Moore, OK Tornado: 51 Killed, More Feared Dead

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In summary: There are false alarms all the time. In 1999, there was a tornado warning for the city of Oklahoma City that was cancelled within a few minutes. There was a tornado in Moore, OK, on Monday, but it was not an F4 or EF5.
  • #1
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Massive tornado rips through Moore, Oklahoma; 51 killed, more feared dead
http://news.yahoo.com/blogs/lookout/tornado-oklahoma-city-moore-205548879.html

A devastating, mile-wide tornado touched down near Oklahoma City on Monday, killing at least 51 people and decimating homes, businesses and a pair of elementary schools in the suburb of Moore.

According to the state's medical examiner, the death toll was expected to rise.

The schools—Plaza Towers Elementary and Briarwood Elementary—were leveled by the tornado. It was unclear how many children were in them at the time the twister hit, but according to KFOR, at least seven children died at Plaza Towers, and as many as two dozen more were feared to be trapped inside the rubble. An Associated Press photographer saw rescue workers pull several children out alive. A makeshift triage center was set up in the school's parking lot.

. . . .
Apparently debris from Moore was carried to Tulsa.

The tornado was preliminarily classified as EF4 (200 mph winds).
 
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  • #2
I saw photos of the Elementary schools and they were flattened. In a place like OK why don't schools have tornado strength shelters?
 
  • #3
Just horrible, so sudden, so erratic, here they'll be focusing on one tornado, when out of the blue another forms in seconds miles away and that's the one that kills. That they don't have mandatory shelters here where tornadoes are common is mind boggling. An underground tornado shelter could save so many lives.
 
  • #4
This is awful. The pictures are horrible, I'm surprised and sad the school has so many casualties :frown:
 
  • #6
. . . .
Amy Elliott, the spokeswoman for the Oklahoma City medical examiner, said at least 91 people had died, including the children, and officials said that toll was likely to climb. Hospitals reported at least 145 people injured, 70 of them children.

. . . .
http://www.nytimes.com/2013/05/21/us/tornado-oklahoma.html
 
  • #7
Greg Bernhardt said:
I saw photos of the Elementary schools and they were flattened. In a place like OK why don't schools have tornado strength shelters?

Depends on what you're protecting them from: a tornado in the area or from a direct strike.

Tornadoes cover a lot less area than hurricanes. Flying debris from a tornado in the area is a lot bigger hazard than actually being struck by a tornado.

The probability of being hit directly by a tornado is about once every 1400 years. Only about 1% of tornadoes reach EF4 or worse. So taking shelter in school hallways is pretty good protection against the most likely threat.

Tornado related deaths at schools. Interestingly, the Southeast is more likely to have school fatalities even though tornado alley (Oklahoma, Kansas) has the most tornadoes.
 
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  • #9
Evo said:
That they don't have mandatory shelters here where tornadoes are common is mind boggling. An underground tornado shelter could save so many lives.
But ironically,

Some of the children killed at Plaza Towers Elementary School in Moore, Oklahoma, during Monday's storm drowned in a basement area there, Oklahoma Lt. Gov. Todd Lamb told CNN Tuesday morning. "My understanding, this school ... Plaza Towers, they had a basement. Quite frankly, don't mean to be graphic, but that's why some of the children drowned, because they were in the basement area," he said.

http://www.cnn.com/2013/05/20/us/oklahoma-tornado-developments/index.html


:cry::cry::cry::cry:
 
  • #10
So sad on so many levels. I couldn't watch the news last night, but this morning I caught some of Good Morning America. The devastation in Moore is so nasty and widespread that I would not be surprised to see the death toll double as rescuers search the rubble. If I lived nearby, I would take Duke to help search. He has a nose like a bloodhound.
 
  • #11
For part of my mass casualty incident (MCI) training in EMT school, we watched a video of the emergency respose right after a very similar tornado in the same area a number of years ago. Very intense trying to help so many badly injured folks all at once, while running low on supplies and medical personnel. Sad to see it happen again.EDIT -- It was in 1999, in Oklahoma City... http://www.cnn.com/2013/05/20/us/oklahoma-1999-tornado/index.html?hpt=hp_t2

.
 
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  • #12
nsaspook said:
For a strong F4 the only safe shelter is a underground bunker. Early warning for evacuation away from the path is the top priority.

Thanks to advances in technology, average warning times are all the way up to 16 minutes. (Moore received an incredible 36 minutes of warning, but warning times that long are the exception.)

Only a small portion of a strong F4 storm actually has F4 winds. For example, yesterday's storm was estimated between a mile wide and two miles wide, but the F4 (or above) winds only covered about a quarter mile swath.

One needs to do a serious risk assessment between the probability of being hit by the strongest part of the storm vs the probability of being caught in your vehicle. Your vehicle will leave you vulnerable to even the weaker parts of the storm. You better be sure you can get well away from the storm's path - that you don't get caught because the storm changed direction, that downed power lines and trees aren't blocking your escape route, that you don't get caught in traffic.

The chances of getting caught in traffic are pretty low since most people will choose to shelter in place. If you're absolutely sure you're far in front of the storm, evacuating isn't a horrible idea (just keeping in mind that the average warning time is 16 minutes - YMMV).
 
  • #15
Watching Fox news at the moment, watching the storm clouds over a place in Oklahoma. No tunnel formed yet.

"Officials: People should seek shelter, abandon mobile homes, avoid windows."
 
  • #17
Here is an interesting view from a tracking car that got caught.
http://www.weather.com/video/tornado-hits-twc-crew-37092

What I find strange is that it appears they are driving straight into the tornado. From looking at it, I would be driving quickly the other direction.
 
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  • #18
Greg Bernhardt said:
Here is an interesting view from a tracking car that got caught.
http://www.weather.com/video/tornado-hits-twc-crew-37092

What I find strange is that it appears they are driving straight into the tornado. From looking at it, I would be driving quickly the other direction.

Wow! That's a major cockpit error. They just kept driving right into the thing like a moth attracted to fire.

These guys also had a close call but had the brains to backup.
http://kfor.com/2013/05/31/emily-su...fy-have-very-close-call-with-el-reno-tornado/
 
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  • #19
Why were all of those cars driving into the tornado? Were they all crazy tornado chasers?
 
  • #20
I can conjure up at least one scenario where they did the right thing... imagine the tornado is heading towards the road at a sharp angle (the angle between the road and the tornado's path is small, say 10 degrees). If you're on the road your best move is probably to drive towards the tornado and pass it before it actually intersects the road. I don't know if the tornado was taking that specific path in this case though
 
  • #21
Office_Shredder said:
I can conjure up at least one scenario where they did the right thing...

No one in their right mind should ever try that with a huge tornado that looks to be only a few hundred yards from that SUV. There is no excuse for their adrenaline junkie decisions.
 
  • #22
Three storm chasers were killed in the Oklahoma tornado Friday.

Three veteran storm chasers were among the 10 people killed Friday night when a violent tornado barreled into the Oklahoma City metro area.

Jim Samaras told The Associated Press on Sunday that his brother Tim Samaras was killed. Tim Samaras' son, Paul Samaras, and another chaser, Carl Young, also died.

http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-201_162-57587246/three-veteran-storm-chasers-among-those-killed-by-okla-tornado/
 
  • #23
Evo said:
Three storm chasers were killed in the Oklahoma tornado Friday.



http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-201_162-57587246/three-veteran-storm-chasers-among-those-killed-by-okla-tornado/

I'm really sad to hear that. Tim Samaras was not just an adrenaline junkie, he loved his work and science.
http://video.nationalgeographic.com/video/specials/in-the-field-specials/samaras-tornadoes/
 
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  • #24
nsaspook said:
I'm really sad to hear that. Tim Samaras was not just an adrenaline junkie, he loved his work and science.
http://video.nationalgeographic.com/video/specials/in-the-field-specials/samaras-tornadoes/
Yes, he's actually done some great work, but they got too close this time.
 
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  • #25
The Weather Channel had a storm chase team in El Reno OK that was hit. They were lucky.

http://www.weather.com/news/tornado-central/tornado-hunt-team-takes-direct-hit-tornado-20130531
 
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Related to Moore, OK Tornado: 51 Killed, More Feared Dead

1. What caused the Moore, OK Tornado?

The Moore, OK tornado was caused by a combination of warm, moist air from the Gulf of Mexico colliding with dry, cool air from the north. This created an unstable atmosphere that was conducive to the formation of severe thunderstorms and tornadoes.

2. How strong was the Moore, OK Tornado?

The Moore, OK tornado was rated as an EF5 on the Enhanced Fujita Scale, with wind speeds estimated to be over 200 miles per hour. This is the strongest category of tornado and indicates near-total destruction of buildings and structures.

3. Was there any warning before the Moore, OK Tornado?

Yes, there was a tornado warning issued by the National Weather Service approximately 16 minutes before the tornado touched down in Moore, OK. However, the tornado was so strong and fast-moving that many people did not have enough time to seek shelter.

4. How many people were killed in the Moore, OK Tornado?

As of now, there have been 51 confirmed deaths from the Moore, OK tornado, with many more injured and missing. Unfortunately, this number may continue to rise as search and rescue efforts continue.

5. Could the Moore, OK Tornado have been prevented?

No, tornadoes cannot be prevented. However, with advanced warning systems, emergency preparedness plans, and proper sheltering, the impacts of tornadoes can be minimized. It is important for individuals and communities to have a plan in place for severe weather events like tornadoes.

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