F3 Tornado — Cleveland, Oklahoma

2003-05-08 · near Moore, Cleveland, Oklahoma

Event narrative

This is the first segment of a tornado that began in Cleveland County and moved into Oklahoma County before dissipating 2.5 miles south-southeast of Choctaw. The tornado began in the area of Northwest 5th Street and Santa Fe Avenue in Moore, near the Church of Latter Day Saints. Damage intensities increased quickly to F2 and isolated F3 as the tornado, initially narrow, moved east along 5th street. Substantial structural damage in this initial touchdown area was confined to homes on the north side of 5th Street, just east of Santa Fe. Homes on the south side of 5th, and those on 6th Street one block to the north, were relatively undamaged.The damage track then widened quickly to nearly one-fifth of a mile as the tornado turned more to the northeast through residential areas, crossing Markwell Avenue between North 2nd and North 7th Streets. The most significant damage on Markwell, rated F2, was at North 6th Street. Continuing northeast and widening to nearly a quarter of a mile, the tornado crossed Janeway Avenue between Dillon Avenue (south edge) and 12th Street (north edge). Maximum damage on Janeway was to homes near 8th Street, and was rated F2.Damage intensity increased to F3 as the tornado approached 12th Street between Janeway and Interstate 35. A commercial building on the south side of 12th suffered F3 damage, as did several homes on the north side of 12th Street at City Avenue where several homes lost most of their outside walls. Maximum damage intensity on Sunrise Avenue (north of 12th and one block east of City Ave.) was rated strong F2 and consisted mostly of homes being partially or totally unroofed. Several vehicles were tossed into front yards, and in one case nearly into the front of a home.The worst damage produced within the city of Moore was as the tornado approached west sides of Interstate 35, just north of 12th Street. Damage in this area included major damage to two hotels, the First Christian Church, the Young Child Development Center, a Project Headstart building, an office building, and several restaurants. The church, child care center, and office building were leveled. The two hotels, both two-story, had their second floors partially or totally removed by the tornado. At least a half dozen vehicles were tossed in this area, with evidence suggesting that some of them may have traveled 100 yards or more. Had the leveled buildings here shown evidence of better construction, damage might have been rated F4. As it was, damage here was rated strong F3.A southbound moving Greyhound bus was hit by the tornado as it crossed Interstate 35. The bus was carrying twenty-three passengers, some of which chose to disembark to take cover in a ditch while others chose to stay on the bus. The bus rolled several times jostling passengers around the interior. Passengers were trapped between crushed seats and buckled walls while others were left hanging upside down and out broken windows. Of those that hid in the ditch, eleven were injured by flying debris. Eight passengers that stayed on the bus were also injured. Most of the injuries to the passengers were minor.The tornado crossed Interstate 35 0.25 to 0.50 miles north of 12th Street, damaging or destroying several businesses along Broadway, just east of the interstate. Intensity dropped to F2 in this area, but the path width remained close to a quarter of a mile. The tornado continued northeast across south and east parts of the Highland Park residential area, causing F1 and spotty F2 damage. The tornado weakened to F1 intensity and turned slightly to the north-northeast as it crossed Pole Road and the Burlington Northern Santa Fe railroad tracks near and just south of Northeast 27th Street.It should be noted that the damage track of this tornado through Moore was nearly parallel to, and generally a quarter of a mile or less south of, the track of the F5 tornado that struck Moore on 3 May 1999. In fact, Highland Park also suffered extensive damage from the May 3rd tornado, but that damage was mainly in the north and west parts of the area. The damage track through Highland Park on 8 May 2003 was roughly two blocks farther south.The tornado crossed Northeast 27th between Pole Road and Eastern Avenue and continued northeast, crossing Eastern at the Lakeside Golf Course, just east of Eastern and straddling the Oklahoma City and Moore city limits. This golf course also took a direct hit from the tornado on 3 May 1999, and from this point northeastward for about one mile, the two tornado tracks overlapped. The tornado, at this point F1, continued northeast from the golf course into an open field just south of Southeast 89th Street, then struck the northwest part of a subdivision just south of 89th Street and west of Bryant Avenue. More than a dozen residences, including duplexes and single-family homes, were heavily damaged or destroyed in this area. The same northwest part of this subdivision was hit hard on 3 May 1999; many of the homes damaged or destroyed on 8 May had been rebuilt and were less than four years old.This tornado continued into Oklahoma County becoming an F4 and traveling a total of 17.3 miles.

Wider weather episode

Two tornadic supercells produced four tornadoes during the afternoon hours of May 8, 2003. One supercell produced three tornadoes that affected Moore, southern Oklahoma City, Midwest City, and Choctaw. A few locations in Moore and southeast Oklahoma City had also been hit by an F5 tornado that moved through the area on May 3, 1999. The General Motors Plant in southeast Oklahoma City sustained some of the most significant damage. This event was the second tornadic event of the day. Several tornadoes moved across south central Oklahoma during the early morning hours of May 8th (refer to appropriate data). This event was also the first of two days in a row where the Oklahoma City Metropolitan area was affected by tornadoes (refer to May 9, 2003 data). These thunderstorms developed near and along a strong dryline located across central Oklahoma.

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Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 5361225. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.