More tornado warnings for Oklahoma City area, day after twisters caused major damage
More tornado warnings and watches were being issued for the Oklahoma City metro area on Monday afternoon, a day after a swarm of twisters tore through the region, injuring 11 people and leaving more than 130 homes destroyed or damaged.
The National Weather Service (NWS) issued tornado watches on Monday from Tulsa, Oklahoma, down to Dallas Texas as severe weather swept across the Great Plains. The NWS also issued flood watches for southeast Kansas, southwest Missouri, northwest Arkansas and central Oklahoma as thunderstorms were forecast for Monday afternoon and into the evening.
The NWS confirmed a tornado touched down Monday near Tulsa, Kevin Brown, an NWS meteorologist in Norman, Oklahoma, told ABC News.
"It looks fairly strong," Brown said of the Tulsa area twister, adding that damage has been reported.
Brown said several tornado warnings were issued in central Oklahoma, including the Tulsa area.
A tornado watch means conditions are favorable for tornadoes and severe thunderstorms in and close to the watch area, according to the NWS Storm Prediction Center.
"Persons in these areas should be on the lookout for threatening weather conditions and listen for later statements and possible warnings," according to the center.
Brown said at least six strong tornadoes that hit the Oklahoma City area on Sunday have been confirmed. He said that number could double and the NWS continues to investigate reports of tornadoes that struck the area Sunday.
The threat of severe weather across the Plains is expected to diminish going into Election Day as the severe weather front pushes east, threatening to bring heavy rain from the Great Lakes to the Gulf Coast, Brown said.
Officials issued tornado warnings Sunday, including one for the University of Oklahoma's Norman campus.
One of the twisters is thought to have touched down directly in Oklahoma City, where most of the injuries occurred. Police and fire officials said the people hurt were being treated at hospitals for non-life-threatening injuries.
The Oklahoma City Fire Department said on Sunday that it had successfully rescued two adults who were trapped in an overturned mobile home. Additionally, it said firefighters had responded to individuals stranded in their vehicles due to flash-flooding conditions.
There were no reports of fatalities from Sunday's tornadic activity.
Oklahoma City officials, however, reported that 39 structures were destroyed, another 43 sustained major damage, and 54 structures received minor damage.
Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt issued an emergency declaration for six counties late Sunday.
In addition to the damaged or destroyed structures, power lines were downed, trees were toppled and gas lines were broken when the possible twisters tore through the area during a four-hour period beginning around 11 p.m. Saturday, Nolan Meister, a meteorologist for the NWS in Norman, told ABC News on Sunday.
One possible tornado struck the community of Choctaw, about 17 miles east of Oklahoma City, at about 1 a.m. Sunday, according to the Choctaw Police Department.
The suspected twister ripped through the Railhead Estates in Choctaw, causing "major damage" to homes and prompting firefighters and police to go door-to-door checking on residents, authorities said in a statement.
Several people were reported suffering minor injuries in the incident, police said.
"There is significant damage to homes in the area," police said in the statement. "We have opened the gymnasium at Choctaw Elementary for anyone that needs a temporary place for rest and shelter."
The nearby city of Harrah also sustained damage, according to the Choctaw Police Department, adding that people were taking shelter at a local casino.
Images of damage also emerged Sunday in Newcastle, about 14 miles south of Oklahoma City.
A twister that touched down Sunday in southeast Oklahoma City was rated as an EF3 on the Enhanced Fujita Scale, meaning it packed wind speeds of 136-165 mph. Officials said another tornado that hit Comanche in Stephens County was rated as at least an EF2 tornado packing wind speeds of 111-135 mph.
Among the emergency tornado warnings issued Sunday was one that prompted students and staff at the University of Oklahoma's Norman campus to shelter in place, officials said.
The warning was posted at 1:22 a.m. on the school's official X account. The school issued additional warnings at 1:55 a.m. and 2:02 a.m.
"Seek shelter NOW inside the building you are in," the first message said. "Move to lowest floor/interior."
The center said about 15 minutes later it had seen several "discrete supercells" that had "matured within the open warm sector across OK."
"A Tornado Watch means conditions are favorable for tornadoes and severe thunderstorms in and close to the watch area," the center said. "Persons in these areas should be on the lookout for threatening weather conditions and listen for later statements and possible warnings."
Oklahoma's governor reminded residents at a press conference on Sunday evening that Red Cross shelters were open for services and resources, while the state emergency center remains activated.
With over 30,000 households experiencing power outages, Stitt said that the state will prioritize having polling stations open -- with power available -- by Election Day. If there are any issues, voters will be notified and rerouted as needed.
ABC News' Kenton Gewecke and Vanessa Navarrete contributed to this report.
