Winter Storm — Cherokee, Oklahoma

2009-01-26 to 2009-01-27 · Cherokee, Oklahoma

Wider weather episode

Upper level disturbances passing through the Southern Plains resulted in precipitation development north of a stationary arctic front located in North Texas. Freezing rain began across the area during the late morning hours of the 26th and became more widespread and heavy during the afternoon and evening hours. Freezing rain changed to sleet north of a Okemah-Wagoner-Colcord line during the morning of the 27th with heavy freezing rain continuing south of that line. The heaviest icing and most widespread power outages and tree damage occurred across portions of Cherokee, Sequoyah, Muskogee, and Adair Counties where one to one and a half inches of ice accumulated. More than 100,000 electric customers were without power during the height of the storm in eastern Oklahoma and some customers in remote rural areas continued to be without power for more than two weeks.

A 40 to 50 mile wide swath of heavy sleet occurred just to the west of the most significant ice with two to three inches accumulating along and near an Okehah-Wagoner-Grove line. Elsewhere up to an inch of sleet fell on top of the heavy ice.

One direct injury occurred from the storm in eastern Oklahoma. A man was injured by ice coated tree limbs that fell on him in Cherokee County.

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 152524. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.