It's so funny when I think about to all the times non-Okies have used the word "Twister" to explain one of the most powerful weather events that often takes place in the Sooner State. We have never, and I do mean never, called them "twisters". There was even a major motion picture by that name and it was filmed right here in the state I'm sitting in today. I think the term twister came from the Wizard of Oz or something; maybe people up in Kansas call tornadoes by that name. We say tornado. If you call it a twister we're gonna know you're from out of town; just sayin'.
Here in my neck of the woods we're blessed with so many of the world's finest and educated meteorologists ever. The film I was telling you about included our own home grown Gary England, weatherman to the most appreciative and grateful crowd on this planet. I count myself a very lucky woman to be able to say I've met Gary many times, and he's one of the most genuine folk I've ever had the pleasure of meeting. Gary was (and is) so revered for his weathercasting skills, that we locals knew his tells. If he got too excited or too serious about a storm's movements we knew before he said anything. We had our closets ready, the basement stairs cleared, and we had our bicycle helmets on the ready as well. Before we realized bicycle helmets were useful for more than just riding bikes, we would use our football helmets. I say that as if you already knew, but everyone in Oklahoma has at least two helmets in their house from when the kids played ball at school.
David Payne has taken over Gary's role at News 9 KWTV in Oklahoma City, and though he's been on the air for more than twenty years there are still a lot of us who still refer to Gary's work; but let me tell you, David has his tells as well. He's nothing like Gary, and we wouldn't expect him to be, but when it comes to tracking tornadoes, most of us still tune into Channel 9 in this state. I know the others have good men and women to follow, but we just have our ways, and if it ain't broke we don't fix it. When David gets really serious he takes off his glasses and we know we're about to jump into our "safe space". I love it when David looks into the camera and says "If you're in this area or anywhere near it, you know where to go, and you know what to do. We've gone over this a 100 times! Do it. Do it now!" We do. We're not stupid. I mean, we will watch the thing until it's right up on us, but we do hit the closet when we are supposed to.
About 23 years ago (May 3, 1999) Oklahoma saw one of the biggest, fastest, worst tornadoes in history. In fact, it was so big and bad that the weather people decided to upscale the rankings of these beasts and included an F6 in the mix when before May 3, 1999, the fastest moving storm was an F5. Not kidding you folks, the winds range higher than 300 miles per hour. I think the one we had was officially an F6 by the standards of 1999, but they downgraded it to an F5 after determining that the winds would need to be at least 300 mph for a substantial amount of time. WHATEVER! We had a whooper!! I remember it so clearly because I only had my son with me, the girls were with their dad and I prayed and cried and cried and prayed until I could hear their voices over the phone when they found one to call me; so thankful their dad had a storm shelter! Reuben and I hunkered in the smaller closet with three dogs. You let the cats run free, you don't try to trap them.
When we lived in Indianapolis an F1 came through and I remember the panic in and on the faces of the people at the store. Laura and I drove home and tried to not to laugh. We were in New York City and an F0 (didn't even know there was one) came through Manhattan and you would have thought the world had ended. One guy was so upset because his hat blew off his head. Another guy swore the door of his car swung open by itself. OK....that's cute. I mean, I don't mean to sound mean, but c'mon. When your car becomes a missile and your hay turns into spears piercing your 100 year old live oaks, let me hear you talk about something meaningful - - my had blew off my head. Geez. When we're at home and we hear the sirens we have already been watching the skies ourselves. We grew up with that serious little stare that we get; and most of us may not be able to spell "mesocyclone" but we know what it is - - and a hook, and we know what sheer is, what "wrapped in rain" means. We practice.
Oklahoma (and yes, I'll even say Texas) has never really been a place to experience all four of the typical or photo-type seasons that could be used for a pretty calendar. We have four seasons, but you can have them all in one day if you plan it correctly. We have Hot, Cold, Wind, and Football seasons. Those are about all we get here. It can be 87 in November with a sudden storm bringing the temps down below 32 degrees right in the middle of 3rd quarter and you know we're not calling that game. I think I remember two games being called for lightning but rain or wind may not qualify for a good enough reason to halt play. I say that, we'd halt it if we were throwing against the wind; sure, that would happen. We'd halt it until the storm passed. That only makes sense.
Oklahoma has always been called "Tornado Alley" or at least has been included in the term one way or another. We've had monster storms that took out entire cities, killed people, and left millions of dollars in damage but one thing a storm has never (so far) done to us; it has never changed us with regard to pulling up our boots right after the thing has passed, and going out to check on our friends and neighbors to be sure they're OK, their property is OK, their animals, and their crops are OK. We do what we can and before the first responders arrive we've already arrived. We take care of our own and if you're here visiting, you'll be taken care of as well. For that matter, if you live in a place that doesn't see many tornadoes but one is coming in, maybe think about following David Payne's advice: Get to the lowest part of the house, a basement or storm shelter if possible. If you can't do that, find a small room like a closet, a bathroom is OK, but you'll need a mattress over you while you're in the tub so debris doesn't hit you. The closet is better. Wear long trousers, long sleeves, maybe get a helmet, and be sure you're wearing your boots or rubber soled shoes. THIS IS KEY: bring your ID with you and if you can't, write you name and a contact number for your relative on your arm with a Sharpee. You may think I'm kidding - - I'm not kidding.
God is so very very amazing. He has always kept His word and He has always protected us. I am so blessed to call Him my Lord. He made the tornado. He controls it. When they come our way, the first line of defense is prayer. We take our precautions, obviously, but we always go to God for the end result. He is the spinner! Be safe and know you are in good hands if you come to our state in the spring and need a place to hide - - most of us will invite you even before you ask.
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