A raw burst of Panhandle weather put tiny Slapout on the map Thursday, when storm‑chase video captured a tornado briefly touching down in open country and kicking a column of dust high into the sky. The short, intense touchdown unfolded near the unincorporated community as a First Alert crew rolled on the storm and other chasers watched from nearby roads.
The raw clip came from KOCO's First Alert storm chaser Amanda Benton, who filmed the twister dropping to the ground at least twice near Slapout, according to KOCO. KOCO reported it was the first tornado logged in Oklahoma on Thursday and noted that much of northern Oklahoma stayed under a tornado watch into the evening.
Where It Touched Down
The tornado was reported in rural sections of southeastern Beaver County in the Oklahoma Panhandle, a wide expanse of flat wheat fields and ranchland with few structures in the way. As the storm moved east, the National Weather Service in Amarillo issued tornado warnings for parts of Beaver County and cited radar‑indicated rotation near Slapout, per NWS Amarillo.
Forecasts and the Larger Threat
Earlier in the day, forecasters had already circled northern Oklahoma and southern Kansas as a key corridor for tornado potential, warning that some storms could spin up a strong tornado. The Storm Prediction Center’s outlook spotlighted that risk and urged people in the region to stay weather‑aware as storms fired up, as outlined by the Storm Prediction Center.
Local History and Context
Slapout itself is little more than a lonely crossroads with a handful of homes, but Beaver County is no stranger to quick‑hitting twisters in open country. Historical storm logs from the National Weather Service list multiple brief tornado touchdowns across Beaver County, including prior touchdowns in the Slapout area, according to NWS Norman.
What Residents Should Know
KOCO’s early reporting on Thursday’s storm did not list any injuries or confirmed damage tied to the Slapout tornado. Local emergency officials or National Weather Service survey teams may release updates if any impacts are found during post‑storm assessments.
If a tornado warning is issued in your area, safety officials advise heading immediately to a basement or an interior room on the lowest floor with no windows and following official guidance from public health and emergency agencies, per the CDC.
