More than 100 tornadoes, including an EF4, struck the nation's heartland
Multiple towns in the center of the nation were devastated by powerful tornadoes with winds to 170 mph last weekend.
AccuWeather meteorologists break down some of the details surrounding the deadly tornado outbreak from April 26-28.
Cleanup is underway Monday after a four-day tornado outbreak that brought more than 100 tornadoes from the Great Plains into the midwestern United States, killing at least four people and injuring dozens across several states.
The worst of the storms surveyed by the National Weather Service so far was a tornado in southern Oklahoma at Marietta, rated EF4 with winds as high as 170 mph and a track of 27 miles.
The National Weather Service confirmed eight EF3 tornadoes as of Tuesday morning, with an additional 15 EF2s, and storm surveys are not yet complete. Over 170 preliminary tornado reports were issued by storm spotters during the outbreak.
This outbreak brings the total number of tornadoes this year to 530 for the country, slightly above the historical average for this date.
Storms were forecast a week ahead of time
A week before the tornado outbreak, AccuWeather warned of possible tornadic storms. Several days ahead of the prime days of severe weather, AccuWeather meteorologists issued high-risk zones for severe weather into Saturday night.
Severe weather began Thursday with big hail and tornadoes
The severe storms began early Thursday in Oklahoma and more erupted in eastern Colorado, southeastern Wyoming, and northwestern Kansas late Thursday afternoon. A landspout was filmed in Akron, Colorado, and hail pounded towns in Kansas, while a needle tornado was captured on film in northwestern Kansas. No injuries and little damage were reported from the tornadoes.
Multiple large, long-track tornadoes hit on Friday
On Friday, a large number of big tornadoes caused damage in Texas, Kansas, Nebraska and Iowa. The storms occurred during the day and were widely filmed by storm chasers. The Omaha, Nebraska, area was hit multiple times by severe storms and tornadoes. An EF3 twister caused heavy damage in the town of Elba, Nebraska, about 25 miles northwest of Grand Island.
On Friday afternoon, storm chaser Aaron Jayjack recorded stunning footage of a massive wedge tornado crossing Interstate 80 near Lincoln, Nebraska. A large tornado also struck Elkhorn, a suburb of Omaha, causing considerable damage.
A tornado near Interstate 80 in Lincoln, Nebraska, on April 26, 2024. (Nebraska Department of Transportation)
Two brothers were sucked out of their home by that twister.
Minden, Iowa, located about 30 miles northeast of Omaha, was also heavily damaged by a tornado Friday evening. The entrance to the city was temporarily blocked so residents could recover. Storm Chaser Aaron Rigsby filmed the terrifying tornado hitting the town. A drone video by another storm chaser afterward showed homes obliterated by the twister.
AccuWeather Storm Chaser Aaron Jayjack was in Nebraska, Iowa and Oklahoma over the past weekend capturing the catastrophic tornadoes that devastated many of those communities.
Eppley Airfield in Omaha, Nebraska, released a statement Friday evening saying that a tornado had touched down, and the airport was closed for an hour while passengers took cover in storm shelters. There were no reports of injuries, but several buildings and many planes were destroyed, according to photos and videos posted on X.
Tennis ball-sized hail also fell in parts of Oklahoma Friday, cracking the windshield of AccuWeather Meteorologist and Storm Chaser Tony Laubach.
AccuWeather Meteorologist Tony Laubach captured one of the first tornadoes of Friday’s outbreak in Nebraska into Iowa.
Tornadoes turned deadly in Oklahoma Saturday night
More twisters struck Saturday from Texas to Missouri, and while the number of tornado reports was lower than Friday, several large tornadoes struck populated areas in Oklahoma Saturday night, killing at least four people, including an infant.
The deaths occurred in the towns of Marietta, Holdenville, and Sulphur. Tornadoes in the latter two cities were given a preliminary rating of EF3, while Marietta was rated an EF4 with 170 mph winds. Drone footage early Sunday showed the destruction to the downtown area of Sulphur, which was almost completely destroyed.
“You just can’t believe the destruction,” Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt said Sunday of damage in Holdenville. “It seems like every business downtown has been destroyed.”
Severe weather continued Sunday, although mainly high wind gusts were reported in eastern Texas. One tornado was reported in Pittsburg, Oklahoma.
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