Ozone alert declared for Tulsa area
BY Staff and Wire Reports
Friday, July 27, 2012
7/27/12 at 4:26 PM
Tulsa World Weather: A new weather site powered by the Tulsa staff of the National Weather Service. The partnership allows Tulsa World readers to receive weather alerts, forecasts and current conditions as the staff issues them.
Officials declared Saturday as an Ozone Alert day in the Tulsa area.
Tulsa has exceeded acceptable ozone limits 13 times so far this year: twice in May, four times in June, and seven times in July, most recently on July 21.
People with lung or heart disease should be aware that increased air pollution may cause them to experience adverse health effects. Symptoms include chest pain, coughing, sneezing, nausea, headache and pulmonary congestion.
Children and adults, especially those with a respiratory disease such as asthma, should limit prolonged outdoor exertion on Ozone Alert days.
Ozone Alerts are initiated when projected weather conditions are conducive to the generation of ground-level ozone, which is formed when greenhouse gases are heated by the sun, and the wind is not likely to be strong enough to disperse the ozone.
On Ozone Alert days people are asked to limit their use of gasoline-powered cars, boats and lawn equipment and not to fill their gas tanks until evening.
The first Ozone Alert day of the season was May 18. Saturday's will be the 13th Ozone Alert so far this year.
For more information on Ozone Alerts, visit tulsaworld.com/ozonealert.
Storms leave some damage in Oklahoma, Arkansas
OKLAHOMA CITY - Severe thunderstorms brought much-needed rainfall but unwelcome wind damage in parts of Oklahoma and Arkansas.
Winds gusting more than 70 mph blew through parts of southern Oklahoma and winds of at least 60 mph were reported in western Arkansas Thursday. Authorities said there were no immediate reports of injuries, but some homes and trees were damaged.
In Bryan County, wind gusts of 61 mph and 72 mph were reported near Durant, where some homes were damaged by trees. In McCurtain County, a tree fell onto a house near Hochatown, and roof damage was reported in Haskell and Okmulgee counties.
In Arkansas, a tree was blown onto a house in Paragould, and an unoccupied house was damaged near Center Ridge. Tree and power line damage also was reported in Craighead County.
Hot temperatures expected to follow rain in Tulsa area
The National Weather Service forecasts highs up to 108 degrees in the Tulsa area this coming week.
Highs are expected to reach 104 degrees this afternoon; 107 on Saturday and Sunday; 108 on Monday and Tuesday; and 104 again on Tuesday and Wednesday in Tulsa, the weather service forecasts.
So far this calendar year, Tulsa's high temperature was 107 degrees, set July 19.
Tulsa received 0.06 of an inch of rain Thursday, bringing the month's total to 1.38 inches. This is more than 1 inch below normal rainfall for this time of July, according to the weather service.
24-hour rainfall totals (in inches, as of noon today):
Antlers: 0.84
Bartlesville: 0.17
Bowlegs: 0.05
Bristow: 0.41
Broken Bow: 2.07
Clayton: 0.84
Cloudy: 1.63
Cookson: 2.54
Durant: 0.28
Eufaula: 0.98
Holdenville: 0.21
Hugo: 2.99
Idabel: 4.17
Jay: 0.06
Lane: 0.30
McAlester: 0.09
Muskogee: 1.27
Mt. Herman: 1.06
Okmulgee: 1.47
Oilton: 0.25
Porter: 0.10
Sallisaw: 0.32
Stigler: 0.60
Talihina: 2.32
Tahlequah: 0.01
Tulsa: 0.06
Webbers Falls: 0.99
Westville: 0.27
Wilburton: 1.23
Wister: 0.59
Wynona: 0.02
Sources: Oklahoma Mesonet and the National Weather Service
Heat advisory in effect in northeast Oklahoma
The weather service declared a heat advisory for Tulsa County, as well as most of northeast Oklahoma.
The advisory, in effect 1-8 p.m. today, includes Craig, Creek, Mayes, Muskogee, Nowata, Okfuskgee, Okmulgee, Osage, Pawnee, Rogers, Tulsa, Wagoner and Washington counties.
According to the weather service, heat index values in these areas are expected to be near 105 degrees today, with values rising to 105 to 110 degrees Saturday.
Burn ban in effect in Tulsa County
Tulsa County is among 40 counties statewide under a county-issued burn ban, according to Oklahoma Forestry Services.
Tulsa County's ban, which started July 6, is set to expire on Monday.
For more information, visit tulsaworld.com/burnban.
Counties with burn bans currently (bans declared this or last week in bold):
Adair County, through Aug. 4
Blaine County, through Aug. 4
Beaver County, through Saturday
Caddo County, through Aug. 17
Canadian County, through Aug. 22
Cleveland County, through Aug. 21
Comanche County, through Aug. 7
Craig County, through Aug. 14
Creek County, through Aug. 4
Custer County, through Aug. 7
Delaware County, through Aug. 15
Dewey County, through Wednesday
Harper County, through Sunday
Haskell County, through Aug. 21
Hughes County, through Aug. 21
Kingfisher County, through Aug. 20
Kiowa County, through Aug. 14
Latimer County, through Sunday
LeFlore County, through Sunday
Lincoln County,through Aug. 21
Mayes County, through Aug. 7
McIntosh County, set to expire today
Muskogee County, through Aug. 5
Nowata County, through Monday
Okfuskee County, through Aug. 14
Oklahoma County, through Aug. 17
Okmulgee County, through Sunday
Osage County, through Sunday
Ottawa County, through Aug. 7
Pawnee County, through Aug. 7
Payne County, through Aug. 7
Pittsburg County, through Aug. 7
Rogers County, through Sunday
Seminole County, through Aug. 7
Sequoyah County, through Aug. 7
Tillman County, through Aug. 7
Tulsa County, through next week Monday
Wagoner County, through Sunday
Woodward County, through Aug. 5
Source: Oklahoma Forestry Services
Associated Images:
24-hour rainfall totals statewide as of noon today. Map courtesy of the Oklahoma Mesonet
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