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Photo of the Moore Tornado by AccuWeather Meteorologist Frank Strait looking north from Norman.
Moore, Oklahoma Tornado
The most precious gift you can have when a tornado is bearing down on you is time. Time
to plan. Time to gather up your family, employees or customers and get to shelter before
the storm arrives. When the tornado – that was a surprise to some – moved across Moore,
Oklahoma, on March 25, 2015, it was not a surprise to the clients of AccuWeather Enterprise
Solutions. Our clients had more than 15 minutes of advance notice the tornado was on the way.
Forecast tracks of dangerous
thunderstorms more than seven
hours before the Moore tornado.
The NOAA’s Storm Prediction Center, located just
9 miles south of the tornado’s path, judged the risk
of tornadoes in the region to be “low” and issued
a severe thunderstorm, rather than a tornado watch.
As a result of the model and other data, at 4:27 P.M.,
our clients in Moore received a “critical weather forecast”
that explicitly forecasted the potential for tornadoes in
central Oklahoma.
Further, the potential for “significant” tornadoes was
The Moore tornado touched down at 6:35 P.M. Forty-five
forecasted by NOAA to be “very low.”
minutes before the tornado began, the National Weather
Service told the people of central Oklahoma (via Twitter)
AccuWeather’s proprietary model told a completely
different story. The model was available to our meteorologists
just before 10 A.M. When used by trained meteorologists,
this powerful tool depicted a high threat of a tornadocapable thunderstorm in the Moore-Norman area
(see illustration above right) in the early evening.
“tornado potential very low.” Less than a half-hour prior
to the tornado touching down, the NWS said, “there are
no tornado warnings in effect west of OKC and none are
expected.”
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As the storms intensified, AccuWeather focused on the
special high-resolution radar of the Federal Aviation
Administration that is higher resolution and updates
3 times more often than the National Weather Service’s.
It depicted a rapidly developing tornado to the northwest
of Moore. AccuWeather meteorologist Rich Putnam issued
a tornado warning for our clients at 6:20 P.M. that was
Hook echo on FAA radar.
effective until 7 P.M.
This isn’t the first time AccuWeather has provided its clients
At 6:32 P.M., twelve minutes after AccuWeather issued
with a superior service in the backyard of the NOAA Storm
a tornado warning for its clients in Moore, the National
Prediction Center. On April 13, 2012, a tornado cut through
Weather Service issued only a severe thunderstorm
Norman, Oklahoma, causing considerable damage.
warning (yellow polygon on nearby radar image). The
AccuWeather issued its tornado warning at 3:29 P.M.
tornado touched down at 6:35 P.M. Buildings were
The NWS didn’t issue its tornado warning until 3:59 P.M.
destroyed, electrical transformers exploded, and radio
AccuWeather’s storm-certified meteorologists,
towers collapsed. Cars and trucks were overturned. The
radar image shows a “hook echo” as the tornado was
getting ready to cross Interstate 35. The National Weather
Service did not issue a tornado warning for Moore until
6:43 P.M., as the tornado was ending.
innovative technology, and Superior AccuracyTM consistently
provide the highest level of timeliness and precision for
all types of extreme weather. Only AccuWeather has
SmartWARN® technology and the latest in severe storm
modeling which kept our clients and their assets safe
as depicted in the photo.
Are you using AccuWeather Enterprise Solutions? If not,
call today. The next storm may already be on the way.
AccuWeather’s Brandon Sullivan captured this BNSF train, an AccuWeather
Enterprise Solutions client, making its way safely through Moore after the
tornado passed through the city.
Contact us today at: 814.235.8600 or [email protected].
Visit us at: AccuWeather.com/EnterpriseSolutions.
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National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, used with permission.
AES:MOORETORNADO ©2015 AccuWeather, Inc.