At least four people were killed and several others injured Saturday as devastating tornadoes tore through several Oklahoma towns in an outbreak of severe weather that caused catastrophic damage to many homes and residents.
Oklahoma Governor Kevin Stitt reported two additional deaths during a press conference Sunday – one in Marietta and one in Sulphur.
The Oklahoma Department of Emergency Management (OEM) said 14 homes were damaged or destroyed in Holdenville, and debris blocked Highway 9.
The OEM said hospitalized patients were sheltered from the severe weather conditions, and no injuries were reported. Murray County Emergency Management Agency said the town of Sulfur also had significant damage and multiple injuries.
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OEM said search and rescue operations are underway there, and the Oklahoma Highway Patrol (OHP) is responding to apartments on Woodruff Blvd where tornado damage was reported.
“This is certainly the worst damage I have seen since I have been governor,” Stitt said during a news conference Sunday in Sulfur.” officials said damage equivalent to at least one EF-3 tornado was seen in Sulfur.
Two weather-related accidents were also reported, and heavy rain caused flooding on several roads in the area. Cotton County was also hard hit by the severe weather, and OEM said 3-5 homes were damaged there.
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According to OEM, about 43,000 customers lost power due to the storm, with the highest number of outages reported in Tulsa, Carter, Murray, Love, Hughes, Pontotoc, and Seminole counties.
Stitt issued an executive order on Sunday morning declaring a state of emergency in Carter, Cotton, Garfield, Hughes, Kay, Lincoln, Love, Murray, Okfuskee, Oklahoma, Payne, and Pontotoc counties because of the damage left behind by the severe weather on Saturday.
“There is hereby a declared a disaster emergency caused by the severe storms, tornadoes, straight-line winds, hail and flooding in the State of Oklahoma that threatens the lives and property of the people of this State and the public’s peace, health and safety,” the executive order reads.
The Love County Sheriff’s Office said in a Facebook post that a tornado was reported in the Marietta area that destroyed several buildings and brought down power lines “everywhere.”
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The sheriff’s office pleaded, “Please stay home and off the roads, as it’s causing severe congestion and issues for responders working this disaster.”
‘The sheriff’s office said significant damage was reported to a Dollar Tree warehouse, Homeland, Dollar General, a nursing home and part of a hospital.
“There is heavy damage to our town and we have every responder out checking homes, businesses, etc.” the sheriff’s office said.
The sheriff’s department said all hospital patients had been moved from the area, and crews were working to remove the last few people from the damaged nursing home.
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