Weather Service Confirms Tornado Near Tulsa International Airport
OKLAHOMA CITY (CBSDFW.COM/AP) — It had already spawned dozens of tornadoes across Texas and Oklahoma and just at sunrise on Tuesday morning another twister was spotted near Tulsa International Airport.
More tornadoes, along with hail and damaging winds were predicted as the storms moved to the east. In Tulsa, forecasters confirmed a tornado near the airport at about 6:30 a.m. Airport spokesman Andrew Pierini said the twister touched down about 4 miles from the airport and caused no damage there.
Oklahoma Office of Emergency Management spokeswoman Keli Cain said damage in the area was being assessed and that so far one home was found damaged by a falling tree.
Passengers were moved into shelters for about 30 minutes and many flights were canceled or delayed at the Tulsa airport because of the storms.
Some parts of Tulsa County received anywhere from 4 to 5 inches of rain overnight. In fact, meteorologists say nearby Bird Creek went from 5 feet to 36 feet in just 12 hours.
Along with severe weather, the storms brought a deluge of rain, causing the Oklahoma Department of Transportation to shut down Interstate 40 in El Reno, about 25 miles west of Oklahoma City, because of high water Tuesday morning.
In Stillwater, home to Oklahoma State University, emergency responders were rescuing people from their homes because of high water.
The Storm Prediction Center had warned of an unusually high risk for severe weather Monday for parts of Texas and Oklahoma. Damage was reported in many areas Monday night.
(© Copyright 2019 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)
