Tornadoes · United States · Oklahoma

Tornadoes in Sequoyah County, Oklahoma

61 tornadoes have crossed Sequoyah County since 1950, 41st of the 77 counties in Oklahoma with a tornado on record, an average of one every 1.2 years. They have killed 35 people and injured 253. 3 were rated F4 or EF4 and above.

The rating scale

Tracks are drawn in the color of the rating. The United States rated tornadoes on Ted Fujita’s F scale until 31 January 2007 and on the Enhanced Fujita scale after it. Both run from 0 to 5, and both rate the damage rather than measure the wind: the speeds are what that damage is taken to imply.

  1. F0 / EF040 to 72 mph on the F scale, 65 to 85 mph on the EF scale

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

  2. F1 / EF173 to 112 mph on the F scale, 86 to 110 mph on the EF scale

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

  3. F2 / EF2113 to 157 mph on the F scale, 111 to 135 mph on the EF scale

    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. F3 / EF3158 to 206 mph on the F scale, 136 to 165 mph on the EF scale

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

  5. F4 / EF4207 to 260 mph on the F scale, 166 to 200 mph on the EF scale

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

  6. F5 / EF5261 to 318 mph on the F scale, over 200 mph on the EF scale

    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. 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.

Now

Tornadoes
61
Deaths
35
Injuries
253
F4 and above
3
Worst on record
F4, May 5, 1960

The deadliest in Sequoyah County

  1. F4, Latimer, Haskell and Sequoyah counties, OklahomaMay 5, 196016 killed, 106 injured
  2. F4, Sequoyah County, OklahomaJanuary 22, 195710 killed, 20 injured
  3. F4, Sequoyah County, OklahomaMay 5, 19605 killed, 13 injured
  4. F3, Sebastian, Crawford and Sequoyah counties, Oklahoma and ArkansasApril 21, 19962 killed, 89 injured
  5. F3, LeFlore and Sequoyah counties, OklahomaMay 5, 19601 killed
  6. F3, Sequoyah County, OklahomaMay 5, 19601 killed

The strongest

  1. F4, Latimer, Haskell and Sequoyah counties, OklahomaMay 5, 1960F4, 62.4 mi (100 km)
  2. F4, Sequoyah County, OklahomaMay 5, 1960F4, 5.4 mi (9 km)
  3. F4, Sequoyah County, OklahomaJanuary 22, 1957F4, 0.1 mi (0 km)
  4. F3, Sequoyah, Crawford, Adair and Washington counties, Oklahoma and ArkansasMay 4, 1999F3, 38.2 mi (61 km)
  5. F3, LeFlore and Sequoyah counties, OklahomaMay 5, 1960F3, 23.7 mi (38 km)
  6. F3, Sequoyah County, OklahomaMay 26, 1973F3, 18.7 mi (30 km)
  7. F3, Sebastian, Crawford and Sequoyah counties, Oklahoma and ArkansasApril 21, 1996F3, 10.1 mi (16 km)
  8. F3, Sequoyah County, OklahomaMay 5, 1960F3, 4.5 mi (7 km)
  9. EF2, Sequoyah, Cherokee and Adair counties, OklahomaNovember 30, 2018EF2, 47.0 mi (76 km)
  10. F2, Pontotoc, Hughes, Okfuskee and Sequoyah counties, OklahomaMay 1, 1954F2, 39.2 mi (63 km)

Every year with a tornado

The 35 years of the 76 in the record with a tornado in Sequoyah County. Each year links to every tornado in Oklahoma that year.

YearTornadoesDeathsInjuriesStrongest
20256EF1
20241Unrated
20231Unrated
202131EF1
20201EF0
201825EF2
20172EF1
20161EF1
20151EF0
20132EF2
20121EF0
20112EF1
201023EF1
20081EF0
20051F1
20041F0
20032F0
19993F3
19961289F3
19941F0
19861F1
19843F2
19821F2
19761F2
197316F3
19711F1
196811F2
19651F2
1960523119F4
195911F2
19581F0
195761020F4
19561F0
195512F1
195416F2

Every tornado that crossed Sequoyah County

61 tornadoes, newest first.

DateTimeRatingWherePath (mi)Width (yd)DeathsInjuriesDamage
June 6, 20257:31 AM CDTEF1Sequoyah3.6900$20,000
June 6, 20257:12 AM CDTEF1Sequoyah4.0650$20,000
June 6, 20257:04 AM CDTEF1Sequoyah3.0650
June 6, 20256:52 AM CDTEF1Sequoyah7.61,100$30,000
May 19, 20256:22 PM CDTEF1Muskogee9.5900$85,000
April 30, 20251:55 PM CDTEF0Sequoyah0.3150$5,000
November 4, 20242:57 PM CSTUnratedSequoyah0.2100
January 2, 20237:25 PM CSTUnratedSequoyah2.5200
October 10, 202111:30 PM CDTEF1Muskogee13.7900$65,000
May 3, 20219:36 PM CDTEF1Sequoyah to AR10.3900$110,000
May 3, 20219:33 PM CDTEF1Sequoyah to AR28.82,2001$16 million
May 25, 20205:37 PM CDTEF0Sequoyah0.5100$100,000
November 30, 20189:43 PM CSTEF2Sequoyah47.01,1005$2.0 million
November 30, 20189:28 PM CSTEF1Muskogee7.1400$45,000
May 27, 201711:45 PM CDTEF1Crawford to AR11.2700$30,000
April 29, 20174:17 PM CDTEF1Sequoyah7.3600$20,000
April 26, 201612:23 AM CDTEF1Sequoyah4.3500$25,000
May 29, 20152:16 PM CDTEF0Sequoyah1.5100$20,000
March 30, 201311:20 PM CDTEF1Sequoyah0.5175$100,000
January 29, 20132:55 PM CSTEF2Crawford to AR9.0700$20,000
March 19, 20128:20 PM CDTEF0Sequoyah0.150
May 24, 201111:37 PM CDTEF1Crawford to AR5.2800$50,000
April 26, 20115:46 PM CDTEF0Sequoyah0.150
May 10, 20108:27 PM CDTEF1Sequoyah4.0500$5,000
May 10, 20108:06 PM CDTEF1Muskogee13.01,2503$150,000
April 10, 20084:56 AM CDTEF0Sequoyah2.0150
April 5, 20057:08 PM CDTF1Sequoyah2.5150$10,000
March 4, 20045:27 PM CSTF0Sequoyah1.7200$20,000
May 1, 20036:51 PM CDTF0Sequoyah0.240
May 1, 20036:46 PM CDTF0Sequoyah1.0100
May 11, 199910:37 PM CDTF0Sequoyah0.550$1,000
May 4, 199912:54 PM CDTF3Sequoyah to AR38.20$100,000
May 4, 199912:34 PM CDTF1Sequoyah2.080$90,000
April 21, 199611:12 PM CDTF3Sebastian to AR10.11,050289$150 million
June 9, 19947:00 AM CDTF0Sequoyah0.110
May 17, 19863:10 AM CDTF1Sequoyah2.0123$50,000 to $500,000
October 18, 19844:15 PM CDTF0Sequoyah0.110
October 16, 19844:50 AM CDTF2Sequoyah0.110$5,000 to $50,000
March 15, 19845:30 PM CSTF1Sequoyah1.077$50,000 to $500,000
May 28, 19822:00 AM CDTF2Sequoyah0.550$50,000 to $500,000
February 20, 19769:30 PM CSTF2Sequoyah4.530$5,000 to $50,000
May 26, 19735:40 PM CDTF3Sequoyah18.72506$50,000 to $500,000
May 6, 19717:30 PM CDTF1Sequoyah0.110$500 to $5,000
May 25, 19689:30 AM GMT-5F2Sequoyah2.0331$5,000 to $50,000
June 22, 19653:30 PM GMT-5F2Sequoyah1.033$5,000 to $50,000
May 19, 19609:50 PM GMT-5F0Sequoyah0.110
May 5, 196010:30 PM GMT-5F3LeFlore23.7101$50,000 to $500,000
May 5, 19608:40 PM GMT-5F4Sequoyah5.410513$50,000 to $500,000
May 5, 19608:30 PM GMT-5F3Sequoyah4.5101$5,000 to $50,000
May 5, 19608:10 PM GMT-5F4Latimer62.420016106$500,000 to $5 million
May 10, 19597:10 PM GMT-5F2Sequoyah1.5501$500 to $5,000
February 26, 19583:30 PM GMT-6F0Sequoyah0.120$500 to $5,000
August 14, 19575:00 PM GMT-5F0Sequoyah0.110
May 22, 19579:30 PM GMT-5F0Sequoyah0.110under $50
May 22, 19579:30 PM GMT-5F0Sequoyah0.110$5,000 to $50,000
April 23, 19571:05 AM GMT-6F1Sequoyah19.110$500 to $5,000
April 19, 19574:00 PM GMT-6F1Sequoyah0.110
January 22, 19576:45 AM GMT-6F4Sequoyah0.18801020$50,000 to $500,000
August 31, 19564:00 PM GMT-5F0Sequoyah0.110
May 26, 19557:45 AM GMT-5F1Sequoyah14.24002$500 to $5,000
May 1, 19547:00 PM GMT-5F2Pontotoc39.2106$500,000 to $5 million

Nearby

Warnings in force in Sequoyah CountyThe forecast for Sequoyah CountyThe live radar over Sequoyah CountyEvery county in Oklahoma

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.