Most of Garfield County’s tornadoes have been weak, and only one has caused a death. From 1950 through 2025, 78 tornadoes touched the county, according to NOAA’s Storm Prediction Center (SPC). Eight were rated F3/EF3 or stronger, and two of those were F4.

Cutaway illustration of a house with a storm shelter below the garage floor and a separate underground shelter in the back yard
Two common placements: below the garage floor and underground in the yard.

The two F4s

  • May 2, 1979: the only deadly tornado in the county’s record. It killed 1 person and injured 25 on a 20.6-mile path that also crossed Major County.
  • April 26, 1991: a much longer path of 66 miles, through Garfield, Noble and Osage counties. No one died, and 6 people were injured.

Ratings describe each tornado’s strongest damage anywhere on its path. Deaths and injuries also cover the full path.

Of the 78 tornadoes, 56 were rated F0/EF0 or F1/EF1, as the chart further down shows. In 2016–2025 the county had 7 tornadoes, and none was rated EF3 or stronger.

April 2026

After the April 23 severe weather, Garfield and Kay counties were under a State of Emergency. Oklahoma Emergency Management reported this in its April 24, 2026 situation update. It also said an American Red Cross shelter remained open in Enid.

The county shelter registry

Garfield County Emergency Management keeps an online storm shelter registry. It works from an office in Enid. The office describes the registry as a way to help search and rescue teams locate residents. The form asks for personal information and a precise shelter location.

The same office notes that most cities and towns in the county run their own outdoor warning sirens. Your town can tell you how and when its sirens are tested.

Clay across most of the county

About 55% of Garfield County’s mapped land has soils rated high for shrink-swell, clay that swells when wet and shrinks as it dries. That is the largest share of any county on this site. None is in the very high class. Only about 3.4% of mapped land is rated high at the surface, so the high ratings mostly come from deeper layers. The largest single area is the Kirkland-Renfrow complex, 96,816 acres. With that much clay in the county, it makes sense to get quotes from installers who already work on this ground, since the map figures are county-wide rather than a test of one property.

What a shelter costs in Oklahoma, and what is often extra, is on storm shelter costs in Oklahoma.

Your quote request

Tell the installer which spot you have in mind and ask for a visit to check it. Ask the installer to confirm any local permit and put its fee in the quote. Also ask for the price to list these as separate items:

  • the shelter
  • the installation and anchoring
  • any dirt hauling