Thunderstorm Wind — Pawnee, Oklahoma

2024-09-19 · near Pawnee, Pawnee, Oklahoma

Event narrative

The Oklahoma Mesonet station near Pawnee measured thunderstorm wind gusts of more than 58 mph for 10 minutes, with a maximum gust of 72 mph.

Wider weather episode

Strong to severe thunderstorms developed into northeastern Oklahoma during the evening of the 19th, as a cold front approached the area. Very strong instability combined with increasing deep layer shear to result in one of the thunderstorms evolving into a supercell. This storm was high-based with a deep layer of relatively dry air between the cloud base and the ground. This environment enabled the storm to produce very strong and damaging downbursts, which likely gusted to up to 95 mph at times. The storm moved across Pawnee Lake in Pawnee County, rolling multiple recreational vehicles at a campground. One person was killed when the RV he was in rolled, and two others were injured. This severe thunderstorm also produced large hail up to golf ball size.

View location on OpenStreetMap → (36.3611, -96.7698)

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 1208976. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.