Havoc Hurled on Highland: Cemetery slammed by the straight-line winds of a strong seasonal squall 

By Joshua Allen


ONL Staff Reporter

(Published in the Thursday, May 9 Edition of the Okemah News Leader)

The phone rang. It rang again.

The third ring was about mid-interview with Okemah Emergency Management Director Jim Bill Copeland and an ONL reporter on an early-week morning at City Hall.

Positioned in what seems to be the back of the municipal government’s headquarters, Copeland picked up the phone to answer it about the time the fourth ring sounded.

Before he could get the sounds of “Hello” or “This is Jim” or anything out, a voice sounded off on the other side of the connection.

“Hey Jim … what are you doing?” the voice asked now well-audible to the room … the volume of which seemingly heightened with excitement.

Copeland began to explain he was in the middle of talking to the “newspaper guy” for an interview about the recent storm damage, but the voice — later which was learned to be that of one of his longest running ‘Spotters’ — interjected, making Copeland kind of smirk and laugh a bit.

Copeland looked up at said “newspaper guy” and mouthed, barely of a volume to be heard, “He’s excited.”

Though not a soliloquy, insomuch as a reporter was in the room, the aforesaid situation involving phone calls, excited voices, activated Spotters, civil servants preparing for vigilance in watching what weather threats are coming or going and the getting of that information to its proper channels is exactly what Copeland’s soliloquy would tell of on most days throughout the stormy season for this part of the Plains.

See … and many people may not realize this, but Copeland is charged with heading up the system that — when combined with the insight from agencies such as the National Weather Service (NWS), the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and the various broadcast television news stations — is designed to save the lives of many by keeping the public well-informed as severe weather approaches.

One of these such times happened just as this week was getting started, rolling over the wilds of Okfuskee County’s grasslands early Monday morning before the sun was up.

A typical-for-this-time-of-year squall-line thunderstorm bullied its way over the landscape of the area, moving primarily in a direction from west-southwest to the north-northeast, bopping the Okemah Proper and its surroundings with large rain drops, hail, heavy winds and a quite stellar natural light show.

Copeland recalled the storm’s power as it approached.

“The reports were saying our wind speeds were lower than I say,” he said. “We had 80 mile-per-hour winds in the strongest part of the storm.”

That strongest part slashed over Highland Cemetery, downing many trees and leaving destruction in its wake.

“There wasn’t a lot of structural damage, but the property across the road from the cemetery lost part of a roof, and another structure near there took some damage,” Copeland explained. “It was the bow-echo of the squall-line storm that hit us directly.”

“That’s the strongest part of the storm cell, and it’s the place, typically, the tornado of a strong supercell would be,” he continued. “I’ve not ever seen the bow hit (Okemah) directly … seen it get close, real close, but not directly.

“That’s what hit the cemetery. That’s what caused all the damage, which was all laying north-northeast from the south-southwest direction. I know this wasn’t a tornado because they tend to scatter debris every which way. All these trees were laying the same way, getting snapped when the wall of straight winds went through.”

The result was the shutting down of the local cemetery for much of the day while city crews cleaned up the mess made in a moment of chaos. While those crews cleared brush, downed power lines were dealt with by crews from the Public Service Company of Oklahoma.

Before long, it got back to a kind of normal, the cemetery opened back up and any loss of power was restored.

Copeland, who will remain vigilant, said there will be more storms coming that he and his team will be ready for.

Deduct safely that a big part of Copeland’s job on days the threat of severe weather is imminent involves him watching and evaluating radar reports, news channels’ assessments, releases from the NWS Office in Tulsa.

And, so it goes, lest the citizens under his care should go without knowing to prepare (Copeland said this was something he’d “never let happen”) after he watches early, it goes back to watching more weather reports. Evaluating. Watching. Calling experts. Inquiring.

If he identifies a real threat that could involve strong winds, activity conducive to tornados, hail, heavy lightening and the likes, he immediately initiates his team of Spotters, an NWS program that puts out trained ‘storm watchers’ in strategical locations, standing ready to report any activity that is moving towards people.

This web is tied into the warning systems of municipalities, and many parts move in harmony to achieve a quick response to anything incoming. The more time people have, the better, Copeland alluded.

“Spotters,” Copeland said, sitting up like the next thing was going to be more serious, “are very important … there is just never enough of them.”

They are needed, the director said before adding, “If you know anyone that may want to be a Spotter, tell them to call City Hall and ask for me.”