A surprise EF-2 tornado ripped through Tulsa, Oklahoma early Sunday, August 6, 2017, destroying buildings and injuring 26 people, two of them severely. The National Weather Service confirmed two EF-1 tornadoes in towns nearby. Tornadoes in August are uncommon, but not ‘outrageously rare,’ NWS said. NWS Tulsa Meteorologists surveyed several tornadoes that developed early Sunday morning as a bow echo within a quasi-linear convective system (QLCS) moved through northeastern Oklahoma.
The strongest was rated as EF-2. It had maximum estimated wind speed between 193 and 209 km/h (120 and 130 mph), and was on the ground for 6 minutes, from 01:19 CDT to 01:25 CDT. Its path length was 11 km (6.9 miles) and maximum path width 503 m (550 yards). This tornado developed along the leading edge of the bow echo, over a neighborhood east of S. Harvard Ave. and south of E. 36th St. S., where large tree limbs were snapped and homes were damaged, NWS said. READ MORE
