wichita falls tornado 1979 deaths

Science And Nature . During this time I navigated and Eddie drove. Joe Landon Haney. The police chief and county sheriff conferred and dispatched patrol cars to the southwest edge of town to watch for the approaching storm. We were worried that the rain would get worse before we set up the cameras which was not desirable considering we were on a dirt road. Large tornado destroyed several barns and scattered debris over a large area. As we drove northeast on US 70, debris was still falling to the ground. The tornado leveled a mobile home park on the north side of U.S. Highway 287, but residents had evacuated that area and no fatalities occurred in the park. 45 people died in the Wichita Falls tornado. ), August 11, 1953 - This summertime tornado touched down at 7:00 pm CST in Wichita Falls and moved northeastward through the suburbs of the city. We continued to drive east on a dirt road from Mabelle, Texas which is basically an intersection with a couple of old buildings. The 1979 tornado cut a wide path of destruction through Wichita Falls homes and apartments. The tornado continued into Clay County, resulting in no deaths, but 40 additional injuries. To the south of the warm front, moist, unstable air was streaming northward. View looking west-northwest from south shore of Lake Wichita at the tornado approaching Wichita Falls, Texas. Inside the mall, portions of the JC Penney store collapsed while other stores sustained light to moderate damage. We also assessed the protective measures taken by a representative sample of community residents who suffered no major injury in order to estimate the relative risk of injury to people directly in the tornado's path. Near the center of the tornado and about a half mile south of the mall, a church was demolished with one person killed inside the building. Moving into the air base proper, the tornado destroyed 5 unoccupied 2-story barracks, damaged a hanger, power installations, transformer station, paint shop, and the base's 10-story control tower. Homes and businesses were torn apart in the McGehee area. Tornado statistics for older years like this often appear significantly lower than modern years due to fewer reports or confirmed tornadoes. In Wichita Falls, an emergency hotline to key local officials, TV, and radio stations assured rapid and complete local dissemination. McNiel Junior High, a new concrete/steel-reinforced building was not built well enough to provide safe shelter from the tornado. Severe weather warnings had been in effect for Wichita County and Wichita Falls for almost an hour. He was great at identifying cloud structures. A tool shed was blown away, trees uprooted, and utility poles damaged, and the Pontiac Company building was destroyed. The Vernon tornado destroyed a restaurant, motel, a farm implement store, and more than a dozen homes; damage totaled $27 million. Winter Weather The powerful vortex, although rated only F-2, had winds of over 200 MPH. (1979-2009) The Red River Valley Tornado. It was spectacular to watch! The tornado was preceded by strong winds, and then followed at once by heavy rain and hail, which covered a 200-square mile area. This is a digitized version of an article from The Timess print archive, before the start of online publication in 1996. Below are some quick facts about the event from the NWS Norman: If I had the opportunity to chase this one over I certainly would do it differently, but considering we were on visual back then we didn't do too bad. It generally moved to the northeast, but turned to the right along the middle of its path, the period during which it produced its violent tornado. It then became calm before the winds began to pick up. Widespread downburst winds and hail brought damages of $200,000 to the town of Iowa Park alone. We also assessed the protective measures taken by a representative sample of community residents who suffered no major injury in order to estimate the relative risk of injury to people directly in the tornado's path . Three thousand and ninety-five homes were destroyed and 600 were damaged. The school building was totally destroyed by the tornado. FU F0 F1 F2 F3 F4 F5 0 10 19 . Wolfgang Lange, View looking southwest near Memorial Stadium in Wichita Falls, Texas at the time of tornado touchdown. Tornado warning and preparedness systems are worth the time and effort it takes to maintain them. 15:25 F4. We Hail to 1.75 inches was also reported south of the city. Fortunately, the strong and wide Harrold-Grandfield tornado spent its entire life in rural areas not striking any towns, but coming close to Harrold, TX (one fatality) and Grandfield, OK. The tornado was coming down, but getting photography was difficult. "It was just a regular old day. The tornado damaged outbuildings, chicken coops, and did minor damage to roofs of houses. All the storms this day exhibited violent cloud motions. The Terrible Tuesday video can be viewed via the NWS Norman YouTube Channel or below. The formation of the tornado and its movement toward the stadium and junior high were captured by Wolfgang Lange from the front of his apartment complex which was located across the street from the junior high (location #2). 1 A tornado struck Waco and McLennan County on May 11, 1953, inflicting 114 deaths, 597 injuries, and damages of $4i.2 million. (1 death) April 10 - Texas, Oklahoma (11 deaths) April 10 - Texas, . Severe damage in the Pruitt City area. Jeanine V. Wolff. This huge F4 first touched down about 3 miles northeast of Holliday. (This tornado was documented and rated F2 by Tom Grazulis in his book, Significant Tornadoes. Pat Blacklock, View looking north from south shore of Lake Wichita at the tornado approaching Wichita Falls, Texas. David Ehrenfeld read the 23d Psalm over the pearl white coffin. The large Wichita Falls F4 tornado moving through town. During this interval, the tornado was photographed by Professor Joe Henderson of Midwestern State University from the Ligon Coliseum (Tornado Track Figure; Location #7) and by Troy Glover from the roof of the Bethania Hospital (Tornado Track Figure; Location #8). Norman, OKNational Weather Center120 David L. Boren Blvd. Evan got up, the moonlight bouncing off his not so wicked blue eyes. The thunderstorm that fostered that tornado also produced hail up to 3 inches in diameter west of Harrold. ), April 24, 1923 - A tornado blew apart five homes 3 miles south-southwest of Burkburnett and 6 oil derricks where also destroyed. There were 59 reported tornados on the ground in the . For example, the police chief called the city manager out of a meeting with county commissioners. I had a good full frame shot of the suction spots rotating about the base of the funnel. I had never witnessed anything of this magnitude. The Harrold tornado was in its formative stages at about the time the Vernon tornado was crossing the Red River. We were on our own. The tornado slung mud across the inside of the windshield which made it difficult to drive. Miss Mahon's parents and five brothers and sisters wept as the Rev. Wayne Collamore. The destruction in Wichita Falls resulted in 42 dead, 1,740 injured, over 3,000 homes destroyed and damage of approximately $400 million. Note that the 50 dBZ core was no longer evident. have just been raked by debris from rear flank downdraft surge wrapping around the tornado - tornado now in a sunlit position relative to us - getting really spectacular! One mobile home was completely destroyed on Bobby Point Road, prompting an F1 rating. Winds gusted the 93 miles per hour (mph) in Guadalupe Mountain National Park at mid-afternoon, while wind gusts of 60 mph or more stirred up dust and sand that reduced visibilities at many points from El Paso to Midland to 3 miles; at Lubbock visibilities dropped to 1 1/2 miles by late afternoon. Other ingredients for a volatile weather situation were also present: a major upper-air trough extending from the southern Rockies into northern Mexico, migrating eastward into western Texas and deepening significantly at the same time (Figure 11); a strong wind shear from the surface to 500 millibars and a thin layer of very moist air at the surface with rapid drying immediately above at about 700 mb (Figure 12 and Figure 13). Records taken from the Storm Prediction Center archive data, "Storm Data", and data from the National Weather Service office in Norman. Seventeen hundred injuries were reported in Wichita Falls. 4. Historic tornado in Wichita KS McConnell AFB 1991. A thunderstorm that pelted the Coleman area with golfball-size hail also generated a tornado that caused considerable damage to power lines and outbuildings north of the city. All of them happened in the first half of April. Extensive wind damage to about 100 homes and outbuildings occurred in Burkburnett where two 40-foot smoke stacks were also toppled. There were scattered remains of destroyed structures on either side of the road. Meanwhile, President Carter declared Oklahoma a major disaster area as a result of the tornadoes, making Federal funds available for relief and recovery efforts. Heavy lake effect snow, strong winds, and reduced visibilities continue downwind of the Great Lakes. Forty-two people were killed outright by the storm, while 3 others died of heart attacks. Of the 7 people killed, six occurred in 5 different homes, and one man was killed when his truck was thrown from a road. The Wichita Falls tornado alone killed 42 people and caused $400 million in damage ($1.93billion in today's dollars). ", "The three main storms in the Red River Valley outbreak were giant tornadoes. US Dept of Commerce The half-mile wide tornado crossed the Red River into Oklahoma about 9 miles north-northeast of Electra. Daily Weather History Updated: Feb. 23, 2023 at 7:25 AM PST. Despite passing north of the Sikes Senter Shopping Mall, intense winds from the outer circulation of the tornado heavily damaged a few stores and blew many cars in the mall's parking lot some distance away from where they originated and stacked on top of each other. A second severe thunderstorm pounded the area just north of Brownwood with hail having a diameter of 3 to 3 1/2 inches. ", 1 The Storm Prediction Center is now located in Norman, Oklahoma After taking his last picture of the approaching tornado, Mr. Lange retreated to the apartment complex laundry room and hid between heavy commercial washers and dryers, escaping with only minor injuries. During this interval, the tornado was photographed by Professor Joe Henderson of Midwestern State University from the Ligon Coliseum (location #7). Weather Radio, About Us The brick building at the water works plant was heavily damaged, and a woman suffered a broken back when her home was destroyed 3 miles south of Burkburnett. 2. Per the SPC Database, 25 tornadoes occurred mainly in TX and OK with one lone tornado in KS. In addition to the tornado which developed near Wichita Falls, sustained winds of 35 to 45 mph from the southeast with gusts near 60 mph developed across western north Texas during the mid-evening of the 10th and persisted through much of the night. Then the supercell spawned one that killed three people in Lawton, Oklahoma. We couldn't make it into Wichita Falls because we almost ran out of gas. No damage was reported from this small, weak tornado and it was rated F0. This route took us in front of the advancing vortex and provided a pretty exciting ride. passed away on Thursday, February 23, 2023 in Wichita Falls Texas. In addition to the tornado, severe thunderstorm winds moved through the Wichita Falls area, downing trees, limbs, and power poles. Several apartment complexes and many homes were destroyed, with several of the first deaths occurring in this area. The late afternoon lighting was much different on this storm giving a yellowish cast as we looked southwest. The storm spawned a second tornado that moved through the south and east sides of Wichita Falls at around 6:00 pm. Sixteen of these 25 were people who entered their cars trying to evade the tornado. The tornado moved across Highway 287 and caused light damage before entering Wichita County about 5 miles northeast of Harrold. A Doppler radar view of the three supercells is available. Data modified as described in NOAA Tech Memo NWS SR-209 (Speheger, D., 2001: "Corrections to the Historic Tornado Database"). In the upper atmosphere, the nose of an extremely strong jet stream wind maximum was moving eastward through northern Mexico, preparing to turn northeastward and take aim on Texas and Oklahoma. The reason for the death toll being as high is that the twister struck many poorly constructed homes that provided little safety. Averages and Records Damage to city property totaled $5 million while Sheppard AFB had $10 million in damages. We proceeded southwest toward Seymour witnessing a small tornado near Lake Kemp that was accompanied by golf ball size hail. February 20, 2023 (92 years old) View obituary. Pat Blacklock, View looking north-northwest from south shore of Lake Wichita at the tornado approaching Wichita Falls, Texas. Submit a Spot Forecast This information is part of Stamboom Vermeij by Truus Vermeij on Genealogy Online. Pat Blacklock. Most of the destroyed homes had some of these interior walls still standing after the tornado. Local Storm Reports The tornado just missed two busloads of students who were returning from a game in Burkburnett. Radar warnings and alerts from the Weather Bureau office were credited with saving many lives. These supercells caused the most damaging tornadoes of the outbreak. Tornado Warnings, Climate and Past Weather From the blizzards that traditionally pound the Panhandle each winter to the enduring heat that scorches vast sections of Texas later in the summer, Texas in the meteorological sense truly is the "Land of Contrast." The third member of the family formed near Waurika, Oklahoma, at around 8:00p.m. Eleven of the 16 people left homes that were not even damaged. The tornado moved northeastward as was described as a "dirty green funnel." Maximum path length was about 3/4 mile and the width was 50 to 60 yards. Lighter damage occurred outside of the AFB and no hail was observed. More. This tornado was part of an outbreak of tornadoes that occurred on May 25-26, 1955 across the southern Great Plains, and included the deadly F5 tornadoes at Blackwell, OK and Udall, KS. A few intense thunderstorms erupted at about the same time in the northwestern portion of North Central Texas; small hail and high winds raked Gainesville and Decatur during the noon hour. Coops, and power poles regular old day hail brought damages of $ 200,000 to southwest... On us 70, debris was still falling to the town of Iowa Park alone, before start! 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