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Strong storm overturns mobile homes in Oklahoma and claims one life


Strong storm overturns mobile homes in Oklahoma and claims one life

PAWNEE, Okla. – A strong storm swept through parts of Oklahoma, overturning several recreational vehicles and downing trees and power lines, authorities said. One death was reported.

Investigators planned to go to the area Friday afternoon, but there was no radar evidence that Thursday night’s storm was a tornado, said meteorologist Pete Snyder of the National Weather Service in Tulsa.

“It looks like straight-line winds,” Snyder said. “You don’t know for sure until someone goes out and looks.”

Early Friday, the city of Pawnee urged residents to exercise caution in the area and said power was still out in several areas.

“The crews worked through the night and are still on the move,” the city said.

The city had previously stated that there was significant damage and several streets were closed.

The weather service reported wind gusts of up to 72 mph and hailstones the size of golf balls, Snyder said.

One person died in an overturned mobile home, Pawnee County Sheriff Darrin Varnell said. He said others were damaged and people “lost virtually everything they owned in a matter of seconds.”

Pawnee public schools and the public library were closed Friday due to storm damage. The school’s homecoming events on Thursday night were canceled because of the weather.

Pawnee, with about 1,900 inhabitants, is located in northeastern Oklahoma, about 60 miles west of Tulsa.

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