Tornado Warning Alert: Live Tracking Map, Affected Counties, and Urgent Safety Steps to Take Now

The National Weather Service (NWS) has issued multiple tornado warnings and watches across the southern Plains today as a potent fall cold front sweeps from Texas through Arkansas and into the lower Mississippi Valley. A Level 3 out of 5 severe-storm risk from NOAA’s Storm Prediction Center covers eastern Oklahoma and western Arkansas, where supercell thunderstorms are expected to spin up quick-moving tornadoes, damaging wind gusts up to 75 mph and hail larger than golf balls. Key danger zones and timing • Oklahoma: Tornado watches blanket the I-40 corridor, including Sallisaw—where a Tuesday night storm ripped part of a hospital roof—and extend north to Bartlesville until 10 p.m. CDT. Embedded supercells may form along the advancing dryline by late afternoon. • Arkansas: Storm clusters racing out of Oklahoma will cross the state line after sunset, bringing an elevated nocturnal tornado threat. Residents from Fort Smith to Little Rock should prepare for warning sirens between 7 p.m. and midnight. • North Texas: Discrete storms south of the Red River could spin before congealing into a squall line that reaches the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex during the evening commute, with brief tornadoes possible. Flood hazard overlaps the tornado threat. More than five million people from northeastern Oklahoma to northwestern Arkansas are under Flood Watches, and the Weather Prediction Center highlights a Level 2 flash-flood risk through Thursday morning. What already happened On Tuesday, storm-force winds in Sallisaw, Oklahoma, peeled away the south-wing roof of Northeastern Health System Sequoyah; fortunately, no injuries were reported and the emergency department has reopened. Earlier this month, spotters captured a rope tornado touching down in Harper County, northwest Oklahoma, underscoring that fall is the Plains’ “second season” for twisters. Why fall tornadoes are common As summer heat retreats, stronger jet-stream winds overspread lingering Gulf moisture, creating classic shear-and-instability setups. Climatology shows a spike in October tornado reports across the southern Plains, especially during years with transitioning El Niño patterns. Safety checklist 1. Enable Wireless Emergency Alerts on smartphones and keep weather radios powered with fresh batteries. 2. Identify a sturdy shelter room (basement or interior lowest-level room). Mobile-home residents should relocate to a community shelter when watches are issued. 3. Have helmets, hard-soled shoes, and charging packs ready before storms arrive. 4. Never try to outdrive a tornado; abandon vehicles for a low ditch if no shelter is nearby. 5. Turn around, don’t drown: just 6 inches of moving water can knock adults off their feet. Forecast outlook The cold front will slide east on Thursday, shifting the tornado risk into Mississippi and western Tennessee while heavy rain lingers over Kentucky and West Virginia. Cooler, drier air should settle into the southern Plains by Friday, offering a brief break before another storm system emerges early next week. Bottom line If you live anywhere between Dallas and Little Rock today, stay weather-aware and be ready to act fast when a tornado warning is issued. Rapidly moving evening storms will limit visibility, making it vital to rely on trusted alerts rather than sight.