Strong to severe thunderstorms marched their way across Oklahoma Thursday afternoon and evening producing large hail and spawning a number of tornadoes.
Very early reports counted seven tornadoes, mainly in the western and southwestern portions of the state, where Lawton saw damage to buildings and significant power outages. Comanche County officials say there was multiple damages to cars from hail up to baseball size and numerous downed power lines. At its peak, over 16,000 Comanche County residents were without power. No injuries have been reported.
In the metro, strong winds on the leading edge of the storm approached 70 mph in northern Oklahoma City. An 84 mph wind gust was reported near Max Westheimer airport in Norman. Large hail in the south Norman area was also reported.
Oklahoma City’s new professional softball team’s first game was postponed due to inclement weather Thursday evening.
The Oklahoma City Spark’s debut game at the Gerry Pinkston Stadium in Edmond was interrupted by a lightning delay after two innings and eventually postponed as thunderstorms moved through the area.
The Spark is the newest Women’s Professional Fastpitch team. The league is headquartered in Oklahoma City and now has four teams including the Texas Smoke, the Florida-based Pride, and the Vipers, from Alabama. This is the league’s first official season following its exhibition season last year.
Before the game was postponed, the score was Spark - 4, Vipers - 1.
The league’s other opening day game at Concordia University Texas ended with Smoke - 3, Pride - 2.
The Indian Child Welfare Act will remain intact despite a challenge that made it all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court.
In a stunning 7-2 opinion the U.S. Supreme Court rejected all of the challenges to the 45-year-old law.
Justice Amy Coney Barrett wrote in the majority opinion that the issues in the case are “complicated,” but the court rejects “all of the petitioners’ challenges to the statute.”
This is a significant win for Native families and tribal nations. The court was considering a number of issues related to tribal sovereignty. Significantly, the court rules tribes are a political entity rather than a racial group, which is the foundation to keeping much of federal Indian law intact.
Tribal nation leaders - including the Cherokee Nation Principal Chief Chuck Hoskin Jr. - are praising the decision as a “major victory.”
Guthrie officials say they’re restricting activities at Liberty Lake while they treat a blue-green algae bloom.
The city is prohibiting swimming, tubing, wakeboarding and operating watercraft for the time being. People and their pets should avoid direct contact with the water, but land-based activities around the lake are still fair game.
The city says normal springtime algae growth has been spurred on by low lake levels and warm waters. In a news release, officials say the timing of rains this year may have caused more runoff from surrounding fields. When fertilizer runs off into streams and lakes, it can feed algae instead of the plants it was intended for. The city says it expects this bloom to fizzle out when it uses up all those available nutrients.
Normally, Guthrie draws some of its drinking water from Liberty Lake. But until this issue is resolved, the city says it will rely on other water sources to ensure the drinking water stays safe.
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