Tornado Touches Down in Southern Oklahoma

A tornado was confirmed on the east side of Kiowa, Oklahoma on Saturday afternoon, April 25, 2026, as intense supercell thunderstorms erupted across the southern Plains. The National Weather Service in Norman received a media storm tracker report and video of the tornado.

No EF rating has been issued at the time of this writing. The tornado was one of several severe weather events that unfolded across Oklahoma and neighboring states as atmospheric conditions became favorable for organized severe thunderstorms.

Kiowa is located in Pittsburg County in southeastern Oklahoma, roughly 30 miles north of the Texas border. The community sits along US Highway 69, between McAlester and Atoka.

A Prolific Hail Day Across Oklahoma

While the tornado near Kiowa drew attention, the dominant story of the day was an extraordinary hail outbreak. The NOAA Storm Prediction Center logged 75 hail reports across multiple states in the 24-hour period ending Saturday morning, with Oklahoma bearing the brunt of the onslaught.

The most significant hail fell across south-central Oklahoma during the late afternoon and early evening hours. Reports included:

  • Tennis ball-sized hail (2.50 inches) near Wapanucka at 2251 UTC
  • Baseball-sized hail (2.50 inches) west of Sulphur at 2131 UTC and northwest of Sulphur at 2137 UTC
  • Hen egg-sized hail (2.25 inches) south of Konawa at 1942 UTC
  • Golf ball-sized hail (1.75 inches) in Ada at 2055 UTC and 2103 UTC, west of Gowen at 2145 UTC, and west-southwest of Talihina at 2230 UTC

The National Weather Service office in Norman (OUN) received dozens of reports from communities including Konawa, Ada, Elmore City, Antioch, Vanoss, Sulphur, Bromide, Wapanucka, and Daisy. Additional reports came from Latimer County, where emergency management relayed accounts of golf ball-sized hail near Falfa and in Talihina.

Hail of this magnitude is capable of shattering vehicle windshields, denting cars beyond repair, punching holes through roofs, and stripping vegetation. The 2.50-inch stones reported near Wapanucka and Sulphur fall into the "giant hail" category used by meteorologists—hail larger than two inches in diameter.

Damaging Winds Across Multiple States

Severe thunderstorms also produced 51 wind reports across six states: Arkansas, Indiana, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, Oklahoma, and Texas.

Additional wind damage was widespread across central and eastern Mississippi, with numerous trees downed in Neshoba, Lauderdale, Clarke, and Jasper counties.

In Indiana, a semi truck was blown over three miles north of Monrovia at 2014 UTC. Downtown Indianapolis sustained scattered wind damage, with multiple reports of downed trees from Military Park and the IUPUI campus to the near northside around 2044 UTC. The Indianapolis International Airport recorded a wind gust of 59 knots.

Oklahoma also saw wind damage, including debris and downed trees along a path from eight miles east-southeast of Francis to eight miles southwest of Allen, reported at 2045 UTC by the National Weather Service in Norman.

What Drove the Outbreak

The Storm Prediction Center's Day 1 Convective Outlook highlighted the severe weather potential across the southern Plains and warned of "very large to giant hail (2 to 4+ inches in diameter), tornadoes, and scattered damaging winds."

The outlook noted that a weak shortwave trough ejecting eastward from the Southwest would interact with a warm front lifting northward across Oklahoma and north Texas. Rich low-level moisture—with surface dewpoints in the upper 60s to low 70s—surged northward into central and southeastern Oklahoma during the afternoon.

The SPC wrote:

"Strong to locally extreme instability (MLCAPE 2500-4000+ J/kg) is expected to develop along/east of the dryline in TX and south of the warm front in OK by peak afternoon heating. The presence of seasonably cool temperatures aloft and 7.5-8.5 C/km mid-level lapse rates will also support this very favorable thermodynamic environment."

Deep-layer shear of 40 to 50 knots supported intense supercells, many of which split into left- and right-moving storms. The SPC noted that "very large to giant hail appears likely (2-4+ inches in diameter)" and that "a conditional risk for a couple of EF-2+ tornadoes" existed near the warm front where low-level wind shear was locally enhanced.

Storms initiated by mid-afternoon near the warm front and dryline intersection in south-central Oklahoma, quickly intensifying into discrete supercells. The hail reports began arriving around 1924 UTC and continued through the evening as storms tracked east-southeastward.

Context: Part of a Multi-Day Severe Weather Episode

Saturday's severe weather followed an active Friday, April 24, when 1 tornadoes were reported across Oklahoma. The current weather pattern features multiple disturbances moving through the central United States, with the Storm Prediction Center maintaining an Enhanced Risk for severe weather on both Sunday (Day 2) and Monday (Day 3) across portions of the Plains, Midwest, and Southeast.

The combination of strong upper-level dynamics, abundant low-level moisture, and favorable wind shear has created a prolonged period of severe weather potential—a setup not uncommon during late April in the southern Plains.

Staying Safe During Giant Hail Events

Giant hail poses a serious threat to anyone caught outdoors or in a vehicle. Hail larger than two inches falls at terminal velocities exceeding 80 mph and can cause severe injury or death.

If a severe thunderstorm warning is issued for giant hail:

  • Seek shelter indoors immediately. Do not attempt to move your vehicle to safety if hail is imminent—cars offer no protection from stones this large.
  • Stay away from windows. Hail can shatter glass and send shards into interior spaces.
  • Move to an interior room on the lowest floor. Hail can penetrate roofs, especially in older structures or mobile homes.
  • Do not go outside to retrieve vehicles or belongings until the storm has completely passed.

For tornadoes, the guidance is similar: move to the lowest floor of a sturdy building, into an interior room or hallway, and put as many walls as possible between you and the outside. Mobile homes and vehicles offer no protection from tornadoes.

Looking Ahead

The Storm Prediction Center continues to monitor an active severe weather pattern across the central United States. Residents from the Plains to the Mississippi Valley should remain weather-aware through early next week, with additional rounds of severe thunderstorms possible.

As of Saturday morning, no tornado or severe thunderstorm watches were active, though conditions remain favorable for severe weather development across portions of Oklahoma, Texas, and the Mississippi Valley later in the day.

VORTEX is a free web app at vortexintel.app that monitors severe weather nationwide. Pro ($4.99/month) places phone calls to your phone when a tornado or flash flood warning is issued for a location you care about — calls can ring through Do Not Disturb once you enable Emergency Bypass for the number, unlike most third-party app notifications.