A tornado drought continues in Oklahoma; considered to be “ground zero” by many for tornadic thunderstorms and an area nick-named “Tornado Alley.” With no severe weather expected this week, it’s possible Oklahoma will see zero tornadoes for the month of May, something that has only happened once before in its recorded history.

Tornado Alley is a nickname given to an area in the southern plains of the central United States that consistently experiences a high frequency of tornadoes each year. Tornadoes in this region typically happen in late spring and occasionally the early fall.  Strong to violent tornadoes, those of EF-3 or stronger on the Enhanced Fujita Tornado Damage Intensity Scale, are relatively rare, and do not typically occur outside the United States. Although the boundaries of Tornado Alley are debatable, the region from central Texas, northward to northern Iowa, and from central Kansas and Nebraska east to western Ohio is often collectively known as Tornado Alley. Meteorologically, the region known as Tornado Alley is ideally situated for the formation of supercell thunderstorms, often the producers of violent  tornadoes rated EF-2 or greater.

By the end  of April, Oklahoma had already reached its yearly average of 57 tornadoes. But with the arrival of May, there have been none. According to the National Weather Service, May usually features more tornadoes than any other month in Oklahoma. Since records were kept in 1950, there have been a total of 1,851 tornadoes reported in May in Oklahoma, almost double the 951 tornadoes in the second busiest month, April. On average there are 12.5 tornadoes in April and 24.4 in May.  In 2019, Oklahoma saw it’s most tornadic May on record with 105 tornadoes; the least was 0 which only happened once before in 2005. Last year, there were 25 tornadoes in April and 21 in May.