Oklahoma’s 2020 Weather Extremes

Thanks to a crazy storm on the first day of summer, Boise City (way out in the panhandle) recorded the highest wind speed in the state this past year at 98.2MPH. Being so flat out there, we're all surprised the town wasn't swept off its foundations.

Temperature swings are nothing strange anywhere in Oklahoma. That's the weather joke in nearly every US state... Don't like the weather? Wait five minutes... blah blah blah... But in Hooker, the weather swung from 94.5 to 32.5 in just one day back in early October. Not as impressive as the 100 degree change on record, but notable nonetheless.

Seeing an early freeze in October isn't something that "never" happens in Oklahoma, but it's a pretty rare event. In the days leading up to Halloween, the state experienced a record ice storm that covered nearly 70% of the state for three days. Countless trees took record damage, parts of OKC went powerless for nearly a month, and most municipalities are still cleaning up the mess two months later.

It's no secret that SWOK is the home of Oklahoma's heat, but the one-stoplight town of Hollis recorded the hottest temp on record this year. 113 degrees midway through July.

Side note, the best burger in Oklahoma can be found in Hollis at the old Dairy Queen just across from the United Grocery store there on main street. Unbelievable burgers.

We all know the heat index is pure voodoo... If it "feels like" a certain temp, it should be that temp right? But that's not how it works. If you were hanging out in Stillwater on July 11th this year, you know what 121.2 degrees feels like.

Ironically, we're back to SWOK for the lowest temperature recorded in the state this past year. Faxon down South of Lawton earned top honors recording a solid temp of just 1.2 degrees back in February.

This one takes us to a new location in SWOK. Ketchum Ranch... It's a weather station and apparently an airport East of Duncan just over halfway to Velma-Alma. On May 15th, they recorded 3.81 inches of rain over a single hour.

While we think of Spring as the "wet" season in Oklahoma, September delivered the precipitation to SWOK. On September 1st, 8.26 inches of rain fell in Bryars.