The Moore, Oklahoma Tornado of May 20, 2013

On the afternoon of Monday, May 20, 2013, a devastating EF5 tornado struck the city of Moore, Oklahoma — a suburb of Oklahoma City — killing 24 people, including seven children at Plaza Towers Elementary School. It was the third major tornado to hit Moore in 14 years, following the record-shattering May 3, 1999 tornado and a May 8, 2003 event.

Formation and Path

The tornado touched down at 2:56 PM CDT near Newcastle, Oklahoma, and stayed on the ground for 39 minutes, carving a path 17 miles long and up to 1.3 miles wide at its peak. Doppler radar and post-storm analysis by the National Weather Service placed peak winds at 210 mph, earning it the maximum EF5 rating.

The tornado moved east through south Moore, striking during afternoon dismissal at several schools. Its path passed within a mile of two schools that had been in the direct path of the 1999 F5 tornado.

Damage and Losses

• Approximately 1,150 homes destroyed
• Plaza Towers Elementary — the school took a direct hit; 7 children died sheltering in a hallway. The school did not have a basement or safe room.
• Briarwood Elementary — also destroyed; miraculously no fatalities
• Moore Medical Center — severely damaged, later rebuilt
• Vehicles were thrown hundreds of yards; a tanker truck was found more than a quarter mile from where it started

Total damage was estimated at $2 billion, making it one of the costliest tornadoes in US history.

Warning and Response

The National Weather Service in Norman had 16 minutes of warning lead time before the tornado reached Moore. A tornado emergency — the highest level of NWS tornado warning — was issued as the funnel intensified. Sirens sounded across the city.

Despite the warning, the intensity and daytime timing meant many people were still at work, school, or in vehicles when the tornado struck. Sheltering in interior rooms of wood-frame homes offered little protection against EF4–EF5 winds.

Aftermath and Safe Room Push

The deaths at Plaza Towers reignited a longstanding debate about whether Oklahoma schools should be required to have reinforced storm shelters. In the years after 2013, dozens of Oklahoma school districts installed FEMA-rated safe rooms, and the state passed additional funding to accelerate construction. Residential storm shelter installations in Moore surged.

Moore's Tornado History

Moore has been struck by five significant tornadoes since 1999, an extraordinary concentration that has drawn scientific attention. Researchers have investigated whether local topography or urban heat effects concentrate storms over the city, though most conclude the pattern reflects the extreme baseline tornado risk of central Oklahoma rather than a unique local vulnerability.