UPDATES: Evacuations issued in Oklahoma as wildfires ramp up
Evacuation orders have already been issued for parts of Oklahoma on Wednesday.
ALL RIGHT. IT IS 545. WE WANT TO TURN NOW TO METEOROLOGIST JOSEPH NEUBAUER. YOU’RE KEEPING AN EYE OUT ON THE WILDFIRES. THE THE HIGH WINDS THAT WE’RE SEEING HERE IN THE STATE. THE HIGH FIRE DANGER AS WELL. WE KNOW THAT THERE HAVE BEEN SEVERAL EVACUATIONS ORDERED THIS MORNING ALREADY. YEAH. TOWN OF MERIDIAN AT SOUTHEASTERN LOGAN COUNTY. THAT’S WHERE OUR SHELBY MONTGOMERY IS. SHE’S BEEN MONITORING THAT FIRE. AND THEN WAY OUT IN WESTERN OKLAHOMA. ROGER MILLS AND BECKHAM COUNTY. THIS IS, LIKE, RIGHT UP AGAINST THAT FIRE ALSO PROMPTING EVACUATIONS IN THE TOWN OF SWEETWATER. SO TWO FIRES THAT WE’RE GOING TO TALK ABOUT. AND YES, IT’S BEEN BUSY ALREADY WITH THE WIND. YOU CAN PROBABLY HEAR IT. IF YOU STEP OUTSIDE, YOU’LL FEEL IT. A LITTLE BIT OF DUST BEING BLOWN AROUND AS WELL. SO THERE’S SHELBY. I HAVE HER LOCATOR ON THIS FIRE. THIS AREA IN LOGAN COUNTY. I MEAN, MICHAEL ARMSTRONG WAS OUT THERE FOR WHAT FELT LIKE 3 OR 4 DAYS IN THIS SAME PART OF THE STATE WATCHING FIRES, LOOKING AT KIND OF WHAT WAS LEFT OVER. IT HAS JUST BEEN UNBELIEVABLE TO SEE WHAT HAS CHANGED OUT THAT WAY. HEARTBREAKING. AND UNFORTUNATELY, AGAIN, FIRES FLARING BACK UP IN SOUTHEASTERN LOGAN COUNTY. SO THE TOWN OF MERIDIAN IS NOT ACTUALLY POPULATING ON THE MAP HERE AS A POST OFFICE. REAL SMALL. BUT THAT’S RIGHT WHERE SHELBY IS. AND THAT FIRE HAS GROWN. JUST LOOKING AT SATELLITE DATA, SATELLITE DATA, YOU CAN DERIVE HOW A WILDFIRE IS DOING IF IT’S HOTTER. OBVIOUSLY, THE WILDFIRE IS BURNING HOTTER. IT’S STRONGER. AND THIS SPOT IN LOGAN COUNTY ON SATELLITE DATA HAS GOTTEN HOTTER AND HOTTER AND HOTTER, WHICH IS NOT GOOD FROM A WILDFIRE STRENGTH PERSPECTIVE. AND YOU CAN SEE THE SMOKE PLUME THAT IS PUSHING TO THE NORTHEAST. THAT TELLS US A LITTLE BIT ABOUT THE WINDS THAT ARE OUT OF THE WEST SOUTHWEST. SO THIS FIRE WOULD BE MOVING EAST NORTHEAST. SHELBY ON THE GROUND, VERIFYING THAT THIS DOES HAVE A NORTHERLY COMPONENT TO IT, THIS WILDFIRE. AND IF YOU ARE LIVING IN THE TOWN OF MERRICK, EAST OF GUTHRIE, SOUTH OF LANGSTON, YOU GOT TO KEEP AN EYE ON THIS FORECAST. REALLY, AT THIS POINT IS NOT A IT’S A NOWCAST BECAUSE WE’RE WORKING IN LIKE PERIODS OF 30 MINUTES NOW TO WATCH THIS FIRE CLOSELY. SHELBY IS GOING TO STAY ON THAT FIRE. IT’S THE ONLY ONE WE HAVE BURNING AT LEAST HERE CLOSE TO THE OKC METRO OUT WEST. THAT’S WHERE WE’VE SEEN ANOTHER FIRE THAT’S GONE UP. WE’VE ALSO SEEN SOME POWER OUTAGES THAT WAY. AND ACTUALLY WE DO HAVE A FIRE WARNING FOR THAT PORTION OF LOGAN COUNTY. NOW LET ME GO AHEAD AND LOOK AT THAT ON NWS CHAT. IF MY PRODUCERS WANT TO GIVE ME A SECOND TO READ THAT FIRE WARNING THERE IN LOGAN COUNTY. SO AT FOUR 544, DANGEROUS WILDFIRE WAS LOCATED TWO MILES SOUTH OF MERIDIAN, MOVING NORTHEAST AT 3 TO 5MPH. SO LET ME GO BACK TO THIS. IF I CAN. I PROMISE I’LL MOVE ALONG HERE A LITTLE BIT TO KEEP THE FORMAT, BUT THIS FIRE, THEY ARE SAYING, IS TWO MILES SOUTH OF THE TOWN OF MERIDIAN. THAT’S ESSENTIALLY WHERE SHELBY IS. SO SHE’S DOING A GOOD JOB GIVING US A LOCATOR THERE, EVEN THOUGH YOU DON’T SEE MERIDIAN PAINTED ON THE MAP. MOVING NORTHEAST AT 3 TO 5MPH. SO THIS IS SOMETHING THAT IF YOU ARE IN THIS PART OF LOGAN COUNTY, UP THE ROAD TOWARDS MERRICK, YOU REALLY, REALLY NEED TO KEEP AN EYE. IT’S NOT OFTEN THAT THEY PUT A FIRE WARNING OUT. NOW THEY HAVE RIGHT IN THAT ZONE WHERE SHELBY IS IN SOUTHEASTERN LOGAN COUNTY. THIS WOULD BE MOVING OFF TO THE NORTHEAST. THE OTHER FIRE WARNING THAT WE HAVE, YOU CAN SEE IT. THE POLYGONS ARE LABELED IN DARK ORANGE. THIS IS FOR THE TOWN OF SWEETWATER. ABOUT AN HOUR AGO, THIS FIRE WARNING CAME OUT. IT WAS NORTHWEST OF THE TOWN OF SWEETWATER, ABOUT SEVEN AND A HALF MILES. THAT WAS AN HOUR AGO. IT’S ALSO MOVING SOUTHEAST TOWARDS STILLWATER OR SWEETWATER AT ABOUT 3 TO 5. SO, I MEAN, THIS IS COMING UP ON TOWN PROBABLY IN ANOTHER HOUR OR TWO. BUT IF YOU’RE IN SOUTHERN ROGER MILLS COUNTY, THIS IS A GREAT TIME TO HEAD SOUTH. EVACUATION ORDERS FOR SWEETWATER ON THIS FIRE AS WELL. SO THAT’S TWO FIRES. THAT’S MERIDIAN, SOUTHEASTERN LOGAN. AND THEN HERE IN ROGER MILLS AND EVEN THE NORTHWESTERN FRINGES OF BECKHAM COUNTY, THERE’S MAYFIELD. SHOULD BE KEEPING AN EYE ON THAT AS WELL. TO THE NORTH, TWO FIRES THAT WE’RE WATCHING. WHAT’S PROBLEMATIC ABOUT THIS MORNING BECAUSE RIGHT. THERE’S NOT AS MANY FIRES AS MAYBE LAST FRIDAY. BUT WHAT’S PROBLEMATIC ABOUT TODAY IS THAT THERE’S GOING TO BE A WIND SHIFT. NOTICE THAT OUR LITTLE ARROWS ARE POINTING FROM NORTHWEST TO SOUTHEAST. THAT’S THE COLD FRONT MOVING IN. WHERE SHELBY IS IN LOGAN COUNTY. THE WIND IS STILL OUT OF THE WEST SOUTHWEST. WE HAVE NOT HAD THE COLD FRONT YET HERE IN THE OKC METRO. THIS WIND SHIFT IS GOING TO CAUSE PROBLEMS FOR OUR FIRST RESPONDERS. IT MAKES IT HARDER. THE ONLY GOOD THING THAT’S GOING TO COME OUT OF THIS COLD FRONT IS THE HUMIDITY IS GOING TO COME UP, BUT THE WIND SHIFT IS GOING TO BE AN ISSUE I FORESEE DOWN THE LINE FOR THE NEXT COUPLE OF HOURS. IT’S NOT GOING TO MAKE IT IT JUST MAKES IT MORE COMPLICATED. LOOK AT THOSE WIND GUSTS. STILL REPORTING A 63 MILE PER HOUR GUST DURING CLINTON 48 IN HOBART, 52 IN LAWTON. THAT LAST CHECK 38 HERE IN OKC THROUGH THE MORNING AND EVEN INTO THE AFTERNOON WILL BE 50 TO 55 MILE PER HOUR GUSTS HERE IN OKC. SO NOT NEARLY AS STRONG AS LAST WEEK, BUT ENOUGH TO CAUSE POWER BUMPS AND NOT ENOUGH REALLY TO CAUSE NEW FIRES TO FORM. HIGHEST OF WHICH WILL BE OUT WEST. YOU CAN SEE THE HIGH WIND WARNING GUSTS UP TO 65. WE’VE ALREADY VERIFIED THAT THIS MORNING. CLOSER TO 50 HERE IN THE METRO. THAT’S, I THINK, WHERE WE’LL KIND OF END UP AROUND 50. BUT THIS IS NOT A GREAT WIND GUST FORECAST. I DON’T LIKE THIS GRAPHIC AT ALL. EVEN THOUGH THE HUMIDITY IS GOING TO COME UP, IT’S STILL GOING TO BE TOUGH. THE HUMIDITY, I THINK WILL HELP US OUT LATER IN THE AFTERNOON. THAT’S WHY WE LOSE THE FIRE DANGER ALERT AT 1 P.M. YOU CAN SEE THE HUMIDITY VALUES CLIMB OUT OF THE TEENS AND THEY’RE LIKE 50 TO 60% BY EIGHT, 50 TO 40% BY THE AFTERNOON. THAT’S GOOD. BUT IT’S STILL GOING TO BE REALLY WINDY. AND IF ANY FIRES DO GET GOING, ANY NEW FIRES DO GET GOING. THAT WIND JUST MAKES IT SO MUCH HARDER. THERE IS A COLD FRONT, BY THE WAY. I REALLY DON’T HAVE TIME TO TALK ABOUT THIS FRONT, BUT WE’RE GOING TO DROP CONSIDERABLY ON OUR TEMPERATURES LATER INTO THE DAY. I ONLY HAVE AFTERNOON TEMPERATURES IN THE 40S. IT’S NOT TILL LATE TONIGHT, TOMORROW THAT THE WINDS FINALLY CALM. WE’RE GOING TO GET SOME GOOD HUMIDITY TOO. NO FIRE RISK ON THURSDAY. A LITTLE BIT MORE FIRE RISK ON FRIDAY, BUT I DON’T SEE A DAY LIKE TODAY ANYWHERE ON OUR FIVE PLUS FIVE DAY FORECAST. WE EVEN HAVE SOME THUNDERSTORM CHANCES ON SATURDAY, MAYBE EVEN
UPDATES: Evacuations issued in Oklahoma as wildfires ramp up
Evacuation orders have already been issued for parts of Oklahoma on Wednesday.
Updated: 6:35 AM CDT Mar 19, 2025
Evacuation orders have already been issued for parts of Oklahoma on Wednesday. >> Download the KOCO 5 App | Subscribe to KOCO 5’s YouTube channel6:35 a.m. Wednesday Update: Crews were responding to downed powerlines near Wilshire Boulevard and Banner Road. 6:26 a.m. Wednesday Update: The fire warning issued for Sweetwater will be allowed to expire at 6:30 a.m. as humidity rises in the area. 6:10 a.m. Wednesday Update: The fire in Beckham County is located about 7 miles northwest of Sweetwater, but it is moving rapidly toward the town. Residents should leave now. KOCO 5’s Shelby Montgomery was staged at Charter Oak and Indian-Meridian for the Logan County fire. She said the wildfire that first appeared to be moving east, but as the wind shifted, the fire now appears to be moving north. The towns of Merrick and Langston should also be alert in case those fires spread. They are not currently under an evacuation order.5:48 a.m. Wednesday Update: A fire warning has been issued for the town of Meridian in Logan County for a wildfire located about two miles south of the community. People living in the area should evacuate immediately. A fire warning was also issued for the town of Sweetwater in western Oklahoma as a wildfire moves toward the community. Residents should evacuate now. KOCO 5 Meteorologist Joseph Neubauer said a shift in winds has made it difficult for firefighters. Wind gusts are over 60 mph in parts of the state.A fire danger alert is in effect for much of the state until 1 p.m. Be sure to download the KOCO 5 App to receive customized weather alerts. You can watch our team coverage on the app, too.>> Check Closings>> Check Live, Interactive Radar>> Watch KOCO 5 Coverage>> Download the KOCO 5 App on iPhone>> Download the KOCO 5 App on Android>> «Like» KOCO 5 on Facebook>> «Follow» KOCO 5 on X>> Stream KOCO 5 weather updates anytime on the Very Local app
Evacuation orders have already been issued for parts of Oklahoma on Wednesday.
>> Download the KOCO 5 App | Subscribe to KOCO 5’s YouTube channel
6:35 a.m. Wednesday Update: Crews were responding to downed powerlines near Wilshire Boulevard and Banner Road.
6:26 a.m. Wednesday Update: The fire warning issued for Sweetwater will be allowed to expire at 6:30 a.m. as humidity rises in the area.
6:10 a.m. Wednesday Update: The fire in Beckham County is located about 7 miles northwest of Sweetwater, but it is moving rapidly toward the town. Residents should leave now.
KOCO 5’s Shelby Montgomery was staged at Charter Oak and Indian-Meridian for the Logan County fire. She said the wildfire that first appeared to be moving east, but as the wind shifted, the fire now appears to be moving north.
The towns of Merrick and Langston should also be alert in case those fires spread. They are not currently under an evacuation order.
5:48 a.m. Wednesday Update: A fire warning has been issued for the town of Meridian in Logan County for a wildfire located about two miles south of the community. People living in the area should evacuate immediately.
A fire warning was also issued for the town of Sweetwater in western Oklahoma as a wildfire moves toward the community. Residents should evacuate now.
KOCO 5 Meteorologist Joseph Neubauer said a shift in winds has made it difficult for firefighters. Wind gusts are over 60 mph in parts of the state.
A fire danger alert is in effect for much of the state until 1 p.m.
Be sure to download the KOCO 5 App to receive customized weather alerts. You can watch our team coverage on the app, too.
>> Check Closings
>> Check Live, Interactive Radar
>> Watch KOCO 5 Coverage
>> Download the KOCO 5 App on iPhone
>> Download the KOCO 5 App on Android
>> Stream KOCO 5 weather updates anytime on the Very Local app
