Possible twister hits Oklahoma City

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Possible twister hits Oklahoma City

By Sean Murphy
The Associated Press

OKLAHOMA CITY — Storms with possible tornadoes moved through most of Oklahoma, toppling trees and knocking out power to thousands of people.

As the storms hit Wednesday with severe thunderstorms, high winds, hail and heavy rain, Shaydestiny Johnson, 16, and her grandmother rushed into the bathroom in their home in suburban Bethany when they saw the balcony patio fall.

"You could feel the house shaking," Johnson said. "Pictures were falling off the wall. I was shaking."

The possible twister spun up over western Oklahoma County as severe thunderstorms packing powerful winds, hail and torrential rain moved through during the afternoon rush hour. At least one injury was reported when a woman broke her leg trying to get to a storm shelter in Bethany, authorities said.

About 14,000 customers lost power at the height of the storm, a figure that was down to about 1,345 Thursday morning.

The storms toppled several trees in Bethany. One hit a gas meter, spewing gas into the air and forcing the evacuation of about 50 residents, said police spokesman Ali Razavi. They were allowed to return after the gas was shut off, Razavi said.

Highway motorists also spotted possible tornadoes in Oklahoma City during rush hour.

"We've had a lot of fender benders in the metro, and I don't know if that's because folks are looking at the clouds or the rain is getting the best of them," Oklahoma Highway Patrol trooper Betsy Randolph said.

The storms were part of a system that moved out of the Rockies into the southern Plains. The storms followed an initial wave of severe weather that dumped more than 2 inches of rain on many parts of the state, including Oklahoma City and Tulsa.

"It's that time of year," Ken Gallant, a meteorologist for the National Weather Service.

Oklahoma will get a break from the rain and wind on Thursday, but there's a chance some storms could drift out of Kansas into northern sections of the state early Friday, Gallant said. More storms are possible on Saturday.




Associated PressCopyright 2007 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.




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