“Before I can even blink, I could hear the wind coming all of a sudden. All the back windows where the kids’ bedrooms are — I could hear them just crashing, bursting out.”
It’s a common comment from survivors of tornadoes in Oklahoma.
Those were muttered by Frances Tabler of Norman who was interviewed by KOCO TV News following the Sunday night filled with an estimated 15 tornadoes across the western half of the state.
The night of tornadoes in the state left one person dead and nearly 15 people with injuries.
The storm in Norman sent a dozen people to the hospital but the good news is, none suffered any critical injuries.
KFOR Channel 4 news reported the areas that were impacted appear to stretch from a mile south of the river and I-35, heading northeast through the Classen and Hwy 9 area. It also continues northeast past Franklin and 120th.
While the most severe damage in the central part of the state was reported in Goldsby and Norman, there was other reports throughout the region.
KWTV News 9 reported the town of Cheyenne in western Oklahoma was among the hardest hit in the state. That’s where one fatality was reported in addition to 3 injuries.
Monday morning left nearly 15,000 customers of Oklahoma Gas & Electric without electrical power, down from a peak of 33,000 as of Sunday night.
A mid-morning update from OGE indicated as as of 10:30 a.m., 75% of customers who experienced an outage related to this storm had been restored. The numbers improved by late in the afternoon when the utility reported about 6,000 customers remained without power.
Given a preliminary number of 15 tornadoes in Oklahoma and wind gusts ranging 65-110 MPH, less than 12 hours after the storm, there are fewer than 10,000 customers without power, down from 33,000 at the peak of the storm.
“In situations like Sunday night, it is evident that the grid investments that OG&E has made over the last few years, which further strengthened our infrastructure and deploy automated technology to reduce outage impacts, have resulted in fewer and shorter customer outages overall,” stated the update.
OG&E explained that crews worked overnight to restore power and as of Monday morning, the utility had 2,500 operations personnel continue to work on restoration. The wind damage involved downed power lines, power poles, cross arms and other equipment attached to poles.
Sunday evening, crews could not make visual inspections for damage and had to wait until sun rise to continue their efforts.
Guidance for Customers
- Downed power lines may still be energized and should be considered hazardous – please stay away from them and anything they are touching. Report a downed power line by calling 800-552-6870.
- As we work to restore power, it may be necessary to gain access to your property. Please ensure our crews have access and that you secure any animals.
- As we clear tree limbs that are interfering with power lines, vegetation crews will take tree and brush debris from the customer’s yard to the curb but will not remove this debris. The disposal of debris due to storms is the customer’s responsibility.
- OG&E customers can quickly report and monitor outages:
- Use our free mobile app to submit a report (available on iOS and Android)
- Submit a report online at OGE.com/outages
- Text OUT to 32001 if signed up for myOGEalerts
- Call 405-272-9595 (OKC metro) or 800-552-6870 (all other areas)
- Customers impacted by weather-related outages can view updates by visiting OG&E’s Storm Center at oge.com/stormcenter.
Public Service Company reported a smaller number of customers without power in its region.
A Monday morning update showed:
Outages
• Damage assessments include 92 downed poles in the PSO distribution system, mostly in southwest Oklahoma. Damage was also reported for transmission towers, wires, and other equipment.
• Around 10 p.m. Sunday, 11,229 customers were without power throughout the PSO service area. That marked the high point for outages.
• As of 11 a.m., the vast majority of customers were restored with the number of outages reduced to less than 1,000 customers. The remaining outages are concentrated in southwestern Oklahoma, where 900 customers were without power.
• PSO crews and business partners are working to restore power safety and quickly. Estimated restoration times Monday and Tuesday for remaining outages in southwest Oklahoma have been set and are available on the outage map at PSOklahoma.com.
