© 2024 KGOU
News and Music for Oklahoma
Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations

More Rain On Sunday As Flooding Is Widespread; Flood Warnings Still In Effect

Residents being ferried away from east side of Lake Thunderbird by canoe.
OU Emergency Prep
/
Twitter
Residents being ferried away from east side of Lake Thunderbird by canoe.

Updated 7:30 p.m. Sunshine.  

Diagram of NWS Flood Warnings/Watches (as of 4 p.m. Sunday, May 24, 2015)
Diagram of NWS Flood Warnings/Watches (as of 4 p.m. Sunday, May 24, 2015)

Updated 4 p.m. The National Weather Service forecast calls for more dangerous flooding through the rest of this holiday weekend. Light to moderate rain may still be possible Sunday evening and Monday afternoon and evening. This rainfall will worsen ongoing flooding and could lead to more flash flooding in some areas. Flash Flood Warnings/Watches extend through Monday morning across the state.

Some bands of rain affect mainly eastern two-thirds of the area late today into this evening. There remains a low chance for a few isolated storms across far western sections of Oklahoma late today that include a hail threat along with isolated heavy rain.

Updated 1 p.m. Rain continues across central and western portions of the state.

Updated 11:45 a.m. City of Oklahoma City officials offer call line to report homeowner damages. 

The Oklahoma Department of Transportation lists statewide road closures (as of 8:45 a.m.). Meanwhile, Norman police report the following closures across flood-ravaged Cleveland County: 

Updated 10 a.m. The National Weather Service in Norman has extended the flood warning until 2 p.m. for...

  •   Kingfisher County in Central Oklahoma...
  •   Blaine County in Northwestern Oklahoma...
  •   Eastern Washita County in Western Oklahoma...
  •   Caddo County in Southwestern Oklahoma...
  •   Payne County in Central Oklahoma...
  •   Canadian County in Central Oklahoma...
  •   Northwestern Pottawatomie County in Central Oklahoma...
  •   Northwestern Mcclain County in Central Oklahoma...
  •   Logan County in Central Oklahoma...
  •   Oklahoma County in Central Oklahoma...
  •   Lincoln County in Central Oklahoma...
  •   Southern Noble County in Northern Oklahoma...
  •   Southeastern Dewey County in Northwestern Oklahoma...
  •   Eastern Custer County in Western Oklahoma...
  •   Northeastern Kiowa County in Southwestern Oklahoma...
  •   Northern Grady County in Central Oklahoma...
  •   Northwestern Cleveland County in Central Oklahoma...

Original Post. Widespread flooding throughout Oklahoma is the result of the massive rain on Saturday. The storm caused at least 15 highways to be shut down, and it damaged a gas station and a mall in Oklahoma City.

The heavy rain caused the evacuation of a music festival west of Tulsa. Officials with the Rocklahoma festival in Pryor, about 50 miles west of Tulsa, urged attendees around 9 p.m. to head to their cars or the nearby camping area to wait out the incoming weather. They later stressed the campgrounds were not being evacuated.

Rogers County Emergency Management spokesman Thomas Hudson says a firefighter in the northeast Oklahoma town of Claremore died early Sunday after being swept away by floodwaters during a rescue.

Authorities in Cleveland and Comanche counties in Oklahoma say some were residents had to be rescued from attics and roofs.

Evacuation orders have been issued in Elk City, Oklahoma, and Wichita Falls, Texas amid warnings from the National Weather Service about potentially historic flooding.

Flash flood watches are in effect across Oklahoma as more thunderstorms move into the state.

The National Weather Service says a slow moving storm system will bring several rounds of heavy rainfall to Oklahoma through the long Memorial Day holiday weekend. Forecasters say the rainfall is likely to worsen ongoing river flooding and lead to flash flooding in some areas.

Between 2 and 5 inches of rainfall with locally higher amounts are possible through Monday morning in western, central and southern Oklahoma. Rainfall amounts of 3 to 6 inches will be common in eastern Oklahoma, with locally higher amounts that may approach 10 inches.

Heavy rainfall has resulted in flood warnings for several waterways in the state, including the Washita River at Anadarko and the Little River near Tecumseh.

-----

As a community-supported news organization, KGOU relies on contributions from readers and listeners to fulfill its mission of public service to Oklahoma and beyond. Donate online, or by contacting our Membership department.

The Associated Press is one of the largest and most trusted sources of independent newsgathering, supplying a steady stream of news to its members, international subscribers and commercial customers. AP is neither privately owned nor government-funded; instead, it's a not-for-profit news cooperative owned by its American newspaper and broadcast members.
More News
Support nonprofit, public service journalism you trust. Give now.