Public Information Statements Issued by NWS Norman for the May 31-June 1, 2013 Tornado and Flash Flood Event

by Smith, Garfield, Speheger, and Austin with the United States National Weather Service

  PUBLIC INFORMATION STATEMENT
  NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE NORMAN OK
  758 AM CDT WED JUN 5 2013

  ...UPDATE ON MAY 31 EL RENO TORNADO...

  METEOROLOGISTS WITH THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE AND RESEARCHERS FROM
  THE UNIVERSITY OF OKLAHOMA AND THE CENTER FOR SEVERE WEATHER RESEARCH
  CONTINUE TO INVESTIGATE INFORMATION RELATED TO THE MAY 31 EL RENO
  TORNADO.

  PLEASE NOTE: THESE DATA ARE PRELIMINARY AND NOT OFFICIAL. METEOROLOGISTS
  CONTINUE TO COLLECT AND INVESTIGATE ADDITIONAL DATA.

  WITH THIS INVESTIGATION... THE TORNADO HAS BEEN UPGRADED TO AN EF5
  TORNADO BASED ON VELOCITY DATA FROM THE RESEARCH MOBILE RADAR DATA
  FROM THE UNIVERSITY OF OKLAHOMA RAXPOL RADAR AND THE DOPPLER ON
  WHEELS RADARS FROM THE CENTER FOR SEVERE WEATHER RESEARCH. IN
  ADDITION... THE WIDTH OF TORNADO WAS MEASURED BY THE MOBILE RADAR
  DATA TO BE 2.6 MILES AFTER THE TORNADO PASSED EAST OF US HIGHWAY 81
  SOUTH OF EL RENO. THIS WIDTH IS THE WIDTH OF THE TORNADO ITSELF AND
  DOES NOT INCLUDE THE DAMAGING STRAIGHT-LINE WINDS NEAR THE TORNADO AS
  DETERMINED BY THE HIGH-RESOLUTION MOBILE RADAR DATA. THE 2.6 MILE
  TORNADO PATH WIDTH IS BELIEVED TO BE THE WIDEST TORNADO ON RECORD
  IN THE UNITED STATES.

  .EL RENO TORNADO

  RATING:                  EF5
  PATH LENGTH /STATUTE/:   16.2 MILES
  PATH WIDTH /MAXIMUM/:    2.6 MILES
  FATALITIES:              N/A
  INJURIES:                N/A

  START DATE:              MAY 31 2013
  START TIME:              6:03 PM CDT
  START LOCATION:          8.3 WSW OF EL RENO /CANADIAN COUNTY /OK
                             NEAR COURTNEY ROAD ABOUT 1 MILE NORTH
                             OF REUTER ROAD
  START LAT/LON:           35.495 / -98.095

  END DATE:                MAY 31 2013
  END TIME:                6:43 PM CDT
  END LOCATION:            6.2 ESE OF EL RENO /CANADIAN COUNTY /OK
                             NEAR INTERSTATE 40 AND BANNER ROAD
  END LAT/LON:             35.502 / -97.848

  $$

  SMITH/GARFIELD/SPEHEGER/AUSTIN