2019 was a notorious year that went down in Oklahoma’s history books. Mother Nature hasn’t ever been kind to the Sooner State in May – from deadly tornadoes to large hail and historic flooding, we have felt the consequences of these weather-related events for all our lives. Many cities in northeastern Oklahoma experienced the worst flood in decades in 2019, while others were faced with historic flooding (not that that’s a whole lot better). Thousands of people were evacuated from their homes, lives were been lost, homes were damaged…and that was just the beginning. Take a look at these nine heartbreaking photos that show the devastation of Oklahoma’s worst flood in decades.
Every single county in Oklahoma was put under a state of emergency due to flooding and/or tornado damage. Several towns along the Arkansas River dealt with catastrophic flooding, and others were faced with worsening conditions even still.
tulsaworld/Youtube
Muskogee and surrounding towns were some of the hardest hit areas, forced to deal with catastrophic levels of floodwater.
City of Muskogee Emergency Management/Facebook
Most of Eastern Oklahoma broke previous May rainfall records, making our rivers swell and flood over in many locations. Some areas, like Sand Springs, were held up by 70-year-old levees, which could have given way at any moment.
Tulsa County Sheriff’s Office (TCSO)/Facebook
Oklahoma’s worst flood in decades wasn’t done yet: River Spirit Casino in Tulsa was temporarily shut down as the parking lot, pool, spa, and basement were completely flooded.
tulsaworld/Youtube
Many roads and highways were shut down. All roadways were cut off going into Braggs, and power was shut off to thousands of homes.
Nick Goodwin/YouTube
In Sand Springs, this home was almost completely under water; many Oklahomans didn’t, and still don’t, have flood insurance - making this terrible situation even worse.
Tulsa County Sheriff’s Office (TCSO)/Facebook
Shelters struggled at full capacity, leaving people to find shelters far away from home, which only made matters seem worse for many.
Tulsa County Sheriffs Office (TCSO)/Facebook
First responders and government officials worked overtime to help rescue people and monitor Oklahoma’s hardest-hit dams, bridges, and levees to ensure that they held up - and to warn folks to evacuate if they didn’t.
Tulsa County Sheriffs Office (TCSO)/Facebook
South of Tulsa in the Bixby/Leondard area, streets were almost unrecognizable.
Tulsa County Sheriff’s Office (TCSO)/Facebook See the video below from YouTube user tulsaworld for flyover footage of Tulsa, Broken Arrow, Owasso, and Sand Springs: For more footage of these historic flooding conditions, take a look at this aerial view of Muskogee flooding (from youtube user Nick Goodwin):
One thing is for sure: this nightmare was the worst Oklahoma flood in decades, and we really, really hope that history never repeats itself.
tulsaworld/Youtube
City of Muskogee Emergency Management/Facebook
Tulsa County Sheriff’s Office (TCSO)/Facebook
Nick Goodwin/YouTube
Tulsa County Sheriffs Office (TCSO)/Facebook
See the video below from YouTube user tulsaworld for flyover footage of Tulsa, Broken Arrow, Owasso, and Sand Springs: For more footage of these historic flooding conditions, take a look at this aerial view of Muskogee flooding (from youtube user Nick Goodwin):
If you would like to make a donation to Oklahoma flood victims, please click here.
You may recall we posted an article at the beginning of May about the prediction for tornado outbreaks being above average in May and into June. Unfortunately, that prediction looks to be true. You can read all about it here.
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The OIYS Visitor Center
Oklahoma’s Worst Flood in Decades June 21, 2021 Tori Jane What were some of the worst natural disasters in Oklahoma history? Unfortunately, Oklahoma is no stranger at all to natural disasters; depending on what time of year it is, we might see anything from floods to tornadoes to intense ice storms that cripple the infrastructure of the entire state. For example, in 1905, a monster tornado ripped through Snyder, Oklahoma, killing 112 and injuring more than 150. If we had used the Enhanced Fujita Scale to rate tornadic destruction back then, this storm would have easily been an EF5 – the worst of the worst. Speaking of tornadoes, the Newcastle/Moore F5 tornado of 1999 was an absolute unrivaled monster until 2013, when another monstrous EF5 ripped through the same area. The odds of this are incredibly slim – but unfortunately, it happened anyway. For some more interesting and scary Oklahoma weather events, check this article out! What was the worst flood in Oklahoma history? Oklahoma has seen significant flooding many times, and it’s something we’ve all had to come to terms with. 2019 was a historic year in Oklahoma for severe floods, and it’s considered to be the worst the state has ever seen. The flooding did more than 3 billion dollars in damage and claimed several lives. Eastern Oklahoma and western Arkansas were most heavily affected by the disaster. What are some truly unforgettable events in Oklahoma in terms of weather? Oklahoma is famous, in part, for its wild weather. We are, so far, the home of the most intense tornadoes on earth, with 65 F5 or EF5 tornadoes since 1950. The current record for the widest-ever tornado on record was an incredible 2.6 miles wide over El Reno, Oklahoma, outside of OKC. The floods of 2019 have gone down in history as the worst the Sooner State has seen (so far), and we’re no stranger to intense ice storms, too. Oklahoma is a beautiful state if you love weather, but you definitely might need to know what you’re getting into at some points.
The OIYS Visitor Center
Oklahoma’s Worst Flood in Decades
June 21, 2021
Tori Jane
What were some of the worst natural disasters in Oklahoma history? Unfortunately, Oklahoma is no stranger at all to natural disasters; depending on what time of year it is, we might see anything from floods to tornadoes to intense ice storms that cripple the infrastructure of the entire state. For example, in 1905, a monster tornado ripped through Snyder, Oklahoma, killing 112 and injuring more than 150. If we had used the Enhanced Fujita Scale to rate tornadic destruction back then, this storm would have easily been an EF5 – the worst of the worst. Speaking of tornadoes, the Newcastle/Moore F5 tornado of 1999 was an absolute unrivaled monster until 2013, when another monstrous EF5 ripped through the same area. The odds of this are incredibly slim – but unfortunately, it happened anyway. For some more interesting and scary Oklahoma weather events, check this article out! What was the worst flood in Oklahoma history? Oklahoma has seen significant flooding many times, and it’s something we’ve all had to come to terms with. 2019 was a historic year in Oklahoma for severe floods, and it’s considered to be the worst the state has ever seen. The flooding did more than 3 billion dollars in damage and claimed several lives. Eastern Oklahoma and western Arkansas were most heavily affected by the disaster. What are some truly unforgettable events in Oklahoma in terms of weather? Oklahoma is famous, in part, for its wild weather. We are, so far, the home of the most intense tornadoes on earth, with 65 F5 or EF5 tornadoes since 1950. The current record for the widest-ever tornado on record was an incredible 2.6 miles wide over El Reno, Oklahoma, outside of OKC. The floods of 2019 have gone down in history as the worst the Sooner State has seen (so far), and we’re no stranger to intense ice storms, too. Oklahoma is a beautiful state if you love weather, but you definitely might need to know what you’re getting into at some points.
The OIYS Visitor Center
The OIYS Visitor Center
Unfortunately, Oklahoma is no stranger at all to natural disasters; depending on what time of year it is, we might see anything from floods to tornadoes to intense ice storms that cripple the infrastructure of the entire state. For example, in 1905, a monster tornado ripped through Snyder, Oklahoma, killing 112 and injuring more than 150. If we had used the Enhanced Fujita Scale to rate tornadic destruction back then, this storm would have easily been an EF5 – the worst of the worst. Speaking of tornadoes, the Newcastle/Moore F5 tornado of 1999 was an absolute unrivaled monster until 2013, when another monstrous EF5 ripped through the same area. The odds of this are incredibly slim – but unfortunately, it happened anyway. For some more interesting and scary Oklahoma weather events, check this article out!
What was the worst flood in Oklahoma history?
Oklahoma has seen significant flooding many times, and it’s something we’ve all had to come to terms with. 2019 was a historic year in Oklahoma for severe floods, and it’s considered to be the worst the state has ever seen. The flooding did more than 3 billion dollars in damage and claimed several lives. Eastern Oklahoma and western Arkansas were most heavily affected by the disaster.
What are some truly unforgettable events in Oklahoma in terms of weather?
Oklahoma is famous, in part, for its wild weather. We are, so far, the home of the most intense tornadoes on earth, with 65 F5 or EF5 tornadoes since 1950. The current record for the widest-ever tornado on record was an incredible 2.6 miles wide over El Reno, Oklahoma, outside of OKC. The floods of 2019 have gone down in history as the worst the Sooner State has seen (so far), and we’re no stranger to intense ice storms, too. Oklahoma is a beautiful state if you love weather, but you definitely might need to know what you’re getting into at some points.
