Tornadoes · United States · Oklahoma · 2017

Unrated tornado, Troy, Oklahoma, May 27, 2017

This Unrated tornado ran 1.5 miles across Johnston County on May 27, 2017, touching down at 10:39 PM CDT and reaching 50 yards wide. It killed nobody.

The rating scale

Tracks are drawn in the color of the rating. The Enhanced Fujita scale rates the damage rather than measuring the wind: the speeds are what that damage is taken to imply.

  1. EF065 to 85 mph

    Light damage. Surface peeled off some roofs, gutters and siding damaged, branches broken, shallow-rooted trees pushed over.

  2. EF186 to 110 mph

    Moderate damage. Roofs badly stripped, mobile homes overturned or badly damaged, exterior doors lost, windows broken.

  3. EF2111 to 135 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.

  4. EF3136 to 165 mph

    Severe damage. Whole stories of well-built houses destroyed, large buildings badly damaged, trains overturned, trees debarked, heavy cars lifted and thrown.

  5. EF4166 to 200 mph

    Devastating damage. Well-built houses leveled, structures with weak foundations moved some distance, cars thrown and large missiles generated.

  6. EF5over 200 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.

  7. Unratedthis tornado

    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
Unrated
Date
May 27, 2017
Touchdown
10:39 PM CDT (03:39 UTC)
Lifted
10:41 PM CDT (03:41 UTC)
On the ground
2 minutes
Path length
1.5 miles (2.4 km)
Path width
50 yards (46 m)
Deaths
0
Injuries
0
County
Johnston County
Touchdown point
34.332, -96.844
Lift-off point
34.330, -96.818
Record number
1705272139-01

What the Weather Service recorded

Thunderstorms formed in the vicinity of a cold front and dryline late on the 27th and continued till just after midnight on the 28th.

Numerous spotters observed a tornado west of Troy. No damage was reported and the location is estimated.

From NOAA NCEI's Storm Events Database, the narrative the local forecast office wrote for Storm Data.

The warnings

7 minutes of warning. NWS OUN issued a tornado warning for this county at 03:32 UTC, 7 minutes before the tornado touched down, in force until 04:15 UTC.

The county was under a tornado watch, issued at 21:05 UTC and running to 07:00 UTC.

Issued (UTC)ExpiredProductOffice
21:05 UTC07:00 UTCTornado WatchOUN
00:00 UTC08:44 UTCFlood WatchOUN
00:19 UTC01:15 UTCSevere Thunderstorm WarningOUN
00:41 UTC01:30 UTCSevere Thunderstorm WarningOUN
00:54 UTC01:30 UTCTornado WarningOUN
01:12 UTC02:00 UTCSevere Thunderstorm WarningOUN
01:29 UTC01:44 UTCSevere Thunderstorm WarningOUN
02:47 UTC05:45 UTCFlood AdvisoryOUN
03:09 UTC07:15 UTCFlash Flood WarningOUN
03:24 UTC04:30 UTCSevere Thunderstorm WarningOUN
03:32 UTC04:15 UTCTornado WarningOUN
03:39 UTC04:30 UTCSevere Thunderstorm WarningOUN
03:50 UTC05:00 UTCSevere Thunderstorm WarningOUN
04:17 UTC05:30 UTCSevere Thunderstorm WarningOUN
04:50 UTC08:38 UTCFlash Flood WarningOUN
05:25 UTC06:30 UTCSevere Thunderstorm WarningOUN

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 Enhanced Risk, with a 0.10 chance of a tornado within 25 miles. The outlook in force was issued at 00:44 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.

The air that afternoon

The radiosonde launches on either side of the tornado, from the nearest station that was launching then, drawn and analyzed the way Storm Lab does: the same diagram, the same parcel and shear definitions SPC's mesoanalysis uses.

Norman, OK (KOUN), 00:00Z

3.7 hours before the tornado, 112 km from the path. May 28, 2017.

Skew-T log-pSkew-T log-p diagram, Norman, OK at 00:00Z on 2017-05-28Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel lifted from the surface. Mixed-layer CAPE 5174 joules per kilogram, CIN -10, lifted condensation level 1475 meters above ground. Wind barbs in knots down the right edge.LCLEL10008507005003002001001 km2 km3 km6 km9 km12 km15 km-30°-20°-10°10°20°30°40°
Temperature in red, dew point in green, the mixed-layer parcel dashed. The warm shading is its CAPE, the cool shading the inhibition it has to break through.
HodographHodograph, Norman, OK at 00:00Z on 2017-05-28The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers as a curve, rings every 10 meters per second labeled in knots. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 91 square meters per square second, 0 to 6 km bulk shear 56 knots.19395878Sfc1 km3 km6 km9 kmRMLM
The wind turning with height, colored by layer: ground to 1 km, 1 to 3 km, 3 to 6 km, 6 to 10 km. RM and LM are the right and left moving storms Bunkers' method gives; the shaded area is the 0 to 1 km storm-relative helicity.
Mixed-layer CAPE
5174 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-10 J/kg
Surface CAPE
6172 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
1475 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
56 kt
0-1 km bulk shear
13 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
91 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
119 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
1.2
Supercell composite
8.1
0-3 km lapse rate
7.7 K/km

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

Norman, OK (KOUN), 12:00Z

8.3 hours after it, 112 km from the path. May 28, 2017.

Skew-T log-pSkew-T log-p diagram, Norman, OK at 12:00Z on 2017-05-28Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel lifted from the surface. Mixed-layer CAPE 159 joules per kilogram, CIN -341, lifted condensation level 863 meters above ground. Wind barbs in knots down the right edge.LCLLFCEL10008507005003002001001 km2 km3 km6 km9 km12 km15 km-30°-20°-10°10°20°30°40°
Temperature in red, dew point in green, the mixed-layer parcel dashed. The warm shading is its CAPE, the cool shading the inhibition it has to break through.
HodographHodograph, Norman, OK at 12:00Z on 2017-05-28The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers as a curve, rings every 10 meters per second labeled in knots. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity -130 square meters per square second, 0 to 6 km bulk shear 55 knots.19395878Sfc1 km3 km6 km9 kmRMLM
The wind turning with height, colored by layer: ground to 1 km, 1 to 3 km, 3 to 6 km, 6 to 10 km. RM and LM are the right and left moving storms Bunkers' method gives; the shaded area is the 0 to 1 km storm-relative helicity.
Mixed-layer CAPE
159 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-341 J/kg
Surface CAPE
247 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
863 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
55 kt
0-1 km bulk shear
18 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
-130 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
79 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.0
Supercell composite
0.0
0-3 km lapse rate
4.6 K/km

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The radar

The Norman radar (KTLX), 119 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the touchdown began at 03:42 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.

What was reported nearby

Local storm reports within 60 km of the path, in the three hours either side.

Time (UTC)ReportWhereCountyRemark
00:45 UTCHAIL 1.25StratfordGarvin, OK
00:49 UTCHAIL 1.5Mill CreekJohnston, OK
01:27 UTCHAIL 0.881 E BromideCoal, OK
01:27 UTCHAIL 0.881 Ene BromideCoal, OK
01:30 UTCHAIL 14 S BromideJohnston, OK
01:30 UTCHAIL 14 Wsw WapanuckaJohnston, OK
01:49 UTCHAIL 1.251 Ese WapanuckaJohnston, OK
01:49 UTCHAIL 1.251 E WapanuckaAtoka, OK
02:13 UTCHAIL 0.881 S CoalgateCoal, OKDIME AND NICKEL HAIL.
02:13 UTCHAIL 0.88CoalgateCoal, OKDIME AND NICKEL HAIL
02:31 UTCHAIL 2.754 Se Elmore CityGarvin, OK
02:31 UTCHAIL 2.755 N HennepinGarvin, OK
02:32 UTCHAIL 2.753 Wnw HennepinGarvin, OK
03:09 UTCTSTM WND GST 60DavisMurray, OK
03:17 UTCTSTM WND GST 601 N SpringerCarter, OKVIA KFOR
03:17 UTCTSTM WND GST 601 N SpringerCarter, OKVIA KFOR.
03:17 UTCTORNADODoughertyMurray, OKKOCO CHASER REPORTED VIA NWSCHAT.
03:35 UTCTSTM WND GST 705 Sw FittstownPontotoc, OK
03:35 UTCTSTM WND GST 706 Sw FittstownPontotoc, OK
03:45 UTCFLASH FLOODSulphurMurray, OKSOME ROADS THAT TYPICALLY FLOOD WERE BARRICADED DUE TO FLOWING WATER.
03:47 UTCTSTM WND GST 604 N RaviaJohnston, OK
03:48 UTCHAIL 1.5Mill CreekJohnston, OK
04:00 UTCTSTM WND DMG1 S CoalgateCoal, OKMULTIPLE TREES AND POWER LONES DOWN ON SOUTH SIDE OF COALGATE.
04:00 UTCTSTM WND DMGCoalgateCoal, OKMULTIPLE TREES AND POWER LONES DOWN ON SOUTH SIDE OF COALGATE.
05:13 UTCHAIL 0.752 W ArdmoreCarter, OK
05:20 UTCTSTM WND GST 592 Nne Lone GroveCarter, OK
05:20 UTCTSTM WND GST 597 Wnw ArdmoreCarter, OK

From the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service local storm reports.

This ground now

The live radar over the trackEvery 2017 tornado in OklahomaEvery tornado in Oklahoma since 1950Warnings in force in Oklahoma nowThe forecast where you are

The other tornadoes of May 27, 2017

13 more were confirmed in the United States that day.

DateTimeRatingWherePath (mi)Width (yd)DeathsInjuriesDamage
May 272:38 PM CDTEF1Morgan, MO0.1300$25,000
May 272:38 PM CDTEF1Morgan, MO0.150$50,000
May 272:50 PM CDTEF1Laclede, MO9.0100$100,000
May 273:05 PM CDTEF1Laclede, MO5.0400$100,000
May 273:09 PM CDTEF1Laclede, MO2.1100
May 273:25 PM CDTEF1Laclede, MO0.0100
May 274:00 PM CDTEF0Dent, MO0.050
May 278:18 PM CDTEF0Butler, MO1.985$40,000
May 278:20 PM CDTEF0Okfuskee, OK2.1100
May 278:55 PM CDTUnratedOkfuskee, OK0.6100
May 2710:17 PM CDTUnratedMurray, OK2.850
May 2711:06 PM CDTUnratedJefferson, OK2.5100
May 2711:45 PM CDTEF1Crawford, OK to AR11.2700$30,000

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.