Published on September 22, 2025
The National Weather Service’s Norman, Oklahoma, agency put retired a Severe Thunderstorm Warning connected September 21, 2025, astatine 4:51 PM CDT, keeping it valid until 5:15 PM CDT. Included successful nan alert were nan towns of Henrietta, Windthorst, Lake Arrowhead, Bluegrove, Vashti, and Joy. Roughly a infinitesimal earlier nan warning, astatine 4:50 PM CDT, spotters reported a beardown large wind positioned 5 miles southbound of Bluegrove, heading eastbound astatine 15 mph.
This upwind arena is not conscionable important owed to its velocity but besides owed to its intensity, which includes 60 mph upwind gusts and penny-size hail. According to radar reports, nan large wind is apt to origin damage to roofs, siding, and trees.
Affected Tourist Locations successful Oklahoma
Several tourist-friendly regions are included successful this warning, and section businesses, vacationers, and visitors are urged to travel nan information protocols. Among nan cardinal tourer destinations impacted by nan large wind are:
- Lake Arrowhead: A celebrated destination for fishing, boating, and camping. This location mightiness acquisition important disruptions owed to flash flooding and gusty winds.
- Windthorst: Known for its small-town charm, it offers visitors a serene retreat that could beryllium threatened by nan storm’s precocious winds.
- Henrietta: As 1 of nan larger towns successful nan informing area, visitors exploring its attractions specified arsenic section history museums and parks should beryllium cautious of flooding and imaginable spot damage.
In ray of nan storm’s imaginable to origin awesome disruptions, it’s basal for visitors to set their plans accordingly and enactment informed.
Safety Guidelines for Tourists During nan Storm
The NWS has outlined respective cardinal information protocols that visitors successful these areas should travel to guarantee their safety:
- Seek Shelter: Tourists should instantly move to an interior room connected nan lowest level of their accommodation aliases immoderate building they are in. The NWS powerfully advises staying distant from windows and exterior walls to debar wounded from flying debris caused by precocious winds.
- Avoid Flooded Roads: With torrential rainfall expected, location is an accrued consequence of flash flooding successful low-lying areas, including roads. Tourists should debar driving done immoderate flooded roadways, arsenic this could lead to vulnerable accidents aliases being stranded.
- Stay Informed: Tourists should show section upwind updates from reliable sources, specified arsenic nan National Weather Service, aliases their accommodation unit for immoderate further updates connected nan storm’s progress.
- Protect Outdoor Equipment: Visitors readying to enactment outdoors for nan time should unafraid immoderate outdoor equipment, specified arsenic boats, camping gear, aliases individual items, to forestall harm aliases nonaccomplishment successful nan storm.
- Communicate pinch Travel Providers: Those staying successful hotels, resorts, aliases picnic rentals should interaction guidance astir nan storm’s effect and imaginable impermanent closures aliases relocations. Tourists are advised to enactment successful touch pinch recreation providers to person nan latest alerts.
Potential Storm Impact connected Local Tourism
Although terrible upwind whitethorn deter immoderate visitors from venturing outdoors, section tourer spots whitethorn still supply opportunities for sheltered activities. Many indoor attractions successful Henrietta and Lake Arrowhead connection a safe haven for those seeking to thrust retired nan storm, including creation galleries, museums, and section shops.
While these regions typically connection a serene flight for tourists, this large wind could lead to impermanent disruptions successful activities specified arsenic boating, fishing, and outdoor dining. However, visitors are encouraged to scheme up and cheque pinch section authorities for updates connected accessibility.
Plan Ahead and Stay Safe
Bad upwind keeps affecting Henrietta and nan surrounding areas, truthful visitors request to instrumentality to nan information rules from section officials and nan National Weather Service. The worst of nan large wind should rustle done successful conscionable a fewer hours, but nan aftermath could instrumentality astir a batch longer.
Travelers should support their plans loose and ever put information first. If you enactment updated, find shelter if you request to, and travel what nan authorities say, you tin thrust retired nan large wind pinch bid of mind—and get backmost to your Oklahoma escapade arsenic soon arsenic it’s safe.