During its life, radar-derived storm tops exceeded 50,000 feet and reflectivities were higher than 50 dBZ. . 8. View looking southwest near Memorial Stadium in Wichita Falls, Texas at the approaching tornado. Rob Satkus EF2. A few hours earlier that day, another tornado tore through Vernon, killing 10 residents and injuring more than 60 others. NWS Explore. (Rated F2 by the NWS.). passed away on Thursday, February 23, 2023 in Wichita Falls Texas. First indications of tornado damage were near Harrold, which is located approximately 16 miles southwest of Vernon. 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. The tornado exited Texas about 4 miles east of Byers, uprooting over 200 trees along the Red River. It's the day an F-4 tornado ravaged the city of Wichita Falls. A number of people were also killed or injured in the parking lot of Sikes Senter (sic) Mall, also on Kemp Boulevard. April 3, 1964 - A violent tornado struck the northwest section of Wichita Falls and Sheppard Air Force Base, killing 7 persons and injuring 111 other people. February 20, 2023 (92 years old) View obituary. Eleven of the 16 people left homes that were not even damaged. By afternoon, the warm front had lifted to the vicinity of the Red River, and a new low pressure area had formed near Childress. A total of 2 people were seriously injured along the tornado's path, but most of injuries people received were minor. The tornado cut through a field and went into a housing addition on the southwest edge of Sheppard AFB. The Harrold tornado was in its formative stages at about the time the Vernon tornado was crossing the Red River. The tornado's worst winds generally missed the Sikes Senter Shopping Mall to the South, but a few of the stores were heavily damaged and >many cars in the mall parking lot were blown some distance and stacked on top of each other. Storm Data, Weather Safety A total of 2 homes were completely destroyed with 31 homes and 17 mobile homes being damaged. -56 NWS WFO, Norman, OK. I had a good full frame shot of the suction spots rotating about the base of the funnel. Composed of three funnels fused into one and powerful winds exceeding 250 mph, this F4-rated tornado remained on the ground for an hour, destroying over a fifth of the city, lifting cars into the air, tearing buildings apart, and destroying 2,000 homes. Wrecked cars were smashed against bridge abutments, a power plant was knocked out, and part of a high school was destroyed. The huge thunderstorm that yielded the Seymour tornado also pounded Holliday with baseball-size hail and an area west of Iowa Park with golfball-size hail. When autocomplete results are available use up and down arrows to review and enter to select. (1 death) April 10 - Texas, Oklahoma (11 deaths) April 10 - Texas, . ), 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. (Documented and rated F2 by Grazulis. April 10th, 1979 started out like any other day in Texoma. The half-mile wide tornado crossed the Red River into Oklahoma about 9 miles north-northeast of Electra. For the first time in years we altered that route. There were a total 42 tornado fatalities in Wichita Falls, of which 25 were vehicle related. A 368-foot radio antenna and 2 others antennas were blown down, and multiple power lines were downed. The awesome "freight train like sound" was audible from the Weather Bureau Airport Station. Non Precipitation Warnings Losses eligible for Federal disaster relief totaled $63 million, but Federal disaster assistance did not cover additional millions in damages. The tornadoes destroyed the press box and lights at Memorial Stadium, which lead to the Pioneer Bowl being. Instead of going through Vernon we dropped further south through Seymour, then north on Texas 267. Watch on. Jeanine V. Wolff. Mr. Carter also dispatched a special assistant, Jack H. Watson Jr., to this city of 125,000 people in northern Texas to survey the tornado damage. I can't say for sure, chasing was different back then. No one was killed and only several major injuries occurred among the approximately one thousand shoppers who were in the mall. About 1540 CST (3:40 PM), a tornado devastated the southeastern portion of Vernon, TX (11 fatalities). 45 people died in the Wichita Falls tornado. Six barns and two homes were destroyed. 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. Winter Weather Warnings High winds in Burkburnett toppled several large trees and damaged limbs, signs, and fences throughout town. May 30, 2001 - This tornado was observed at 6:30 pm CST by three people over northern portions of Lake Wichita, or 6 miles southwest of Wichita Falls. Click on the numbers on the map below or on each individual photo to see a larger image of that photo. Upper Air Maps Suite 2400Norman, OK 73072(405) 325-3816Comments? Deaths An Estimated 42 people died North Texas County DA to seek death penalty for Tanner Horner, man accused of killing Athena Strand. -11 Wilbarger County, TX. Barely one week later, phenomenally great amounts of rainfall poured on the southeastern sector of the State, taking 4 lives and inundating parts of numerous communities. On April 10, 1979, a devastating tornado struck Wichita Falls in North Texas. These supercells caused the most damaging tornadoes of the outbreak. View looking west-northwest from south shore of Lake Wichita at the tornado approaching Wichita Falls, Texas. ), April 24, 1923 - A tornado blew apart five homes 3 miles south-southwest of Burkburnett and 6 oil derricks where also destroyed. Also, the second story of the press box at the high school football stadium was blown off and scattered across the playing field. More Observations The President decided last night to send Mr. Watson to express his personal concern about the disaster, in which at least 58 persons were killed in four communities along the TexasOklahoma border 44 in Wichita Falls, 11 in nearby Vernon and Harrold, Tex., and three others in Lawton, Okla., 60 miles north of here. Extensive wind damage to about 100 homes and outbuildings occurred in Burkburnett where two 40-foot smoke stacks were also toppled. Preprints, 12th Conference Severe Local Storms, American Meteorological Society, Boston, 441-443. 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. Ben Faltinowski. 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. Hail ranged in sizes "from mothballs to pineapples." ", "When the giant tornado struck Wichita Falls just before 6:00 p.m., most people were not surprised. The trees on the southwest edge of the city were denuded of limbs and bark. By RAEGAN SCHARFETTER, ANNIE GIMBEL. In particular, note the sharp decline in reflectivity near the genesis time and during the life of the Wichita Falls tornado with maximum values less than 45 dBZ for a brief period. A short time later, the same tornado invaded Vernon, taking the lives of 10 inhabitants and injuring 67 others. In addition, the damage paths of all three were wider than normal. On April 3, 1964, a devastating F5 tornado hit the northern region of Wichita Falls and Sheppard Air Force Base. (Documented and rated F2 by Grazulis. Hail to 1.75 inches was also reported south of the city. If McNiel Junior High had been fully occupied by students and teachers at the time of the tornado, there would have been hundreds of additional casualties and many more deaths. Damage to city property totaled $5 million while Sheppard AFB had $10 million in damages. It is believed that many more minor injuries were never recorded.[5][6][7]. WICHITA, Kan. (KWCH) . No fatalities or injuries occurred. Two trailers were destroyed, and three homes were damaged. Undoubtedly, this earlier warning and the afternoon Vernon tornado had primed the Wichita Falls populace to the threat of additional tornado activity. My chase partner for the day was Eddie Sims who had chased for years with Jim Leonard. as derived from photogrammetric analysis. Additional tornadoes were reported across the Southern Plains as well as in the Mississippi River Valley on April 1112. Most tornadoes form in the U.S., although some events may take place internationally. To avoid getting trapped, it's been my policy to avoid blasted cities when ever possible. Continuing at F4 intensity, the now massive wedge tornado, which was at its maximum 1.5 miles (2.4km) wide, cut a 2.5-mile (4.0km) swath of destruction through the south side of town. The tornado just missed two busloads of students who were returning from a game in Burkburnett. In addition, many businesses, cars, trees, windows, TV antennas, and power poles incurred damage. . Historic tornado in Wichita KS McConnell AFB 1991. Dr. Ted Fujita of the University of Chicago used these surveys to estimate the F-scale and probable wind speeds associated with the tornado. 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). Severe Weather Safety Horner was . ), June 6, 1936 - This tornado moved south into the northeastern edge of Wichita Falls, and was associated with the same parent supercell thunderstorm that produced the earlier tornado near Burkburnett. The police chief and sheriff later said the approaching storm did not look like a normal twister, but appeared as a thick, dark mass of clouds low to the ground and difficult to see because of the heavy rain, hail, and low cloud base. The tornado's first fatalities were recorded in the apartment complex and adjoining housing area. 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. Radar warnings and alerts from the Weather Bureau office were credited with saving many lives. Would we have seen the tornado and diverted? During this time I navigated and Eddie drove. To preserve these articles as they originally appeared, The Times does not alter, edit or update them. Final totals across three states were 181 killed and 970 injured. The following table includes data and summaries from the tornadoes that occurred in the area since the late 1800's. The passage of a violent tornado through an 8-mile section of a city is an almost unheard-of natural disaster. Storm Pictures. Tornado Watch #67 was issued at 1:55 p.m. Central Standard Time (CST)2 calling for tornadoes, large hail, and damaging thunderstorm winds in portions of a 30,000-square-mile area in north central Texas and southwest Oklahoma. As a subscriber, you have 10 gift articles to give each month. Huge pieces of debris thrown high in the air were clearly visible from miles away as the storm cut a swath of destruction through the city. Cool Pictures. The tornado was at the top of the hill less than a mile away. 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. Severe Thunderstorm Warnings Summer Weather Safety Pat Blacklock, View looking north-northwest from south shore of Lake Wichita at the tornado approaching Wichita Falls, Texas. US Dept of Commerce The tornado's worst winds generally missed the Sikes Senter Shopping Mall to the South, but a few of the stores were heavily damaged and many cars in the mall parking lot were blown some distance and stacked on top of each other. Questions? Very often, those features of Texas weather having the most import-such as the continuation or cessation of damaging drought, occurrences of flash-flooding rains, sharp changes in temperature, and incidences of tornadoes and hurricanes, cannot be discerned from the volumes of meteorological data that are published periodically. Other data was found using U.S. One thousand and sixty-two apartment units and condominiums were demolished and 130 damaged. Tornado data and F-scale ratings for tornadoes from 1950 to the present are referenced from NWS records. The tornado blew many of those vehicles off those roadways, inflicting numerous fatalities. 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. Fifty mph sustained inflow winds were occurring at this time. This report summarizes the injuries and deaths associated with these tornadoes based on information from emergency department and hospital records and death certificates. 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. 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. ), March 31, 1892 - A tornado hit parts of Iowa Park where a house was moved 30 feet and destroyed, injuring 3 occupants. A destructive and deadly tornado outbreak impacted the Red River Valley on April 10, 1979. The northeastern mesocyclone in the mesocyclone pair was the occluding parent circulation of the Seymour tornado while the southwestern mesocyclone in the pair was the developing parent circulation of the Wichita Falls tornado. 1970s. 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. 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. Lawton had been alerted by Tornado Watch #67 and had received a tornado warning issued by WSFO Oklahoma City. The tornado was also captured on film by Troy Glover from the roof of the Bethania hospital (location #8). Although his house was completely destroyed, Mr. Molet escaped with only minor injuries as his pickup truck was blown over him, protecting him from the worst winds and debris. The majority of the fatalities were in vehicles, and a number of those victims left homes that were undamaged by the tornado only to be caught in its deadly path as they tried to flee. The Wichita Falls area has been visited by tornadoes many times over the course of its history. This page documents the tornadoes and tornado outbreaks of 1979, primarily in the United States. 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. Several apartment complexes and many homes were destroyed, with several of the first deaths occurring in this area. The North Texas town of Wichita Falls has seen three major tornadoesin 1958, 1964, and another in 1979. It was roaring down the hill fairly fast and my chase partner was concerned that we couldn't get out of the path. TimesMachine is an exclusive benefit for home delivery and digital subscribers. 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). April 10, 2001 - This tornado developed on the south side of Wichita Falls at 11:46 pmCST, a short distance from Lake Wichita. Well-built modern houses, in general, offer fairly good protection from tornadoes. WICHITA FALLS, Tex., April 13 (UPI) Survivors of the tornado that devastated the southern part of this oil and agriculture center began burying their dead today while city officials tried. Graphical Forecasts A Doppler radar view of the three supercells is available. Winston Wells, Current Hazards (Rated F2 by the NWS. Twenty-five of the deaths were. It looked killer from the beginning. The tornado moved eastward, was a visible as a column of dust that extended from the ground to the base of its parent thunderstorm, and was probably a landspout tornado. 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. A detailed mapping of each house and public/commercial building in the city led to the construction of an F-scale map. I survived an enormous North Texas twister on April 10, 1979 that took 52 lives when three vortexes merged into one. Golfball-size hail fell prior to and immediately after the tornado passed along a track that took it into Oklahoma (where it dissipated near Waurika). After the tornado left Wichita Falls and travelled northeast, it entered Clay County and changed its appearance. 10. Storm Spotter Training Overall, mobile homes and permanent homes lead fatality location totals with 44.8% and 26.2% of all deaths occurring in these structures, respectively. Thunderstorm winds blew a sheet metal roof off a horse barn just east of Sheppard Air Force Base, tore off part of the roof of a radio station 6 miles southwest of Wichita Falls, tore a patio roof off a house in Wichita Falls. 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. All Nature. Flash Flood Warnings Excerpts from the Texas Department of Water Resources publication, "A Review of Texas' Weather in 1979: The Year of Devastating Tornadoes and Flash Floods," is also available. The tornadoes caused 32 injuries, 29 deaths, and an estimated $20 million in personal and commercial insured losses. Forty-two people were killed outright by the storm, while 3 others died of heart attacks. More Observations Three isolated supercells, forming in mid afternoon, moved northeastward as a trio and were responsible for the worst part of the outbreak. By noon, all doubt was gone. Caused $190,000 in damage. "It was just a regular old day. Several homes were demolished, and a number of barns were partially destroyed. Sep 18, 2004. ", "At Vernon, reports of earlier damage to the southwest of the city had alerted spotters and city officials. Caused over $300,000 in damage to homes, barns, and a rock crushing plant. To date, it is the most damaging tornado in US history. Air Quality Local Climate Data This most damaging tornado in Texas history was not finished, however. Home; Exhibits and Displays [7] It is the principal city of the Wichita Falls Metropolitan Statistical Area, which encompasses all of Archer, Clay, and Wichita counties. According the Weather Bureau from the time, "The large funnel alternately dipped and soared, and was followed by trailer funnel, 2 funnels touched ground; witnesses reported spotting a third." those all. Note that the 50 dBZ core was no longer evident. Tuesday, April 10, 1979 seemed like a perfect spring day - right up until a tornado appeared seemingly out of nowhere, cutting a path through Wilbarger County and Vernon that left 11 dead, dozens injured and millions of dollars of property destroyed. That supercell was in progress just to our northeast, although there was no direct route to catch the fast moving storm. 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