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FAIRFAX, Okla. (KJRH) — Residents in the Osage County town of Fairfax are cleaning up from an apparent tornado Sunday night.
According to Osage County Sheriff Eddie Virden, the downtown area took a direct hit around 8:30 p.m.
Neighbors said the severe storm lasted about half an hour, but the tornado took just 30 seconds to devastate commercial and government buildings. Had the tornado path been one block over, it would’ve hit dozens of homes in a neighborhood.
First responders said no one was killed during the storm, but a few people suffered minor injuries.
“We’re all very glad we didn’t have anybody injured in the incident because you can see by the damage it was a pretty good storm,” Sheriff Virden said.
The entire town lost power during the storm, including the local hospital and nursing home, which also lost backup generator power. At least a dozen businesses were impacted.
Ambulances were on standby all night to transfer patients if needed.
Almost all of the power was restored by Indian Electric Cooperative crews overnight.
State Highway 18, the main highway through Fairfax was closed for more than six hours while crews cleared debris from the roadway. It was reopened around 2:30 a.m. according to Oklahoma Highway Patrol.
The National Weather Service’s Tulsa office will investigate the tornado’s path on Monday to determine how strong the winds were.
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