While only on the ground for 35 minutes, the 800-foot-wide twister killed seven people, injured 111, and destroyed 225 homes. Updated: Feb. 23, 2023 at 7:25 AM PST. (Rated F3 by the NWS. Winston Wells, View looking southwest at the approaching tornado northeast of Wichita Falls, Texas. Numbers for 1979 were similar to that of 1980. Several other mobile homes in the area sustained minor damage, and homes to the east on Carriage Lane also received minor damage. The long, slender tornado was milky white in appearance and was accompanied by a loud roar. ), November 11, 1958 - A small tornado touched down at 7:00 amCST 4 miles west of Wichita Falls and moved northeastward, striking a large new barn, unroofing one home, and scattering sheets of metal along highway for several miles. It was on the ground for 11 miles. Evan got up, the moonlight bouncing off his not so wicked blue eyes. We Residents of Wichita Falls and Wichita County had been receiving severe weather warnings for close to an hour before the tornado reached the city around 6 p.m. Casualty data were supplied by the Texas and Oklahoma NWS offices. We decided to make a break for it to the east which was not a smart move. Storm Pictures. Winston Wells, Current Hazards Most of the homes in Faith Village were demolished. Please select one of the following: Table 1 -- Casualty and Property Losses -, GOES Visible Satellite Images (1530Z 4/10/1979 - 0014Z 4/11/1979), GOES Infrared Satellite Images (0000Z - 0600Z 4/11/1979). This report is an attempt to describe thoroughly but concisely the noteworthy elements of the Texas weather scene throughout 1979. As a subscriber, you have 10 gift articles to give each month. Life Cycle of the Wichita Falls Tornadic Storm. Some of these people attempted to run to their cars from the mall. The tornado finally ended near Waurika, OK after traveling 47 miles. Tornado Warnings, Climate and Past Weather Mr. Molet continued to take photographs until the wind blew him into his garage. One somewhat unique characteristic of the damage was the wide swath F4 damage; many violent tornadoes produce only a narrow swath of their most intense damage. These supercells caused the most damaging tornadoes of the outbreak. Lawton was as ready as a community could be for the tornado. Sorry, the location you searched for was not found. In New York, Ernest W. Brinkman, vice president of the Underwriters Adjusting Company, said that most of the families affected by the tornadoes were getting substantial advance payments from insurance companies for emergency shelter and repairs. Other data was found using U.S. Does Wichita Texas get tornadoes? "It was just a regular old day. April 26, 1962 - This tornado initially touched down at 10:45 pmCST on the Sheppard Access Road near Sheppard AFB, damaging several cars, and destroying a a 100 x 30 foot metal building at a motor company. ), June 6, 1936 - A "double twister" was observed by a large gathering of people in Burkburnett as it moved southwest and struck the southwest edge of the city. The tornado moved northeastward as was described as a "dirty green funnel." ", "The three main storms in the Red River Valley outbreak were giant tornadoes. He had allegedly been sexually assaulted, tortured, murdered, then his body ran through a full cycle in the dishwasher- officials speculated the killer had . Following the deadly Red River Valley tornado outbreak, the National Weather Service, in partnership with FEMA and the American Red Cross, produced a documentary called "Terrible Tuesday" that chronicled the events in Wichita Falls on April 10, 1979. Weather Radio, About Us Several strong to violent tornadoes touched down throughout the region that day. passed away on Thursday, February 23, 2023 in Wichita Falls Texas. To commemorate this event, the National Weather Service in Norman, Oklahoma has compiled a large amount of information including: tornado photos of the Wichita Falls, Vernon, Seymour, and Harrold, TX tornadoes; damage photos; images of radar and satellite data; other maps and diagrams of the event; and storm data for Oklahoma and western north Texas. At Sheppard Air Force Base, winds up to 70 mph tore countless limbs from trees and knocked out windows on some base housing units. -56 NWS WFO, Norman, OK. In the latter Blacklock photographs, the gust front and associated strong west winds to the south of the tornado can be seen producing waves on Lake Wichita and kicking up spray from the lake. However, several small communities, among them Harrold, Texas and Grandfield, Oklahoma, were hit by the storm. During the morning, closely monitored air mass movements, temperatures, dew points, and winds had all been shifting towards critical values indicative of severe thunderstorms and potential tornadoes. Pinterest. 38 On April 10, 1979, a series of deadly tornadoes broke out near the Texas-Oklahoma border. About 1540 CST (3:40 PM), a tornado devastated the southeastern portion of Vernon, TX (11 fatalities). As seen in the photographs by Winston Wells (Tornado Track Figure; Location #10), the tornado became multi-vortex, displaying as many as five satellite vortices rotating around the center of circulation. Tornado caused $3,500,000 to the downtown business district in. Horner was . For the most part, however, rainfall amounts were modest, with only a few points collecting more than 1 inch (Figure 27). Tornado tore a large section of roof from an elementary school near. This line raced northeastward, spilling heavy rains, hail and high winds on numerous communities. In 1978 Wichita Falls was the host of the first NCAA Division I-AA championship game. It began at 4:57 p.m. about a mile-and-a-half south of Clearwater. On Saturday, June 28, 1924, a deadly F4 tornado struck the Lake Erie shoreline communities of Sandusky and Lorain, Ohio. The first tornado formed near Seymour at around 4:53 pm. 1964, and another in 1979. Wolfgang Lange, View looking southwest near Memorial Stadium in Wichita Falls, Texas at the time of tornado touchdown. The tornado was also captured on film by Troy Glover from the roof of the Bethania hospital (location #8). The last siren from the city's warning system sounded around 5:50 p.m. the same time that storm spotters reported seeing the tornado . Three isolated supercells, forming in mid afternoon, moved northeastward as a trio and were responsible for the worst part of the outbreak. Records taken from the Storm Prediction Center archive data, "Storm Data", and data from the National Weather Service office in Norman. The inner hallways would have been the only relatively safe shelter in the building. We examined the circumstances of death and injury among victims of the tornado that struck Wichita Falls, Texas, on 10 April 1979. The Norman Doppler radar was used to collect dense data (0.5o azimuth spacing and 150 meter gate spacing) on the Wichita Falls storm during the interval leading to the formation of the violent tornado. those all. ), 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. Undoubtedly, this earlier warning and the afternoon Vernon tornado had primed the Wichita Falls populace to the threat of additional tornado activity. The destructive and deadly tornado outbreak impacted the Red River Valley on April 10, 1979. Caused a total of $449,000 in damage. Select western north Texas tornado statistics by decade, county or city from the menus or maps below. Submit a Spot Forecast A tool shed was blown away, trees uprooted, and utility poles damaged, and the Pontiac Company building was destroyed. After moving northeast of Seymour, the tornado intensified. Elizabeth Burk Newton. The first tornado formed near Crowell, Texas, at around 3:05p.m. About 35 minutes later, the first killer one of the outbreak ripped through Vernon and killed 11 people. (Documented and rated F2 by Grazulis. Wayne Collamore. Eyewitnesses described details of the storm differently, but they were unanimous on one point -- it was an awesome, terrifying experience beyond anything they had encountered before. Interview She and her family couldn't find their dog. Storm Data, Weather Safety A detailed mapping of each house and public/commercial building in the city led to the construction of an F-scale map. They survived! Rivers and Lakes April 10th, 1979 started out like any other day in Texoma. All of them happened in the first half of April. Witnesses saw several small twisters during the formation. Wayne Collamore, View looking west just east of Harrold on Highway 320 at about 4:15 pm CST. Also, tornado survivors said that some golf ball size hail fell prior to and immediately after the tornado. One of the tornadoes, having a width that varied from 1/2 to 1 1/2 miles, cut a swath of devastation across the southern sector of Wichita Falls in less than 30 minutes, killing 42 persons, injuring more than 1700, and burying dozens of city blocks under tons of debris. (Rated F2 by the NWS.). Winter Weather Warnings . The night time tornadoes, although strong, were not as devastating as the ones that occurred in the Red River Valley during the afternoon. Meanwhile, behind the dry line and cool front in the High Plains, the atmosphere quickly stabilized, and drying out was evident in the lower half of the atmosphere below 500 mb (Figure 26). A small home was swept away in the affected area, and factories and warehouses were unroofed. National Weather Service The third supercell was the one that formed the Seymour and Wichita Falls tornadoes as part of a three-member tornado family. A concrete block building was destroyed, and another was partially destroyed. There was much scientific discussion and debate concerning the possibility that the some of the damage was severe enough, and wind speeds high enough, for the tornado to be rated F5. All NOAA. Science And Nature . Known as the Red River Valley tornado outbreak or "Terrible Tuesday," 30 tornadoes ran rampant. Driving north on Texas 267 we witnessed the Thalia tornado. Childress lay in the path of the advancing low pressure center, as surface pressure fell drastically and winds backed during the afternoon before the much drier continental air enveloped the region in the evening (Figure 17). The Ohio National Guard was dispatched to the scene within nine hours to help with rescue work, caring for . Assuredly, no two years weatherwise in Texas are even remotely similar, for the community that reeled one year from a capricious dry spell likely is the recipient of plenty of rain in the following year, while a not-too-distant neighboring locale that hurt from a disastrous hailstorm one Spring experiences relative calm during the following year's storm season. Final totals across three states were 181 killed and 970 injured. On April 3, 1964, a devastating F5 tornado hit the northern region of Wichita Falls and Sheppard Air Force Base. The tornado was eventually rated F5 and was the first violent tornado on record to strike the Wichita Falls area. More than 40 died, and about 1,700 were injured. auto-related; 16 of that total died while in their autos trying to flee the storm, and 11 of that number abandoned homes not touched by the tornado. Daily Weather History As seen in the photographs by Winston Wells (location #10), the tornado became multi-vortex, displaying as many as five satellite vortices rotating around the center of circulation. Heavy lake effect snow, strong winds, and reduced visibilities continue downwind of the Great Lakes. The path length was 9 miles in Texas and 55 miles in Oklahoma. Rivers and Lakes Per the SPC Database, 25 tornadoes occurred mainly in TX and OK with one lone tornado in KS. An explanation of both the causes and effects of the many and varied weather systems that affected Texans during the year has been the central objective of this endeavor. As we drove northeast on US 70, debris was still falling to the ground. In many years at least some portions of the Lone Star State experience destruction or severe damage from an untimely freeze, a debilitating drought, or a lengthy spell of excessive rains. Some or all of the walls remained for well-built homes (photos 4-6 on the damage photo tab) and bathrooms in particular provided good protection. Skywarn Storm Spotters 15:55 F2. US Dept of Commerce 45 people died in the Wichita Falls tornado. Aviation Weather It was roaring down the hill fairly fast and my chase partner was concerned that we couldn't get out of the path. The tornado was photographed from the south during this period by Pat Blacklock, who was located on the southern shore of Lake Wichita (Tornado Track Figure; location #5). Wolfgang Lange, View looking southwest near Memorial Stadium in Wichita Falls, Texas at approaching tornado. Perennially the State perseveres through frequent bombardments of hail, high winds, and flash floods, often with the accompaniment of tornadoes-as well as the threat of being struck on its coastal flank by a hurricane or intense tropical cyclone. 1970s. Several strong to violent tornadoes touched down throughout the region that day. Additional light rural damage occurred in the miles of Wichita County that the tornado covered. Around 3:05 in the afternoon, the first tornado formed near Crowell, Texas. Living in Tornado Alley, I'm most familiar with tornados. Cool Photos. This tornado was part of a widespread outbreak of tornadoes that occurred in the Great Plains area including the states of Nebraska, Kansas, Oklahoma and Texas. It is believed that many more minor injuries were never recorded.[5][6][7]. It was the costliest tornado in history until the F5 Moore-Oklahoma City tornado struck in 1999. . There were 59 reported tornados on the ground in the . Meanwhile, President Carter declared Oklahoma a major disaster area as a result of the tornadoes, making Federal funds available for relief and recovery efforts. The tornadoes destroyed the press box and lights at Memorial Stadium, which lead to the Pioneer Bowl being. Averages and Records ), June 6, 1936 - A tornado touched down at 5:20 pm CST and moved southeastward over a path of 440 yards wide by four miles long caused damage of $50,000 in Wichita Falls and injured two people, although one person may have been hurt due to a lightning strike. Large tornado destroyed several barns and scattered debris over a large area. The first in a series of tornadoes struck near Foard City shortly after 3 o'clock destroying several rural homes, barns, and farm equipment. Five bus passengers were injured when they took shelter in a ditch, only to have the bus roll onto them. More than 1700 injuries occurred within Wichita Falls. McNeil Junior High school was next in the path of the tornado and the school was severely damaged. Weather Radio, About Us ", "Storm spotter networks were alerted. They were flying by faster than I thought any bird could go; I wonder what they thought After this scene the tornado became wrapped in the rain and difficult to photograph. 1 Wilbarger County, TX. We give still life with tornado and numerous ebook collections from fictions to scientific research in any way. (Documented and rated F2 by Grazulis. Winter Weather Safety, Special Programs Please Contact Us. The width of the F4 damage in the Wichita Falls tornado approached 0.5 miles in the area of Faith Village and Ben Milam Elementary School (location #6). Used by permission of author Don Burgess. Watch on. A total of 2 people were seriously injured along the tornado's path, but most of injuries people received were minor. Wolfgang Lange, View looking southwest near Memorial Stadium in Wichita Falls, Texas at the approaching tornado. Dissipation of the tornado occurred northwest of Waurika, Oklahoma, bringing the path length to 36 miles in Texas, and 11 miles in Oklahoma. Sixteen of these 25 were people who entered their cars trying to evade the tornado. Only 5 of the homes that were left actually incurred damage. The mall was on the north side of the tornado path and appeared to escape the most violent winds. ), May 26, 1955 - A small tornado touched down briefly at 1:38 am CST, moved northeastward along a narrow, 1-mile path and demolished a "washateria" and produced severely damaged several utility poles, business structures, homes, and trees. But as the day progressed, and the storms began to form, a good day turned into a bad day. age through the southern half of tne city. Forty-two people were killed outright by the storm and 3 others died as a result of heart attacks. Ingredients for a devastating severe weather event were beginning to come together on the morning of April 10. This followed an earlier warning at 5:08 pm, due to the Rocky Point tornado. Robert Molet. Local Enhanced Radar (Central Oklahoma-KTLX), Local Standard Radar (KTLX-low bandwidth), Local Enhanced Radar (Southwest OK/Western North TX-KFDR), Local Standard Radar (KFDR-low bandwidth), Local Standard Radar (KVNX-low bandwidth), Averages and Records for OKC, Wichita Falls & Lawton, radar-derived storm tops exceeded 50,000 feet and reflectivities were higher than 50 dBZ, a core of greater than 50 dBZ and two mesocyclones, tornado-associated mesocyclone and hook echo in the right rear portion of the echo, its movement toward the stadium and junior high, >many cars in the mall parking lot were blown some distance and stacked on top of each other, Map of the Red River Valley Tornado Outbreak in North Texas and southern Oklahoma by (Fujita and Wakimoto), Map of Significant Weather Events which occurred between 6 AM CST April 10, 1979 and 6 AM CST April 11, 1979 (Burgess), Tornado Watch Box #67 issued by the National Severe Storms Forecast Center - valid 230 PM to 700 PM CST, April 10, 1979, Storm Track of the Wichita Falls, Texas Supercell on April 10, 1979 (Burgess), Time/Height Profile of the Wichita Falls, Texas Supercell on April 10, 1979 (Burgess), Map of Radar Reflectivity and Mesocyclone Positions of the Wichita Falls, Texas Supercell at 530 pm CST, April 10, 1979 (Burgess), Map of Radar Reflectivity and Mesocyclone Position of the Wichita Falls, Texas Supercell at 600 pm CST, April 10, 1979 (Burgess), Approximate Damage Path of the Wichita Falls Tornado on April 10, 1979 (, Map of the Red River Valley Area of Oklahoma and Texas Showing Communities and Counties Affected by the April 10, 1979 Tornadoes (NOAA Natural Disaster Report 80-1), National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Forecast Discussion, Warnings and Other Products Just after 5:00 p.m., another tornado spawned by the same thunderstorm system crashed into Lawton, Oklahoma. The powerful vortex, although rated only F-2, had winds of over 200 MPH. That said, it's never mentioned just how that wind gust was recorded, and . 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. . As the much drier air whipped eastward out of the southern High Plains just after noon, thunderstorms, some of which were very heavy, boiled up in parts of the eastern High Plains and quickly spilled over into the Low Rolling Plains. February 20, 2023 (92 years old) View obituary. Moving into the city, the tornado first struck Memorial Stadium and McNiel Junior High School (location #1 on the damage path diagram), severely damaging both structures. The following severe weather account is by Gene Moore. April 10, 1979 - The tornado, which was part of a tornado outbreak in the Red River valley area, began at 5:50 pmCST on the southwest flank of its parent supercell thunderstorm about 3 miles east-northeast of Holliday. Pat Blacklock. The publication was written and prepared by George W. Bomar of Weather Modification & Technology Section of the Texas Department of Water Resources. Museum of the Kansas National Guard . WICHITA FALLS The tenth day of April is a day that will be forever etched in the history of the city of Wichita Falls.42 years ago, on April 10, 1979, a severe weather outbreak in North Texas . (Documented and rated F2 by Grazulis. No fatalities or injuries occurred. Special Weather Statements Then, a second vicious tornado formed near Thalia and moved into Lockett, where a driver of an auto was killed when her vehicle was thrown 200 yards off the highway. Approaching Harrold, Texas from the southeast on Highway 287 - view is looking west at 4:00 pm CST. Norman, OKNational Weather Center120 David L. Boren Blvd. 3.64K subscribers Kory King and SkyWarn 6 weather forecaster John Cameron talk about the national weather historical significance of the 1979 Terrible Tuesday tornado outbreak in Texoma. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration I often read in more general reference books as well as a handful of weather books that a tornado at Wichita Falls, TX, on April 2, 1958 had a wind gust recorded at 280 mph. Within 30 minutes the tornado, with a track that varied between 1/2 and 1 1/2 miles wide and 8 miles long, had sped across the southern portion of Wichita Falls. National Weather Service The wide swath of damage can also be seen by viewing the NASA aerial photographs (aerial photos 1-10 on the damage photo tab) and the other aerial photographs (photos 7 & 8 on the damage photo tab). February 18, 2023 (64 years old) View obituary. Three homes were destroyed and others were damaged. That supercell was in progress just to our northeast, although there was no direct route to catch the fast moving storm. Unlike Mr. Lange, Mr. Molet did not have an unobstructed view of the western horizon and did not immediately recognize that the threatening cloud was a tornado. wichita falls tornado 1979 deathsare there really purple owls "The damage path was one of the widest I have ever seen, and its intensity was almost equal to that of the giant . The Southwest National Bank Building was totally destroyed except for its concrete vault, a proxy for an above-ground shelter. A very intense spring storm shifted out of the Rocky Mountains on April 10, generating lines of severe thunderstorms that swept across the northern portion of the State. The tornado cut through a field and went into a housing addition on the southwest edge of Sheppard AFB. ), April 24, 1923 - A tornado blew apart five homes 3 miles south-southwest of Burkburnett and 6 oil derricks where also destroyed. Weather and Chasing. February 21, 1994 - Thunderstorms developed in the western part of north Texas during the afternoon hours of February 21st and produced a small weak tornado, hail up to nickel size and damaging winds. Rampaging killer tornadoes and devastating floodwaters brought unparalleled tragedy to groups of communities in the Low Rolling Plains and the Upper Coast of Texas during April. Cool Pictures. On April 10, 1979, a huge F4 tornado touched down just outside of Wichita Falls. We couldn't make it into Wichita Falls because we almost ran out of gas. To put the deaths and property damage in perspective, it should be noted that as many as 42 people have not been killed in the United States by a single tornado in the 20 years since the event, and the total property damage of $400,000,000 still stands as the most costly tornado in American history. 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. This was the most spectacular event I had ever witnessed to date. Earlier in the day around daybreak, low-level moisture from the Gulf was observed pouring northward through the heart of the State while much drier air was surging eastward across the Pecos River (Figure 10). The tornado expanded in size as it crossed Southwest Parkway, throwing automobiles about and leveling a number of businesses, including a bank and a fire station. Although roughly 4,000 homes were struck by the tornado, there were only five fatalities of people inside homes along the path of the tornado. Several homes were demolished, and a number of barns were partially destroyed. The event would put Wichita Falls in the national news and history books, while almost taking it off of the map. One group of violent thunderstorms roared across the northern Low Rolling Plains late that afternoon and spawned a series of tornadoes that ripped through four Texas communities. Questions? We would like to give special recognition to Don Burgess of the Cooperative Institute for Mesoscale Meteorological Studies (CIMMS) in Norman for compiling and archiving most of the information contained within these web pages. This means that those people who moved to the center part of their houses, got down low, and covered themselves, by-in-large escaped with their lives, sustaining injuries instead of death. Wichita Falls has had three major tornado strikes in its history. By afternoon, the warm front had lifted to the vicinity of the Red River, and a new low pressure area had formed near Childress. Damage also occurred to machinery, homes, and outbuildings. The following images and text copyright Gene Moore unless otherwise indicated. FU F0 F1 F2 F3 F4 F5 0 10 19 . 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