Blizzard — Seminole, Oklahoma

2009-12-24 · Seminole, Oklahoma

Event narrative

Five to eight inches of snow accumulated, with isolated totals up to ten inches. Konowa measured seven inches. Frequent wind gusts of 50 to 60+ mph created considerable blowing and drifting snow, and greatly reduced visibilities.

Wider weather episode

A powerful winter storm developed over parts of the Southern Plains, resulting in one of the most widespread and damaging blizzards to affect Oklahoma in decades. Blizzard conditions affected the vast majority of northern, central, and southwest Oklahoma for at least 5 to 7 hours. A surface low pressure center intensified rapidly over northern Texas, leading to severe, blustery winds during the morning and afternoon hours. Rain began falling during the early morning hours over southwest Oklahoma and progressed northeast. The rain quickly changed to sleet and freezing rain, and then to all snow as temperatures fell into the 20s. By late morning over southwest Oklahoma and the early afternoon over the rest of Oklahoma, winds were sustained around 40 mph, with frequent wind gust of 50 to 60+ mph. Snowfall rates approached two inches per hour at times for some locations, and the visibilities were frequently less than 100 feet. Numerous accidents were reported, especially given the high volume of traffic the day before Christmas. A large 50+ car accident was reported near Midwest City, that resulted in several injuries. Most area roadways were shut down for the day into Christmas morning, which included all interstates in and around the Oklahoma City metro area, and almost of all of Interstate 44. Thousands of people were stranded in their cars for several hours, and many abandoned their vehicles, littering the roads and highways. This made snow removal more difficult, and roads were slow to reopen. The strong winds, combined with the below freezing temperatures, allowed for wind chill temperatures to drop to near zero. This made it even more dangerous for people that were abandoning their vehicles. By sunset, the snowfall had accumulated five to seven inches over much of southwest into central Oklahoma, with a maximum of eight to ten plus inches over central Oklahoma, including the Oklahoma City metro area, and over south-central Oklahoma. Total damage from the blizzard have exceeded $18 million across Oklahoma. Unfortunately, nine people lost their lives, either in weather-related traffic accidents, or being struck by cars while assisting stranded motorists.

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 207677. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.