Killer EF-4 tornado in Oklahoma is state’s first since 2016
The National Weather Service said a tornado that left one person dead and caused extensive damage from Marietta to Dickson had winds of 165-170 mph.
Oklahoma town works to recover from EF-4 tornado that killed 1
The town of Mareitta, Oklahoma, was the site of the state's strongest tornado since 2016. Now, residents are sifting through debris and figuring out what's next. Katie Byrne reports.
MARIETTA, Okla. – A deadly tornado that tore a path of destruction across southern Oklahoma on Saturday night has been rated EF-4 on the Enhanced Fujita Scale, marking the state’s first violent-rated tornado in nearly eight years.
According to the National Weather Service storm survey, the nighttime twister had winds between 165 and 170 mph along its 27-mile path.
The tornado started by crossing Interstate 35 just after 11 p.m. CDT before moving into Marietta, where one person was killed. It was on the ground for about 25 minutes before lifting several miles north of Dickson.
The path of an EF-4 tornado that happened in Oklahoma on April 27, 2024, is seen highlighted in dark red.
(NOAA/NWS)
According to a tweet by the NWS office in Norman, this marks Oklahoma’s first EF-4 tornado since a twister near Katie, Oklahoma, on May 9, 2016. That twister also killed a person before dissipating near Interstate 35.
HOW ARE TORNADO SURVEYS CONDUCTED?
This is the first EF-4 tornado in the U.S. since March 31, 2023. That was when a twister with winds of 170 mph struck Keota, Iowa, during a dayslong tornado outbreak that killed 31 people across six states.
At least 5 people have been killed across two states during the most recent outbreak that produced at least 50 tornadoes since April 25.
Watch: Buildings destroyed, trucks mangled after tornado strikes Marietta, Oklahoma
Video recorded in Marietta, Oklahoma, shows catastrophic damage left behind when a tornado ripped through the community on Saturday, April 27, 2024.