A severe thunderstorm rolled through Hennessey, Sunday night at about 11 pm bringing copious amounts of rain and 90+ mph winds. Widespread damage was reported from north of Dover to just north of Hennessey. Straight-line winds wreaked havoc on trees and buildings in the area including ripping the entire roof off the Hennessey First Baptist Church children’s church and dropping it about 100 yards east on top of a home.
Many more buildings were destroyed or suffered major damage throughout the Hennessey area, fortunately, there were no injuries reported.
OG&E reported that there were upwards of 50 power poles snapped off including 6 large transmission poles and lines that feed the Hennessey substation along Cemetery Rd. Most of Hennessey was darkened overnight. Power crews worked through the night and power was restored to most of Hennessey proper at about 4:30 am but had to be turned off again due to 2 fires from trees on lines. OG&E is stating areas outside city limits could be without power for 2 days as they work through the tangle of poles, wires, and trees.
There was significant tree damage area-wide and some downed trees were blocking roads and or causing damage to structures. Hennessey Fire Department led by Brandon Scott, the newly appointed chief set up a command center at the police station. Working with the police, Kingfisher County Emergency Management, KF County, KF County Sheriff, and many others to coordinate and identify damage and areas that needed attention.
When the sun came up it became clear as to just how much damage was done due to this storm. The Hennessey Board of Trustees declared Hennessey a state of emergency. This allows them to get state and federal help as well as being able to recover costs from cleanup. The town dump is now open till 5 pm and excepting tree limbs at no charge.
A tree trimming crew from the Oklahoma Baptist Disaster Relief team arrived Tuesday, August 15th, and are expecting to be here for 3-4 days. They will focus on getting driveways cleared and limbs off houses. This is a free service. To request help, please fill out the form at okdisasterhelp.org
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