OKMULGEE COUNTY — The eastern Oklahoma town of Morris is recovering after it was hit by a tornado.
It was one of at least 18 that tore through Oklahoma overnight Saturday.
Okmulgee County Emergency Management Director Jeff Moore estimates the county as a whole has $1 million-$3 million in damage from the storm. He expects the county will easily exceed its $169,000 threshold for FEMA compensation, which counts damage to public property and uninsured homes.
About $700,000 of eligible damage is to Morris’ public school buildings.
“We hit that threshold the moment that first pole went through the roof” of the elementary school, Moore said.
The storm’s severity is still being determined, as is the official cost of damage. Moore said he was expecting an emergency declaration from the governor’s office Monday.
Aaron Simons, owner of Raven Rock Pizza in Morris, said he and his family could feel the tornado in their house.
“Whenever you feel the house shaking, it kind of makes you wonder – ‘Is it coming for me?’ or if it’s a little further out,” Simons said.
Immediately after the storm hit, residents sprang into action and helped each other. On Monday Simons was giving out pizza and bottled water.
“All the workers that are helping cut trees — you know, those are the real guys that need the appreciation,” Simons said.
James Page of Joy In Life Ministries in Henryetta gave out food and alcohol wipes across the street from a convenience store where the roof was bent into a “v” shape.
Page pointed out the storm hit near the 40th anniversary of the 1984 tornado that leveled the town.
“That alone for the people who were still here from then — I think that in itself was traumatizing because it re-stirred all of the memories,” he said.
The tornados that hit Oklahoma Saturday night and early Sunday morning killed at least four people and destroyed dozens of buildings. The towns of Sulphur, Holdenville and Marietta were hit hardest.
Gov. Kevin Stitt has given emergency declarations to a dozen counties that were hit by the storms.
