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Murray County, Oklahoma severe weather history spans 468 recorded events between 1953 and 2026. The dominant hazard is hail, accounting for 47.4% of all recorded events. It ranks #987 nationally and #68 in Oklahoma.
468
Recorded events
3
Direct deaths
41
Direct injuries
$20.1M
Property damage
The record
What the Murray County, Oklahoma severe weather history record shows
Across the archive, Murray County, Oklahoma severe weather history averages 6.4 recorded events a year. The busiest stretch on record is the 1990s, with 118 events logged in that decade alone. Roughly 83 events fall before 1990 and 385 from 1990 onward — a gap that reflects the expansion of NOAA reporting practice as much as the weather itself.
The deadliest hazard in the Murray County, Oklahoma record is tornado, responsible for 3 direct deaths. The costliest is tornado, with $16.5M in reported property damage. In total, 7 distinct hazard types appear in this county archive, each listed with its own dated record below.
By hazard type
Every hazard type recorded in Murray County
| Hazard | Events | Deaths | Damage | Max | Span |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hail | 222 | 0 | $15K | 4.25 | 1956–2026 |
| Thunderstorm Wind | 139 | 0 | $2.7M | 87 | 1958–2026 |
| Flash Flood | 52 | 0 | $68K | 0 | 1996–2025 |
| Tornado | 46 | 3 | $16.5M | F4 | 1953–2026 |
| Lightning | 4 | 0 | $24K | 0 | 1998–2017 |
| Flood | 4 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 2007–2015 |
| Wildfire | 1 | 0 | $800K | 0 | 2000–2000 |
Decade by decade
Murray County, Oklahoma severe weather history by decade
Reporting practice changed over time — early decades are undercounted, not calmer.
Tornado tracks
Paths crossing this county
48 mapped tornado paths intersect this county: 38 touched down inside it and 10 crossed in from a neighbouring county. This comes from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
| Date | Scale | Deaths | Injuries | Path length | Origin |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1972-04-19 | EF4 | 5 | 6 | 28.2 mi | Crossed in |
| 2024-04-27 | EF3 | 1 | 30 | 9.9 mi | Touched down here |
| 2016-05-09 | EF3 | 0 | 0 | 16.6 mi | Touched down here |
| 1953-06-05 | EF3 | 0 | 0 | 16.9 mi | Crossed in |
| 1957-04-02 | EF2 | 1 | 2 | 2.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 2020-04-22 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 4.7 mi | Crossed in |
| 1992-05-11 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 3.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 1983-05-13 | EF2 | 0 | 1 | 7.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 1979-10-21 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 1.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 1970-06-11 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 2.0 mi | Touched down here |
Significant events
Deadliest events on record in Murray County
| Date | Type | Location | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apr 28, 2024 | Tornado | SULPHUR | 1 | 30 | $10.0M |
| Apr 2, 1957 | Tornado | 1 | 2 | $250K | |
| Jul 15, 1955 | Tornado | 1 | 2 | $25K | |
| Dec 3, 1953 | Tornado | 0 | 2 | $3K | |
| Apr 5, 2025 | Thunderstorm Wind | SULPHUR | 0 | 1 | $250K |
| May 28, 2017 | Lightning | TURNER FALLS | 0 | 1 | $0 |
| Sep 10, 1998 | Lightning | SULPHUR | 0 | 1 | $0 |
| May 14, 1983 | Tornado | 0 | 1 | $250K |
From the record
What the reports say
Written by National Weather Service staff at the time of the event · public domain
The Sulphur tornado initially developed in the Chickasaw National Recreation Area to the southwest of Sulphur and produced tree damage as well as damage to one building in the northeast section of the park as the tornado approached Sulphur. The tornado moved into the southern part of Sulphur causing significant damage to a number of homes on Tishomingo Avenue adjacent to the Chickasaw NRA.||The tornado moved northeast through downtown Sulphur destroying or causing extensive damage to numerous businesses and buildings downtown. Many people were trapped and one woman was killed when a building housing a sports lounge collapsed downtown on this Saturday night. Damage was rated EF3 to numerous buildings downtown, as well as to some homes and buildings in neighborhoods across northeast Sulphur as the tornado continues to move northeast through town.||The tornado continued northeast out of Sulphur and damaged another home along Palmer Road in northeastern Murray County. Tree damage was also observed on the county line as the tornado moved from Murray County into Pontotoc County.
Multiple reports and images of extensive thunderstorm wind damage in areas along U.S. Highway 177, approximately seven miles north of Sulphur. This included a mobile home that was blown off its blocks and destroyed, outbuildings significantly damaged, a travel trailer rolled, and numerous trees and large tree limbs blown down. At least one occupant of the destroyed mobile home was injured. Event time is estimated from radar observations.
This tornado developed about 1 miles west-southwest of Drake, or about 4.5 miles east of Dougherty. It moved erratically northeast and crossed US Highway 77 about a mile and half north of Drake. Near US-77, it caused roof damage to one home and blew out windows in another. Some metal buildings were also damaged in this area. Otherwise the damage was primarily to trees with some large trees snapped along the path.
Context
Risk, population and federal disasters
Very Low
FEMA NRI risk rating
13,753
Population (ACS)
$160K
Median home value
26
Federal declarations
| Declared | Incident | Title | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mar 19, 2026 | Fire | BUCK HORN FIRE | FM |
| Apr 30, 2024 | Tornado | SEVERE STORMS, STRAIGHT-LINE WINDS, TORNADOES, AND FLOODING | DR |
| Feb 24, 2021 | Severe Ice Storm | SEVERE WINTER STORMS | DR |
| Feb 17, 2021 | Severe Ice Storm | SEVERE WINTER STORM | EM |
| Apr 5, 2020 | Biological | COVID-19 PANDEMIC | DR |
| Mar 13, 2020 | Biological | COVID-19 | EM |
Within the county
Most affected places
- Sulphur 168
- Davis 132
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many severe weather events have been recorded in Murray County, Oklahoma?
468 events are on record between 1953 and 2026, causing 3 direct deaths and $20.1M in property damage.
What is the most common severe weather hazard in Murray County?
Hail, with 222 recorded events — 47.4% of everything in the archive for this county.
How many tornadoes have crossed Murray County?
48 mapped tornado paths intersect the county boundary; 38 of them touched down inside it. This is derived from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
How many federal disaster declarations cover Murray County?
26 federal disaster declarations from FEMA include Murray County, each tied to a specific incident period.
How risky is Murray County compared with the rest of the country?
FEMA's National Risk Index rates Murray County as very low risk, placing it in the 33 percentile of its state for expected annual loss.
Where does the Murray County, Oklahoma severe weather history data come from?
Every figure is drawn from United States federal public-domain records: NOAA/NCEI Storm Events for the event archive, NOAA SPC SVRGIS for mapped tornado paths, FEMA for disaster declarations and risk ratings, and the U.S. Census for population context. Dates are shown in UTC and recent entries may still be revised by NOAA.
Nearby
Neighbouring counties
- Mayes County 831
- Muskogee County 916
- Marshall County 399
- Noble County 496
- Major County 595
- Nowata County 465
Cite this page
“Murray County, Oklahoma.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/oklahoma/murray-county/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.