{"id":5596,"date":"2026-04-23T21:32:42","date_gmt":"2026-04-24T04:32:42","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/infonews.ca\/news\/7624383\/tornado-barrels-through-oklahoma-damaging-homes-and-shutting-down-roads\/"},"modified":"2026-04-24T20:15:02","modified_gmt":"2026-04-25T03:15:02","slug":"violent-tornado-tears-through-oklahoma-town-damaging-40-homes-but-sparing-lives","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/infonews.ca\/inwheels\/news\/5596\/violent-tornado-tears-through-oklahoma-town-damaging-40-homes-but-sparing-lives\/","title":{"rendered":"Violent tornado tears through Oklahoma town, damaging 40 homes but sparing lives"},"content":{"rendered":"

ENID, Okla. (AP) \u2014 Raeann Hunt scrambled to her cellar as a tornado bore down on her Oklahoma community. <\/p>\n

\u201cIt is headed right for us,\u201d she recalled thinking, as she peeked outside, unable to contain her curiosity. <\/p>\n

Huddled inside the dark 8-by-8 foot (2.44-by-2.44 meters) concrete shelter with her husband, brother-in-law and a neighbor, she heard roaring, metal slapping on the door and glass breaking.<\/p>\n

Afterward, they emerged unscathed, but found the windows smashed out of the one-story brick home in Enid and the roof badly damaged.<\/p>\n

The scene was repeated Thursday night across the city of about 50,000 people about 85 miles north of Oklahoma City as the EF-4 tornado hit. It was on the ground for 9 miles (14.48 kilometers), packing winds of 170 to 175 mph and measuring 500 yards across at its widest, said Rick Smith, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service.<\/p>\n

For those 30 to 40 minutes, at least 40 homes were damaged, some blown off their foundations. But no one was killed and only minor injuries were reported<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\u201cPeople around here have a plan,\u201d Hunt explained, noting that residents of this tornado-alley state are trained to either take shelter in a room near the center of their home or get underground.<\/p>\n

Basements aren\u2019t common in Oklahoma because of the red clay soil and elevated water tables that make it difficult and expensive to install them, but many homes \u2014 like Hunt’s \u2014 have storm cellars or safe rooms with reinforced concrete walls where people can take cover.<\/p>\n

People here also know to flip on the TV and set up weather alerts on their phones \u2014 particularly in the springtime, when the risk of violent twisters is highest.<\/p>\n

\u201cEspecially in Oklahoma, we have great meteorologists,\u201d said Justin Hunt of Enid, who described the storm’s aftermath as a \u201cdisaster.\u201d<\/p>\n

Storm leaves rubble in its wake<\/p>\n

Commercial buildings just south of the city were turned into a pile of twisted metal, splintered wood and insulation by powerful winds that pushed the buildings completely off the concrete foundations.<\/p>\n

The tornado knocked down utility poles and left power lines wrapped with huge chunks of debris. A home had part of its metal roof torn off and trees were left stripped of bark and limbs. At another home, a section of one wall had peeled away to reveal the interior of the home with some furniture still in place.<\/p>\n

\u201cUsually when we come to a neighborhood that\u2019s been hit this bad, there\u2019s one or two deaths,\u201d Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt said during a news conference Friday. \u201cWe\u2019re just so thankful there wasn\u2019t a loss of life.\u201d<\/p>\n

People pick through rubble, clear away debris<\/p>\n

Police and fire departments and the Oklahoma Highway Patrol conducted multiple home searches, rescuing some trapped residents, Enid Mayor David Mason said Friday.<\/p>\n

\u201cSupplies have poured in already,\u201d Mason posted online. \u201cThis is who Enid is in challenging moments \u2014 we continue to show up for one another.\u201d<\/p>\n

Dave Lamerton of Enid spent Friday morning salvaging what was left of his son Joseph\u2019s woodworking shop just south of the city, along with some family members and a group of volunteers who traveled from Kansas to help with cleanup.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe tornado just swung right through here and just hit us directly,\u201d Lamerton said, pointing to a giant mess of splintered wood beams, furniture, debris and heavy machinery that was pushed into a massive pile at the edge of the building\u2019s foundation. \u201cWe\u2019ve got stuff on the property we can\u2019t even find.\u201d<\/p>\n

Meteorologists describe powerful storm system<\/p>\n

One striking image from Thursday\u2019s storms shows a tornado in the Enid area with a dark clouds of debris extending in V-shape on either side. That is typical of higher-end tornadoes, according to Mark Fox, the meteorologist in charge of the National Weather Service\u2019s office in Norman. <\/p>\n

It has such a violent motion as winds pick up dirt, debris and things like parts of people\u2019s houses.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf you start seeing things like this, you know it\u2019s a violent tornado,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Neighboring counties also reported some flooded roads and barn damage. The National Weather Service was sending two crews out Friday to do damage surveys related to six potential tornadoes in the Enid and Braman areas of north-central Oklahoma, meteorologist John Pike said.<\/p>\n

Air force base is damaged<\/p>\n

Fences and some equipment were knocked down at nearby Vance Air Force Base, about 80 miles (129 kilometers) north of Oklahoma City. The base was closed until further notice \u201cdue to ongoing power and water restoration efforts,\u201d it posted online Friday.<\/p>\n

Everyone assigned to the base has been accounted for and no injuries were reported, 71st Flying Training Wing Public Affairs Chief Ashley D. Hendricks said in an email Friday.<\/p>\n

More bad weather possible<\/p>\n

More storms are possible through Friday night across south-central and southeast Oklahoma, the weather service said. Strong to severe thunderstorms are expected to develop Saturday, including in the Enid area.<\/p>\n

It was a stormy night in other states, too. In Kearney, Missouri, north of Kansas City, officials reported downed trees, debris blocking roadways and damage to homes on Thursday night after storms passed through the area. Officials said in a social media post that no injuries had been reported. Crews worked to make roads passable by early Friday and were expected to continue cleanup efforts during the day.<\/p>\n

\u2014-<\/p>\n

Associated Press writers Kathy McCormack in Concord, New Hampshire, and Sarah Brumfield in Cockeysville, Maryland, contributed to this report. <\/p>\n

\n \"|\"
A view of a damaged home in Enid, Okla., Friday, April 24, 2026, in the aftermath of a tornado that barreled through Oklahoma Thursday. (AP Photo\/Alonzo Adams)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\n \"|\"
A man clears debris at a commercial woodworking shop in Enid, Okla., Friday, April 24, 2026, in the aftermath of a tornado that barreled through Oklahoma Thursday. (AP Photo\/Alonzo Adams)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\n \"|\"
Buildings lie in shreds in Enid, Okla., Friday, April 24, 2026, in the aftermath of a tornado that barreled through Oklahoma Thursday. (AP Photo\/Alonzo Adams)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\n \"|\"
Lightning lights up the sky behind a television tower as a thunderstorm moves through the area Thursday, April 23, 2026, in Kansas City, Mo. (AP Photo\/Charlie Riedel)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

ENID, Okla. (AP) \u2014 Raeann Hunt scrambled to her cellar as a tornado bore down on her Oklahoma community. \u201cIt is headed right for us,\u201d she recalled thinking, as she peeked outside, unable to contain her curiosity. Huddled inside the dark 8-by-8 foot (2.44-by-2.44 meters) concrete shelter with her husband, brother-in-law and a neighbor, she […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":521,"featured_media":5597,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"guid":"d56b68d7-f5aa-401d-b40c-a3dc7062324c","source":"The Associated Press","byline":"Sean Murphy","published":"2026-04-23 21:32:42","updated":"2026-04-24 20:09:50","_infotelid":"","_prepressid":"","_multisite_post_sync":"","_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1303,1304],"tags":[],"region":[],"class_list":["post-5596","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-international","category-world"],"blocksy_meta":[],"parsely":{"version":"1.1.0","canonical_url":"https:\/\/infonews.ca\/inwheels\/news\/5596\/violent-tornado-tears-through-oklahoma-town-damaging-40-homes-but-sparing-lives\/","smart_links":{"inbound":0,"outbound":0},"traffic_boost_suggestions_count":0,"meta":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","headline":"Violent tornado tears through Oklahoma town, damaging 40 homes but sparing lives","url":"http:\/\/infonews.ca\/inwheels\/news\/5596\/violent-tornado-tears-through-oklahoma-town-damaging-40-homes-but-sparing-lives\/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"http:\/\/infonews.ca\/inwheels\/news\/5596\/violent-tornado-tears-through-oklahoma-town-damaging-40-homes-but-sparing-lives\/"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/infonews.ca\/inwheels\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/inwheels-b50371b071e394d1be156db95c38e5d2d4289f8eff90a4e429614705c57ba44d.jpg?w=150&h=150&crop=1","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https:\/\/infonews.ca\/inwheels\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/inwheels-b50371b071e394d1be156db95c38e5d2d4289f8eff90a4e429614705c57ba44d.jpg"},"articleSection":"International","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"The Associated Press"}],"creator":["The Associated Press"],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"iNwheels","logo":""},"keywords":[],"dateCreated":"2026-04-24T04:32:42Z","datePublished":"2026-04-24T04:32:42Z","dateModified":"2026-04-25T03:15:02Z"},"rendered":"