Duncan Tornado 36 Years Later

 February 21, 1975.  This day started out just like any other day.  Got up and got ready for school.  It was a Friday and I was glad the weekend was almost here.   

The day seemed a little bit odd to start off.  Unusually balmy day for late February.  This just meant we would go out for recess instead of staying in the gym.  After school it really felt warm and most of us enjoyed a crazy ride home on the bus.  Little did any of us know that with in 12 hours our town would be turned upside down.

After a great Friday night with a group of friends at the bowling alley, we left to go to my friend Russ's  house where we were all spending the night.  At  10:30 it seemed very muggy for late February.  With in three and a half hours it broke loose.  Wind picked up, sheets of rain, and then the hail. 

At 2:15am on February 22, 2 tornado's of F2 size hit on the West and Southwest side of Duncan.  The one on the West traveled in a almost due north pattern for six mile tearing up everything in its path.  The other went SW to NE.  This put my house in the bulls eye.  It split the difference between our house and the house 10 acres away.  Blowing out windows in our house and taking everything in front of it away.   

A lot of damage and some injuries.  Our town has come a long way in 36 years.  We now have storm sirens that alert us to tornadoes.  We did not have them in 1975.  My dad also had a storm cellar installed that summer.  Duncan has rebuilt and will continue to move forward.  But you have to stop and think of the force of Mother Nature that had to be dealt with in the early morning hours of February 22, 1975.