2011 Chickasha–Blanchard tornado

Powerful EF4 tornado in central Oklahoma in 2011 May 2025 infobox 1/2 300 2011 Chickasha, Oklahoma EF4 tornado.jpg Radar Imagery of Chickasha tornado.jpg Chickasha EF4 Damage.jpg Clockwise from top:A view of the tornado as it was intensifying near Chickasha;High-end EF4 damage to a frame residence north of Blanchard;Radar imagery of two tornado-producing storm systems, with the Chickasha tornado in progress in the northern cell 55 minutes May 24, 2011, 5:06 p.m. CDT (UTC−05:00) May 24, 2011, 6:01 p.m. CDT (UTC−05:00) atl 200 mph km/h on EF4 33.3 mi km on 880 yd m on 1 48 2011 Grady, McClain, and Cleveland Counties, Oklahoma; particularly Chickasha, Blanchard, and Newcastle Tornado outbreak sequence of May 21–26, 2011 and Tornadoes of 2011 In the late afternoon hours of May 24, 2011, a large and extremely violent EF4 tornado impacted the southern side of Chickasha, Oklahoma and rural areas around Blanchard and Newcastle. This tornado, commonly referred to as the Chickasha–Blanchard tornado, or the Chickasha–Blanchard–Newcastle tornado per the National Weather Service, killed one person and injured 48 others along a 33.3 mi km out path, with a peak path width of 880 yd mi off. This tornado was part of a widespread tornado outbreak sequence that took place across the contiguous United States from May 21–26, 2011, and was one of the strongest tornadoes in the sequence, being tied for the second-strongest tornado of the May 24 outbreak, behind the El Reno–Piedmont tornado. The tornado touched down south of Chickasha at 5:06 p.m. CDT, quickly strengthening to EF2 intensity, destroying mobile homes and doing severe roof damage to apartments and other buildings. After leaving the city, the tornado destroyed a home at EF4 strength. Trees were debarked, and cars were damaged or demolished. The tornado continued northeast, causing severe tree damage, destroying a home, and scouring away topsoil mostly at EF3 to EF4 intensity. The tornado briefly weakened before strengthening to EF3 intensity, debarking multiple trees, obliterating manufactured homes, and scouring inches of soil. The tornado rapidly intensified to near EF5 strength, damaging and destroying several well-built homes north of Blanchard. Numerous trees were blown down and debarked and vehicles were destroyed, another home was leveled as the tornado continued moving northeast. The tornado weakened, causing significant damage to homes and demolishing outbuildings around Newcastle before dissipating north of the Canadian River. Meteorological synopsis left|thumb|Storm Prediction Center issuing a high-risk for northern Texas, most of Oklahoma, and southern Kansas Early on May 24, a strong upper-level trough (an elongated region of low atmospheric pressure aloft) advanced towards the Great Plains out of the southwestern United States and took on a negative tilt, becoming oriented northwest to southeast.The May 24, 2011, Tornado Outbreak in Oklahoma https://www.weather.gov/oun/events-20110524 live https://web.archive.org/web/20221211150924/https://www.weather.gov/oun/events-20110524 December 11, 2022 February 9, 2022 National Weather Service Norman, OklahomaTanamachi Robin L. Heinselman Pamela L. Wicker Louis J. 2015-06-01 Impacts of a Storm Merger on the 24 May 2011 El Reno, Oklahoma, Tornadic Supercell Weather and Forecasting EN 30 3 501–524 10.1175/WAF-D-14-00164.1 1520-0434 free504At the same time, southerly flow brought moisture north over Texas and the southern Great Plains, allowing dew points in Central Oklahoma to reach 18–21 C F on.504–505 This moisture, with temperatures in the mid 80 F C on range, allowed for ample convective available potential energy (or CAPE, a measure of atmospheric instability); values reached 2500–4000 J/kg. Mid-level lapse rates were nearly dry adiabatic.Ortega Kiel L. Bluestein Howard B. Burgess Donald W. Garfield Gabriel S. 3 January 25, 2012 Overview of the 24 May 2011 Tornado Outbreak https://ams.confex.com/ams/92Annual/webprogram/Paper201297.html 92nd American Meteorological Society Annual Meeting Special Symposium on the Tornado Disasters of 2011 https://web.archive.org/web/20230207012208/https://ams.confex.com/ams/92Annual/webprogram/Paper201297.html February 7, 2023 February 10, 2023 American Meteorological Society2504–505 In the late morning, a shortwave embedded within the main longwave trough advanced more rapidly, pushing the dryline into western Oklahoma, where it met the already-present moisture.504–505 The shortwave's advance also brought strong wind shear and "incredibly high" storm-relative helicity values of more than 500 m2s−2. The convergence of all these factors promised the development of intense convective thunderstorms.2 This risk was anticipated by the National Weather Service's Storm Prediction Center (SPC), and its local forecast office in Norman, Oklahoma. The Storm Prediction Center's outlooks for severe weather culminated in a "high risk" area being delineated over the Great Plains for May 24. Issued at 11:25 a.m. CDT, the Storm Prediction Center's convective outlook for the day highlighted the tornado risk, which included central Oklahoma inside a large region with a 45% chance of a tornado touchdown within 25 mi km of any given point, and a 10% or greater chance of a significant (EF2+) tornado within that same 25 mi km radius.https://www.spc.noaa.gov/products/outlook/archive/2011/day1otlk_20110524_1630.html Storm Prediction Center May 24, 2011 1630 UTC Day 1 Convective Outlook Hart John A. Grams Jeremy S. May 24, 2011 Storm Prediction Center Norman, Oklahoma February 13, 2023 https://web.archive.org/web/20190110192038/https://www.spc.noaa.gov/products/outlook/archive/2011/day1otlk_20110524_1630.html January 10, 2019 live At 12:50 p.m., the Storm Prediction Center issued a Particularly Dangerous Situation (PDS) tornado watch, to remain in effect until 10:00 p.m., for most of central Oklahoma extending from the state border with Kansas down through the Oklahoma City metropolitan area and into northern Texas. The text of the tornado watch again warned of the possible development of "destructive tornadoes... ...some of which could be long-tracked and strong to violent."http://www.spc.noaa.gov/products/watch/2011/ww0356.html Particularly Dangerous Situation (PDS) Tornado Watch 356 Mead Corey M. May 24, 2011 National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Norman, Oklahoma May 24, 2011 https://web.archive.org/web/20140903142931/http://www.spc.noaa.gov/products/watch/2011/ww0356.html September 3, 2014 live Storm Prediction Center Tornado summary Grady County thumb|A mobile home that got destroyed at EF2 intensity|238x238px At 5:06 p.m., an uncondensed tornado touched down on Fieldcrest Dr in a neighborhood south of Chickasha at EF0 strength, taking tree limbs off and blowing down fences; some homes sustained minor roof damage. The tornado crossed H. E. Bailey Turnpike where large branches and television aerials were ripped away. The tornado strengthened to EF1 intensity as it crossed Sleepy Hollow Blvd, some large trees were uprooted and minimal roof damage was noted, multiple trees were uprooted, and one of them fell onto a home. The tornado rapidly intensified to high-end EF2 strength with wind speeds of 135 mph km/h on, a manufactured home along Parkway Dr was demolished, and debris was blown away.Various National Weather Service offices 2025 Damage Assessment Toolkit https://apps.dat.noaa.gov/stormdamage/damageviewer/ DAT National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Interactive map and database A 24-year-old woman was killed in this area as her mobile home was lifted and dropped on top of her.Rolland Megan Oklahoma tornadoes: Woman killed in Chickasha lived a vibrant life 2011-05-27 https://www.oklahoman.com/story/news/education/2011/05/27/oklahoma-tornadoes-woman-killed-in-chickasha-lived-a-vibrant-life/61161088007/ 2024-08-12 The Oklahoman en-US The tornado weakened to mid-range EF2 intensity, a car wash and repair shop on W Country Club Road had their roof ripped away at 120 mph, a gas station nearby had piece of their roof ripped off, trees were also uprooted and an outbuilding was damaged. The tornado weakened to high-end EF1 strength, uprooting multiple trees and damaging an apartment complex along Glenwood Dr. The tornado crossed E Almar Dr where it re-intensified to mid-range EF2, a roof of an apartment complex was torn off and suffered partial wall collapse, a car was flipped and damaged, around the same time, the funnel of the tornado fully condensed to the ground.Kerr Kevin AP Reports 2011-05-25 Chickasha hit by large tornado https://www.duncanbanner.com/news/chickasha-hit-by-large-tornado/article_bf207664-8c62-55e8-a6e3-0aed06699b01.html 2024-08-12 The Duncan Banner en A Dollar Tree suffered severe damage as some of the exterior walls collapsed. Still, due to the contextual damage not matching up with the structural damage of the building, it only retained mid-range EF2 intensity. The Dollar Tree was later reopened in 2012.Carter Lauren 2012-09-21 Game Stop, other businesses to open in Chickasha https://www.chickashanews.com/news/game-stop-other-businesses-to-open-in-chickasha/article_c6e6c696-63a0-5fb0-af46-8c729880542b.html 2024-08-12 Chickasha Express Star en left|thumb|219x219px|Well-built home near Chickasha completely swept away The tornado left the neighborhoods, passing by a mesonet station to the south and east; the station recorded a gust of 53 mph km/h on and a pressure drop. The tornado crossed D2855 Road, weakening to low-end EF2 intensity, destroying a barn and uprooting multiple trees before it crossed the Washita River.Re: Mesonet station hit by tornado - update https://www.atmos.albany.edu/daes/atmclasses/atm401/elreno_tornado/elreno.htm 2024-08-19 University at Albany Department of Atmospheric and Environmental Sciences More trees were uprooted on E1365 Road, along with a metal fence at EF1 strength. The tornado intensified to low-end EF2 after crossing I-62, where another barn was demolished and multiple trees were uprooted. The tornado continued to travel to the northeast before explosively intensifying to low-end EF4 strength; a well-constructed home on E1350 Road has swept away at an estimated wind speed of 170 mph km/h on, a home right across the road was leveled and ground scouring was noted in this location, the garage of the home was blown down, and three cars were tossed 300 to 750 ft away northeast, a mobile home was completely obliterated around here, other homes near the vicinity lost their exterior walls, and two metal building was completely demolished. The tornado weakened to low-end EF3 intensity, multiple hardwood trees were debarked and lost their branches, and two framed homes on Maple Road lost their roofs, a couple of mobile homes were destroyed, a barn was leveled further north. The tornado crossed Miller Road where it re-intensified to low-end EF4 intensity, a well-constructed home was almost leveled, leaving a few interior walls standing, two other framed homes nearby had its roof ripped away, and a mobile home was separated from its unit and was rolled off, badly damaging it, crops, mud, and straw were scoured and was piled up against a fence up to 6 ft high and a car was tossed at an unknown distance. A home on Smith Rd lost its exterior walls, and a masonry home further north sustained substantial roof damage. Some trees were uprooted, and power lines leaned over. thumb|241x241px|Low-end EF4 damage to a home near Chickasha The tornado maintained EF4 strength as it crossed Ballard Road. A brick home along this road was leveled at wind speeds of 170 mph km/h on, the brick chimney of the home was crumpled, and trees were debarked and uprooted. The tornado weakened to EF3 intensity, a stone home had its roof torn off, the ground was scoured away, vehicles were thrown 300 yards away and mangled and trees were debarked. The tornado maintained EF3 intensity as it crossed County Street 2920; numerous trees around East Bitter Creek were debarked, the ground was completely scoured away down to the dirt, and an outbuilding was leveled near the edge of the path. The tornado weakened to EF1 strength and shrunk in size as it crossed E1300 Road, snapping and uprooting trees and ripping a roof off an outbuilding. Homes sustained minor roof damage. Despite being far from the tornado, a single-wide manufactured home along E1295 Road sustained severe damage, likely caused by rear flank downdraft winds. Passing west of Blanchard, the tornado re-strengthened to low-end EF3 intensity, crossing NW 25th Street, trees were debarked, and an entire home was shifted off its foundation, and a mobile home was completely demolished, a two-story home had their second floor lost their exterior walls and an outbuilding was demolished. The tornado crossed County Street 2980, slightly intensifying to mid-range EF3 strength as a double-wide mobile home was obliterated, and ground scouring was noted to happen again, a farmstead along the road suffered major damage as it was almost leveled, leaving a few interior walls standing, a pickup truck was thrown 200 yd m out away and was destroyed as it was stripped down to its chassis, other vehicles were thrown and mangled. The tornado weakened to high-end EF2 intensity, snapping and uprooting multiple trees and destroying the exterior walls of a home on County Road 2984 before entering McClain County; the tornado killed one person and injured 48 people although the total damages are unknown.EF4 Grady County: Storm Events Database - Event Details https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/access/storm-events-database/event-details/315858 2024-08-12 National Centers for Environmental Information McClain County left|thumb|239x239px|Reinforced concrete dome home sustaining significant damage The tornado entered McClain County and first crossed into a neighborhood north of Blanchard, where it intensified to mid-range EF3 strength, destroying a home and leaving a few interior walls standing and ripping roofs off of homes along N County Line Ave, as well as destroying a mobile home. The tornado rapidly strengthened to high-end EF4 intensity; the tornado crossed Maple Ridge Road, where a thin shell concrete dome was damaged, and since the home was reinforced with steel fibers rather than the common horizontal and vertical rebar, the dome was severely cracked by flying debris, all the windows were blown out, and the doors caved in, two vehicles were destroyed, and trees nearby were debarked, 10"x30" of asphalt was ripped away.Parker Freda 2011-07-05 A Testament to the Dome Shape https://www.monolithic.org/benefits/benefits-survivability/a-testament-to-the-dome-shape 2024-08-12 Monolithic.org enthumb|222x222px|Well-constructed home north of Blanchard on Kitty Hawk Road partially swept away at 190 mph (310 km/h) being possible EF5 damage. The tornado crossed Kitty Hawk Road, where it rapidly strengthened to extremely high-end EF4 intensity with estimated wind speeds of nearly 200 mph, and the most violent damage from the tornado occurred around here.The May 24, 2011, Tornado Outbreak in Oklahoma https://www.weather.gov/oun/events-20110524#tornado-c1 2024-08-12 National Weather Service Norman, Oklahoma EN-US 10'x100' of asphalt was stripped off by the tornado, numerous trees were blown down and severely debarked and the ground was scoured and went as deep as 2-4", some part of the pavement were gouged out by flying debris.LaDue Jim Marshall Tim Timothy P. Marshall Scharfenberg Kevin Discriminating EF4 and EF5 tornado damage https://www.yumpu.com/en/document/view/12309173/discriminating-ef4-and-ef5-tornado-damage 2024-08-19 Yumpu en A well-built brick veneer home on Kitty Hawk Road was swept away, but it was possibly EF5 level damage as it had anchor bolted sill plates, and some of them remained intact, and the south side of the home was mud blasted, but due to the fact some of the anchor bolts were missing their washers, the damage here was rated 185 mph km/h on. Another home on the intersection of Kitty Hawk Road and Meadow Lark Ln has been swept away and also possibly had EF5 level damage; it was anchored with a mix of anchored with anchor bolts and cut nails, and the sill plates that remained on the foundation had straight nail studs, and some furniture on the foundation were unaffected, leaving the home to get a rating of 180 mph km/h on. On Meadow Lark Ln, another well-built home was leveled and partially swept away and was another EF5 candidate; trees nearby were shredded down to their stubs, several inches of soil around the home was scoured and vehicles were tossed 300–600 yd m out away, but the home was given a rating of 190 mph km/h on due to some of the anchor bolts missing nuts and some of the sill plates were attached with cut nails and the remaining sill plates had straight nail studs left, preventing a higher rating. thumb|231x231px|Significant roof damage north of Newcastle The tornado crossed H.E. Bailey Turnpike Norman Spur, leveling a home at low-end EF4 intensity; homes nearby were mostly destroyed, leaving a few interior walls standing. The tornado substantially weakened to high-end EF2, destroying a barn and tearing away many roofs off of homes along W Golf Course Road, a home on S Ross Dr lost its exterior walls, and a power pole on S Rockwell Road was snapped. The tornado weakened to an EF1, ripping a roof off a mobile home on Timber Ridge Drive and leveling an outbuilding. Multiple softwood and hardwood trees were snapped or uprooted along SW 16th St and Quail Run Road. The tornado passed west of downtown Newcastle, re-intensifying to mid-range EF2 strength as the Senior Living Apartments on W Fox Ln sustained significant roof damage, and more trees were snapped on this road. A subdivision took a direct hit from the tornado at 122 mph km/h on, many homes sustained severe roof damage, and many outbuildings were destroyed. Some metal buildings along N Meridian Avenue received minor damage to their roof and walls. The tornado weakened to EF0, causing minimal roof damage to a home on NE 23rd Street; the tornado continued to cause moderate damage, snapping trees and power poles before crossing the Canadian River into Cleveland County, the tornado caused minor damage to a warehouse and an outbuilding along on SW 149th Street before dissipating southwest of Moore. Despite the extensive damage, no injuries and fatalities were reported in McClain County, and no casualties were reported in Cleveland County.EF4 McClain County: Storm Events Database - Event Details https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/access/storm-events-database/event-details/315859 2024-08-13 National Centers for Environmental InformationEF0 Cleveland County: Storm Events Database - Event Details https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/access/storm-events-database/event-details/315860 2024-08-13 National Centers for Environmental Information Aftermath October 2026 After the tornado, the Grady County Sheriff requested assistance from Stephen Sheriff County and five other deputies to come to Chickasha to help in aid. In Grady County, 261 structures were impacted by the tornado, 72 homes and businesses were destroyed by the tornado, 46 other structures received major damage and 143 structures only sustained minor damage.DeSilver Debi 2021-05-19 Remembering the May 24, 2011 tornado in Grady County https://www.chickashanews.com/community/remembering-the-may-24-2011-tornado-in-grady-county/article_6b0e5030-b8dd-11eb-8274-6f533a60f086.html 2024-08-21 Chickasha Express Star en One fatality resulted from the tornado: 24-year-old Laron Short, a 2010 graduate from the University of Science and Arts of Oklahoma (USAO) with a degree in communication.May 25, 2011 Tornado victim identified by family https://www.chickashanews.com/news/tornado-victim-identified-by-family/article_8c964798-8cbe-54a7-80d7-de3edd1c8169.html October 20, 2026 The Express-StarHertneky Dana May 26, 2011 Chickasha Woman Crushed By Trailer Home During Tornado Outbreak https://www.news9.com/story/5e34fab7e0c96e774b367438/chickasha-woman-crushed-by-trailer-home-during-tornado-outbreak October 20, 2026 KWTV-DT At the time of the tornado, Short was visiting her grandmother in the Watson Mobile Home Park, located near the intersection of South 4th Street and West Country Club Road in Chickasha. Laron Short, along with her mother, Tammy, and her mother's partner, sought shelter in a shed. As Laron Short was exiting the trailer, it fell on top of her, crushing her. The other two occupants escaped with minor injuries. Reports indicate that the toppled trailer was not properly strapped to the ground. G.G. Music, Jr., who served as the Incident Commander for the mobile home park in the aftermath of the tornado, reported that the response to the tornado was a "joint effort between the police station and the fire department", unified under a shared goal. Oklahoma Governor Mary Fallin and Chickasha Mayor Hank Ross were seen surveying the damage at the Watson Mobile Home Park site.May 25, 2011 Oklahoma tornadoes: View photos of the aftermath May 25, 2011 https://www.oklahoman.com/picture-gallery/weather/severe/2011/05/25/oklahoma-tornadoes-view-photos-of-the-aftermath-may-25-2011/9203031007/ October 20, 2026 The Oklahoman Several church institutions and individuals brought food, water, and other supplies to assist with the recovery effort. Possible EF5 intensity On January 23, 2025, Anthony W. Lyza with the National Severe Storms Laboratory along with Harold E. Brooks and Makenzie J. Kroca with the University of Oklahoma’s School of Meteorology published a paper to the American Meteorological Society, where they stated the tornado in Chickasha was an "EF5 candidate" and opined that the EF5 starting wind speed should be 190 mph km/h on instead of 201 mph km/h on.Lyza Anthony W. Brooks Harold E. Krocak Makenzie J. Where Have the EF5s Gone? A Closer Look at the “Drought” of the Most Violent Tornadoes in the United States Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society 23 January 2025 10.1175/BAMS-D-24-0066.1 https://journals.ametsoc.org/view/journals/bams/aop/BAMS-D-24-0066.1/BAMS-D-24-0066.1.xml 2 February 2025 American Meteorological Society subscription The National Weather Service office in Norman, Oklahoma surveyed the damage produced by the Chickasha–Blanchard tornado and assigned the damage a maximum wind speed estimate of 200 mph km/h on. It was mentioned by surveyors that multiple frame homes, particularly near the Norman Spur of the H.E. Bailey Turnpike, were originally "EF5 candidates", though they were downgraded due to deficiencies in engineering and construction practices. See also Tornadoes of 2011 Tornado outbreak sequence of May 21–26, 2011 List of F4 and EF4 tornadoes (2010–2019) 2011 Washington–Goldsby tornado — Another EF4 tornado that occurred earlier that same day near the area. 2011 El Reno–Piedmont tornado — A long-track and extremely violent EF5 tornado that occurred further north in Oklahoma the same day. 2013 Moore tornado — A devastating EF5 tornado that impacting similar areas in Newcastle before moving towards the Oklahoma City suburb of Moore References 2011-05-24 2011-05-24 05-24 Category:2011 in Oklahoma Category:2011 natural disasters in the United States Category:May 2011 in the United States