIL
05/24/02 HARMON PUBLIC REPORT
0528 PM QUANAH TX .88 INCH HAIL
05/24/02 HARDEMAN AMATEUR RADIO SPOTTER
0533 PM 3 W REED OK .75 INCH HAIL
05/24/02 GREER AMATEUR RADIO SPOTTER
FMLocal storm report, May 24, 6:25 PM CDT, 2 minutes before
LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE NORMAN OK
625 PM CDT FRI MAY 24 2002
TIME (CDT) .....CITY LOCATION.....STATE ...EVENT/REMARKS...
....COUNTY LOCATION....
0530 PM GOULD OK 1.00 INCH HAIL
05/24/02 HARMON MEDIA REPORT
0602 PM 10 SW MANGUM OK 1.25 INCH HAIL
05/24/02 GREER GREER CO EOC
0603 PM 3 S FOSS OK 61 MPH WIND GUST
05/24/02 WASHITA OFF DUTY NWS EMPLOYEE
0607 PM 3 S FOSS OK .75 INCH HAIL
05/24/02 WASHITA OFF DUTY NWS EMPLOYEE
0603 PM BURNS FLAT OK 62 MPH WIND GUST
05/24/02 WASHITA CSM ASOS
0602 PM TRUSCOTT TX 1.00 INCH HAIL
05/24/02 KNOX SPOTTER REPORT
0610 PM 6 N BENJAMIN TX 2.75 INCH HAIL
05/24/02 KNOX SPOTTER REPORT
0622 PM BURNS FLAT OK .88 INCH HAIL
05/24/02 WASHITA HAM RADIO SPOTTER
0617 PM SEILING OK 1.00 INCH HAIL
05/24/02 DEWEY HAM RADIO SPOTTER
FMThe surface observations
Clinton-Sherman (CSM), 7 km from the path, in the two hours either side.
| Time (UTC) | Temp (°F) | Dew point (°F) | Wind | Gust (kt) | Pressure (mb) | Weather |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 21:53 UTC | 79 | 65 | 130° 19 kt | 1009.1 | ||
| 22:23 UTC | 77 | 64.4 | 130° 18 kt | 25 | 1010.5 | TS |
| 22:42 UTC | 73.4 | 66.2 | 120° 8 kt | 1010.2 | TSRA | |
| 22:53 UTC | 73 | 67 | 320° 11 kt | 19 | 1011.2 | TSRA |
| 22:59 UTC | 64.4 | 62.6 | 330° 28 kt | 40 | 1010.8 | TSRA BR |
| 23:07 UTC | 68 | 62.6 | 10° 22 kt | 54 | 1010.8 | +TSRA |
| 23:15 UTC | 64.4 | 62.6 | 50° 27 kt | 45 | 1011.5 | +TSRA BR |
| 23:22 UTC | 66.2 | 62.6 | 70° 29 kt | 33 | 1011.5 | +TSRA BR |
| 23:35 UTC | 64.4 | 62.6 | 360° 19 kt | 27 | 1012.2 | VCTS -RA BR |
| 23:53 UTC | 57 | 56 | 340° 15 kt | 26 | 1013.2 | -TSRA |
| 00:13 UTC | 55.4 | 53.6 | 350° 20 kt | 27 | 1013.2 | VCTS -RA |
| 00:20 UTC | 55.4 | 53.6 | 350° 15 kt | 27 | 1013.2 | VCTS -RA |
| 00:41 UTC | 55.4 | 53.6 | 360° 13 kt | 22 | 1013.9 | |
| 00:53 UTC | 55 | 53 | 360° 14 kt | 1013.9 |
From the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of airport observations.
The radar
The Altus AFB radar (KFDR), 107 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the touchdown began at 23:26 UTC.
Open the radar archive at this moment, over the track
Reflectivity and velocity, decoded from the Level II archive in the browser. Volumes take a few seconds to open the first time.
This ground now
The live radar over the trackEvery 2002 tornado in OklahomaEvery tornado in Oklahoma since 1950Warnings in force in Oklahoma nowThe forecast where you are
The other tornadoes of May 24, 2002
5 more were confirmed in the United States that day.
What this means
Ratings are the survey's, read off the damage rather than measured; the rating scale is above. Tornado counts rise through the record as reporting improved, so a year in the 1950s is not comparable with one today except for the strongest tornadoes, which were always noticed.
Sources
NOAA Storm Prediction Center tornado database, 1950-2025, the official record kept by NOAA's Storm Prediction Center.