Wichita Falls, Texas Tornado
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The Wichita Falls Tornado is the tornado event that occurred on April 10, 1979. This tornado was the most notable of thirteen tornadoes that ripped through the Red River Valley on the day commonly called "Terrible Tuesday" by many meterologists.
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All the favorable conditions
A deepening low pressure system formed in Colorado as a warm front lifted north pulling warm, moist, unstable air. There was strong upper level dynamics all coming together to produce strong tornado-producing supercells. In the early afternoon hours, three supercell thunderstorms formed. They moved northeastward, and as a trio spawned families of tornadoes. These supercells caused the most damaging tornadoes of the outbreak.
The Tornadoes
The first tornado formed near Crowell, Texas at around 3:05 P.M. About 35 minutes later, the tornado ripped through Vernon and killed 11 people. Then the tornado killed three people in Lawton, Oklahoma. The second supercell spawned a tornado that moved 64 miles.
Wichita Falls
The third supercell was the one that formed the tornado that moved through Seymour, Texas and Wichita Falls. The tornado formed a family of three tornadoes. The first formed near Seymour at around 4:53 P.M.. The storm spawned a second tornado and moved through the south and east sides of Wichita Falls at around 6:00 P.M. The storm spawned another tornado near Waurika, Oklahoma at around 8:00 P.M. The storm moved 47 miles.
The storm formed in Archer County, Texas and moved northeast and damaged a few rural homes and high voltage towers. The tornado then moved into Wichita County, Texas and severely damaged Memorial Stadium and McNiel Junior High School. The tornado destroyed an apartment complex across the street. The tornado also took its first lives at the complex. The tornado later destroyed a restaurant, part of a shopping center, and another apartment complex where the tornado took more lives.
A number of people tried to flee as the tornado moved through US Highway 281 and 287. More people were killed in their cars. The tornado then moved into Clay County and changed its appearance. There were five satellite tornadoes spinning the parent tornado. It did more damage south of Dean and Byars, but no more fatalities.
Inconceivable Damage
At the end of the outbreak, 53 people lost their lives in Texas and three were killed in Oklahoma. The Wichita Falls tornado alone killed 42 people, making it the last tornado to kill more than 40 people. The tornado caused $400 million in damage which, up until May 3, 1999, made it the costliest tornado in U.S. history. An eight-mile swath of the city had almost unheard of devestation. Dr. Ted Fujita, who was working at the University of Chicago, said the tornado caused as much as F4 damage on the east and south sides of the city. What was unique about this tornado was that it caused a wide swath of F4 damage. Ordinary tornadoes only have a small path of their most intense damage.
See also
External links
- A survivor's story (Joel Manes) (http://www.tornadoproject.com/safety/manes.htm)