Tornadoes tore through parts of Oklahoma in early summer, killing 20 and leaving more injured and homeless. Severe storms, triple-digit temperatures and drought also plagued the state.
Mother Nature showed no mercy as summer in Oklahoma began with severe storms and tornadoes. Twenty were killed and 150 injured when a tornado tore through Picher May 10. Survivors were left without power and some without homes. Tornadoes were reported in McAlester, Haywood, Seneca and Neosho.
Two girls were shot to death June 8 near Weleetka. Skyla Whitaker, 11, and Taylor Paschal-Placker, 13, were last seen taking a walk together at about 5:30 p.m. on a path they had often taken before.
Placker’s grandfather began to worry as time passed and neither of the girls answered his phone calls.
A quarter mile down the road in Weleetka, he found the girls face down in a ditch alongside the road.
Authorities suggest that there were two weapons used during the murder, which could mean two suspects. The crime remains under investigation.
Military Officials accused two Oklahoma soldiers of killing an Iraqi detainee. Lt. Michael Behenna, 25, of Edmond, and Staff Sgt. Hal Warner, of Braggs, were both taken into custody. The two were charged with premeditated murder as well as assault and lying to military investigators. There were no reports of how or when the victim was killed.
Police charged a Tulsa English teacher and coach John Kastner, 50, with the June 25 death of his wife.
Lori Kastner, 44, died from a gunshot wound to the head while she slept in their home. Kastner pleaded not guilty.
The Panhandle had the most severe drought rating possible, “exceptional,” in mid-June.
Government forecasters said the drought was analogous to the Dust Bowl of the 1930s.
Three people died of heat-related illnesses when Oklahoma temperatures hit triple digits in late July and early August.
Billionaire Texas oil tycoon T. Boone Pickens returned to tout his new plan for weaning the U.S. off its
dependence on foreign oil. Pickens visited McAlester early August for the third time in a series of town-hall meetings to generate grass roots support for his “Pickens Plan.”
The plan calls for erecting wind turbines across the Midwest to generate electricity, replacing the 22 percent of U.S. power produced from natural gas.
The freed-up natural gas could then be used to fuel cars and trucks now reliant on gasoline and diesel.
Loading ...
All Articles