Severe weather, drought share April spotlight

Oklahoma’s severe weather engine has been turbocharged since the beginning of the year, with January tying its monthly tornado record and March setting its own. The fuel kept flowing throughout April as Oklahomans dealt with a slew of tornadoes — including the state’s first EF4 since 2024 — along with very large hail, damaging winds and flash flooding. For those who dodged the worst of the storms, however, the quiet came with a cost. Much of northwestern Oklahoma and the Panhandle missed out on the month’s beneficial rainfall, allowing drought to intensify even as other areas saw meaningful relief.

Severe weather drives 2026 tornado count higher

At least 28 tornadoes touched down in Oklahoma during April, according to preliminary data from the National Weather Service, although that number could still rise as survey teams continue investigating other possible tornadoes. That total more than doubles the 1951–2025 April average of 12.5 tornadoes, while the preliminary 2026 statewide count climbed to 55 by month’s end — just shy of the annual average of 59.

Multiple rounds of severe weather contributed to the active month, beginning with four tornadoes on April 3 in central Oklahoma, including an EF1 that damaged a building at Oklahoma City Community College and produced additional damage to roofs, sheds, fences and trees in southwest Oklahoma City. More tornadoes followed on April 14 across eastern Oklahoma, April 17 across north-central Oklahoma, and during additional late-month rounds April 23–28. Those same storm systems also produced damaging hail, with numerous reports ranging from golf ball to baseball size and at least one larger report, including 3.25-inch hail at Lamont on April 17. Heavy rainfall also produced localized flash flooding in some areas.

The month’s most intense tornado was an EF4 that touched down near Vance Air Force Base in Enid on the evening of April 23. The tornado narrowly missed the base before striking portions of southeast Enid, tracking about 10 miles and reaching a maximum width of 600 yards. The tornado damaged or destroyed at least 40 homes and injured 10 people, but no fatalities were reported. The Enid tornado was Oklahoma’s strongest tornado of 2026 so far and the state’s first EF4 since May 6, 2024. 

April rains sharpen drought divide

The statewide average rainfall total of 4.53 inches finished 0.94 inches above normal, ranking as the 28th-wettest April since records began in 1895. Those surpluses were far from evenly distributed, however, with the heaviest rains concentrated across the southeastern half of the state while northwestern Oklahoma and the Panhandle largely missed out. The Panhandle recorded its sixth-driest April, while several other regions ranked among their 25 wettest.

That split drove sharply different drought outcomes. The amount of the state in drought, considered D1 to D4 on the U.S. Drought Monitor, dropped from 99% on March 31 to 81% on April 28. Severe-to-extreme drought coverage also fell substantially, from 78% to 44%, while extreme drought itself eased from 35% to 30%. Still, drought intensified across northwestern Oklahoma and the Panhandle, where rainfall remained scarce. 

April by the numbers

• Statewide average temperature: 64.6°F, 5.1°F above normal — the seventh-warmest April since records began in 1895
• Temperature extremes: High of 96°F at Altus, Fairview and Hollis on April 23; low of 25°F at Kenton on April 18 
• Temperatures of 90 degrees or above: 107 instances recorded at the 120 Oklahoma Mesonet sites 
• Warmest and coolest locations: Highest monthly average, 68.4°F at Altus; lowest, 57.1°F at Kenton
• Statewide average precipitation: 4.53 inches, 0.94 inches above normal — the 28th-wettest April since 1895
• Rainfall extremes: High of 10.87 inches at Porter; low of 0.06 inches at Eva

Drought persistence favored for May

The Climate Prediction Center’s May outlook indicates increased odds of above-normal temperatures across roughly the western half of Oklahoma, with the greatest odds across northwestern Oklahoma and the Panhandle. Eastern Oklahoma has equal chances of above-, below- or near-normal temperatures, and the same is true statewide for precipitation. The May drought outlook calls for drought to persist in areas where it existed at the end of April.