Commissioners hear account of Kiowa tornado response; EOC timeline notes siren and dispatch issues

Commissioners heard a report April 27 on a tornado that touched down near Kiowa and the county’s emergency response actions. The minutes note that Leo Baughman reported a tornado touchdown and described response problems, and the meeting packet included a detailed internal timeline email documenting EOC activity, mutual-aid notifications, damage reports and shelter coordination.

Baughman told the board the tornado struck Kiowa the previous Friday and that local responders reported multiple damaged structures and travel trailers, downed trees, and power outages. According to the EOC timeline in the packet, county staff called neighboring ODOT task-force teams (ODTF) and coordinated with the American Red Cross (ARC) to assess shelter needs; ARC initially was contacted to prepare a shelter but later stood down after local officials reported displaced residents had places to go.

The timeline email records operational frictions: spotters and News 6 reported the tornado on the ground; Baughman reported that an outside department (Savanna Fire Department) self-dispatched to the scene and that Kiowa police initially did not allow paged rescue teams into some areas. The email also documents an attempt to sound the Kiowa storm siren that failed because storm interference prevented the repeater from activating the siren. The entry quotes Kiowa official Jess Wilson as saying the town "will handle this themselves" and records Wilson asking Savana's chief to "give him everything we got," language cited in EOC traffic and later calls between county staff and town officials.

County staff routed multiple requests: ODTF teams were put on standby, ARC was notified and later stood down when local arrangements were reported adequate, Public Service Company of Oklahoma (PSO) responded to outages, and on-the-ground damage assessments and traffic control were coordinated with local law enforcement. The minutes record that Baughman planned to meet with Kiowa officials to address the issues raised.

No formal action or vote was taken on the record regarding the response; the board acknowledged the report and moved on to other agenda items.