NWS Tulsa: Evidence of a tornado found between Woodward Park and Utica Square

TULSA, Okla — UPDATE, 11/11/2021, 2:45 p.m.: The National Weather Service confirms that evidence of a tornado was found between Woodward Park and Utica Square. They did not release a storm rating.

A strong line of storms brought high winds and rain Wednesday night causing trees to uproot and power outages throughout the Tulsa metro.

Thousands were without power at the height of the outage with many customers having their power restored as of Thursday morning.

Large trees toppled at Woodward Park near 21st and South Peoria and trees covered the roads near 41st and Riverside.

A family living near 21st and Sheridan tells FOX23 News that they had just finished blowing out the candles for a birthday celebration when they heard the wind pick up Wednesday night.

Royce Ellis, who lives in the home, said the wind blew the screen door of the house open and they had trouble keeping it closed. He said his family was concerned after learning about a tornado warning in their area.

During it all, Ellis said they heard something crash and looked in the backyard. That’s where they found a large tree branch that fell on the side of the home. Fortunately, Ellis said it didn’t look like there was much damage.

The family said it’s not the first time they’ve experienced severe weather in their neighborhood and recalled the tornado that hit Midtown Tulsa a few years ago. Ellis and his family said they were fortunate everyone stayed safe.

Tulsa firefighters were also kept busy with drivers getting stuck in high water as the rain moved through.

“What we found was multiple motorists getting stuck in ditches that either attempted to drive in the water or tried to turn around to avoid the water,” said Tulsa Fire Capt. Danny Kaiser. “If there’s deep water on the road, turn around don’t drown.”

As Wednesday night’s system moved through, a possible tornado was reported near Catoosa.

Large limbs and some signs were blown over near Admiral on 145th East Ave, according to the National Weather Service.

Oklahoma has recorded a tornado in November in the last two years. There were two tornadoes in 2020, and just two years earlier there were four November tornadoes in 2018 including the EF-2 across Lake Tenkiller.

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