On the evening of April 10th 1979 an F4 tornado touched down outside Wichita Falls TX and carved a 47 mile long path of destruction that would become the costliest Tornado in United States History. During the morning, closely monitored air mass movements, temperatures, dew points, and winds had all been shifting towards critical values indicative of severe thunderstorms and potential tornadoes. On the first street of houses to the northeast of Lange's apartment complex, Robert Molet also photographed the approaching tornado (location #3). Tornado warning and preparedness systems are worth the time and effort it takes to maintain them. Forty-two people were killed outright by the storm and 3 others died as a result of heart attacks. April 10, 1979: The worst single tornado in Texas' history hit Wichita Falls. The tornado's worst winds generally missed the Sikes Senter Shopping Mall to the South, but a few of the stores were heavily damaged and many cars in the mall parking lot were blown some distance and stacked on top of each other. Lawton was as ready as a community could be for the tornado. Hail the size of golf balls preceded the touchdown and continued for approximately 15 minutes. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Each parallelogram on the map below represents the approximate aerial coverage shown in each photo. Strong inflow winds associated with the tornado and the larger-scale mesocyclonic winds rotating around the tornado produced light damage over almost all of the city. Large tornado destroyed several barns and scattered debris over a large area. When was the last time there was a tornado in Wichita? The tornado moved to the north-northwest during its life before lifting 2 miles from Burkburnett. No damage was reported from this small, weak tornado and it was rated F0. Several trailers were destroyed. According to the American National Red Cross, 7,759 families suffered losses in the storms (Table 1). As a subscriber, you have 10 gift articles to give each month. Dallas Times Herald photo by Mark Perlstein Almost 40 years ago, a massive F4 tornado tore through Wichita Falls, in an event that the Dallas Times Herald and Wichita Falls Times labeled Terrible Tuesday. Approximately 30 houses in the addition were damage with some houses suffering extensive damage. Nationwide, Current Conditions Several got extra protection by covering themselves with mattresses and pillows. By this time teams from NSSL and the University of Oklahoma had arrived. A large number of roofs were damaged at the air base, and buildings at the Wichita Valley Airport also suffered roof damage. Graphical Forecasts A woman was injured when her truck rolled into the ditch in which she was taking cover. Earlier in the day around daybreak, low-level moisture from the Gulf was observed pouring northward through the heart of the State while much drier air was surging eastward across the Pecos River (Figure 10). Pat Blacklock, View looking northwest from south shore of Lake Wichita at the tornado approaching Wichita Falls, Texas. During this time I was trying to shoot pictures through the window. It damaged several homes and businesses before going into Wichita Falls where it . About Our Office The siren system for the city was sounded three times, the last around 5:50 p.m., just as the storm spotters reported the tornado approaching Memorial Stadium in the southwestern suburbs of Wichita Falls. Also nearby, about 10 utility poles were snapped near the top with debris falling on fences and other sheet metal buildings. Fortunately, no one was killed or injured by the tornado. The Harrold tornado was in its formative stages at about the time the Vernon tornado was crossing the Red River. Storm Pictures. It is believed that many more minor injuries were never recorded.[5][6][7]. Total property damage in Wichita Falls was estimated at $400,000,000 (in 1979 dollars). 8. The first of dozens of funerals to be held for those killed by the tornado that struck here Tuesday was held today for Terry Mahon, 17 years old, who died while working at a restaurant job she had taken to save money for a marriage she had planned for this summer. More than 1700 injuries occurred within Wichita Falls. Tornado F-scale ratings prior to 1950, as well as most tornado data are referenced from Significant Tornadoes, 1680-1991 by T. P. Grazulis. Golfball-size hail fell prior to and immediately after the tornado passed along a track that took it into Oklahoma (where it dissipated near Waurika). Driving north on Texas 267 we witnessed the Thalia tornado. It is estimated that 5,000 families, consisting of almost 20,000 people, were left homeless in Wichita Falls. A mobile home was destroyed near Faxson, resulting in two serious injuries. 1979 tornado outbreak leaves massive damage and 57 dead in Texoma. We also assessed the protective measures taken by a representative sample of community residents who suffered no major injury in order to estimate the relative risk of injury to people directly in the tornado's path. (Rated F2 by the NWS.). The most notable tornado was another F4 tornado that destroyed most of the southern part of Wichita Falls, Texas, and is commonly referred to as "Terrible Tuesday" by many meteorologists. The tornado then crossed a short span of open fields before moving into the Colonial Park area. Tornado Database The tornadoes pictured here were part of the Red River Valley Outbreak, the biggest event of that year. Watch on. Frost Tornado. Multiple locations were found. A 368-foot radio antenna and 2 others antennas were blown down, and multiple power lines were downed. ), March 27, 1939 - This tornado touched down north-northwest of Wichita Falls and moved northeastward into Clay County. During this interval, the tornado was photographed by Professor Joe Henderson of Midwestern State University from the Ligon Coliseum (location #7). The Wichita Falls area has been visited by tornadoes many times over the course of its history. As the much drier air whipped eastward out of the southern High Plains just after noon, thunderstorms, some of which were very heavy, boiled up in parts of the eastern High Plains and quickly spilled over into the Low Rolling Plains. At the surface, an already strong low pressure area in southeast Colorado was beginning to deepen further, and a warm front was starting to lift northward from central Texas. People from the shopping center took shelter in refrigerator vaults, in restrooms, and under closets. Amateur radio storm spotters turned in the first report of the storm, which allowed 5 to 10 minutes of valuable warning time. The passage of a violent tornado through an 8-mile section of a city is an almost unheard-of natural disaster. Using spotter and radar reports, Lawton officials sounded the siren system to warn the people of the approaching storm. The April 10, 1979, tornado that hit Wichita Falls is the state's fifth-deadliest and one of the largest in U.S. history. Weather Bureau records. Two oil storage tanks were blown away and several homes were unroofed near Farm Road 2650 as the tornado approached Wichita Falls. Despite passing north of the Sikes Senter Shopping Mall, intense winds from the outer circulation of the tornado heavily damaged a few stores and blew many cars in the mall's parking lot some distance away from where they originated and stacked on top of each other. The F5 storm tore through Wichita and Andover, leaving a path of destruction in its wake. April 8, 1961 - A small tornado formed near Kamay at 4:00 pmCST, moved northeast across the Wichita Valley Airport, and then moved into Sheppard AFB. One F4 tornado impacted Vernon, Texas. Also, the second story of the press box at the high school football stadium was blown off and scattered across the playing field. National Weather Service Aviation Weather Upper Air Maps A concrete block building was destroyed, and another was partially destroyed. Rivers and Lakes Instead of going through Vernon we dropped further south through Seymour, then north on Texas 267. Used by permission of author Don Burgess. Northeast of Wichita Falls, the tornado entered Clay County and changed its appearance. To preserve these articles as they originally appeared, The Times does not alter, edit or update them. Forty-two people were killed outright by the storm, while 3 others died of heart attacks. Wayne Collamore, View looking west about 3-4 miles east of Harrold on Highway 320 at about 4:15 pm CST. The publication was written and prepared by George W. Bomar of Weather Modification & Technology Section of the Texas Department of Water Resources. There were at times five separate vortices visible within the tornado. At the Iowa Park Fairgrounds, wind damage covered a 4-block area. Numerous other disruptive weather events, including torrential, flash-flooding rains, scattered but frequent incidents of hail, and a widespread dust and sand storm, highlighted April, an unusually wet but seasonably mild month for most Texans. While only on the ground for 35 minutes, the 800-foot-wide twister killed seven people, injured 111, and destroyed 225 homes. Most of the deaths were in Wichita Falls and Vernon, Texas . Earlier on the same day, several tornadoes hit farther west. Joe Landon Haney. Bailey Turnpike to Lawton we were in low clouds with light fog and drizzle. Skywarn Storm Spotters No fatalities or injuries occurred. With surface pressures in the southern High Plains plunging rapidly, a low pressure center formed in the vicinity of Lubbock around noon (Figure 15). Even though lesson #3 (above) is true in a violent tornado, the only complete guarantee of safety comes from an underground shelter, an above-ground shelter, or an extremely strongly-built building. (Colonial Park, Hursh, Southmoor, Southwinds, and Southern Hills) A number of people tried to flee as the tornado moved along US 281 and 287 by driving east on Southwest Parkway. Assuredly, no two years weatherwise in Texas are even remotely similar, for the community that reeled one year from a capricious dry spell likely is the recipient of plenty of rain in the following year, while a not-too-distant neighboring locale that hurt from a disastrous hailstorm one Spring experiences relative calm during the following year's storm season. 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