On Friday, May 31st, a series of tornadoes hit central Oklahoma leaving a toll of at least five dead, dozens injured, and more than 200,000 people without power. The storms caused large amounts of rain and hail, and floods exceeded three feet high in some areas of Oklahoma City.
Tornadoes touched down near El Reno, about 15 miles from downtown Oklahoma City, in full rush hour in the region. Most people were working when the tornadoes struck the state. When people heard the warning, they tried to go home causing traffic congestion. Several vehicles were tossed by the force of the winds and in one case victimized a mother and her baby who were traveling in a car when the storm hit them.
The interstate 40 was shut down due to the natural disaster, producing multiple crashes and injuries. According to the Oklahoma-based Integris Health hospital system, over 40 people were being treated for storm-related injuries. Among them, there were five in critical condition, including a child.
The wind gusts exceeded the 75 miles per hour and the tornado warning was extended to several other counties although the alert was canceled in the early hours of the night. Will Rogers Airport had to be closed and evacuated moving a thousand people to the underground tunnels, according to CNN.
This is the second major emergency caused by tornadoes in this region in less than two weeks. On May 20th, 24 people died in Moore, part of the Oklahoma City metropolitan area, after a twister ranked EF5 --the highest in Fujita scale-- ransacked the area.
While it's difficult to know exactly how many tornadoes touched down, Tim Oram from the National Weather Service reported that they had information on the activity of three major thunderstorms with the potential to produce twisters in the central area of ​​the state.
75% of worldwide tornadoes takes place in the United States. While many states of the country are beaten frequently by tornadoes and other atmospheric phenomena, in recent years Oklahoma has become one of the most affected. The state is in a particularly active and dangerous area, known as Tornado Alley.
Tornadoes are most common in that region because it's warm, moist air from the Gulf of Mexico meets the cold, dry air from the Rocky Mountains and Canada. This generates intense thunderstorms with the potential to produce tornadoes.