EF1 Tornado — Cherokee, Oklahoma

2025-05-19 · near Standing Rock, Cherokee, Oklahoma

Event narrative

This is the first segment of a two segment tornado. The tornado developed over Lake Tenkiller southwest of Cherokee Landing State Park, and moved northeast. It snapped and uprooted numerous trees at the park, then crossed Highway 82 and Highway 100, where trees were uprooted. The tornado snapped and uprooted numerous trees when it crossed the S Welling Road and the S 600 Road. Trees continued to be uprooted as it crossed the S 610 Road, and then continued into Adair County. Based on this damage, maximum estimated wind in this segment of the tornado was 100 to 110 mph.

Wider weather episode

Severe thunderstorms developed over central Oklahoma along and ahead of a dry line during the afternoon of the 19th, as an upper level disturbance approached the Southern Plains. These thunderstorms moved northeast off the dry line and across portions of eastern Oklahoma during the mid afternoon and evening hours. The atmosphere east of the dry line across eastern Oklahoma became very unstable during the afternoon and evening, and this instability combined with strong deep-layer and low-level wind shear, resulted in the development of a few supercell thunderstorms and a severe squall line. Multiple tornadoes, large hail slightly larger than golf ball size, and damaging wind gusts occurred with these thunderstorms across eastern Oklahoma. Locally heavy rainfall also produced some localized flash flooding.

View location on OpenStreetMap → (35.7560, -94.9160)

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 1264101. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.