At least four people lost their lives, including an infant, due to tornadoes in Oklahoma. The severe weather outbreak caused significant damage and left thousands without electricity.
The powerful storms leveled structures in the center of a rural town, causing injuries to more than 100 people.
Oklahoma Governor Kevin Stitt, while visiting the heavily impacted area, expressed disbelief at the extent of the destruction, noting that virtually every downtown business had been obliterated.
Horrific scene after a tornado goes through downtown Sulphur, Oklahoma. Prayers. #tornado #sulphurok #oklahoma #severewx pic.twitter.com/UrVmYpU6WC
— Garrett Tarver (@tarver_garrett) April 28, 2024
Following the tornadoes that struck late Saturday night, over 20,000 people remained without power. The town of Sulphur, which has a population of approximately 5,000, experienced substantial destruction.
The tornado wreaked havoc on downtown buildings, flinging cars and buses, and tearing off roofs across a 15-block radius.
In response to the tornadoes, Oklahoma Governor Kevin Stitt issued a state of emergency for the state on Sunday. This declaration enables additional funding to assist first responders and recovery efforts.
The torrential rains that came with the tornadoes in Oklahoma led to substantial flooding, necessitating water rescues.
More damage in Sulphur, OK from the tornadoes. There are no words that come close to describing what it was like after the tornado came through. #sulphurok #sulphurtornado #tornado #oklahoma #okwx pic.twitter.com/Fx6tombJYo
— Garrett Tarver (@tarver_garrett) April 28, 2024
Beyond Sulphur, the increasing lake levels resulted in the closure of the Chickasaw National Recreation Area, where the storms demolished a pedestrian bridge.
During his visit to Sulphur, Governor Stitt commented that this was the most significant damage he had witnessed since taking office in 2019.
“The Federal Emergency Management Agency had offered the assistance of the federal government,” Stitt stated.
As of midday Sunday, over 30,000 customers in Oklahoma were experiencing power outages, according to poweroutage.us. Simultaneously, nearly 52,000 customers in Texas were also without power due to the severe weather.
On Sunday, the National Weather Service issued storm warnings for over 47 million people spanning from East Texas to Illinois and Wisconsin. The warnings highlighted the risks of high winds, heavy rainfall, and hail.
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