OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) - Following a record-setting year for the number of tornadoes in Oklahoma, the state has seen fewer thus far in 2020, according to state climatologist Gary McManus.
There were 33 twisters during the first five months of this year, including 13 during May, down from 127 during the same period last year that included a record 105 tornadoes last May, according to the National Weather Service.
The month of May has averaged 24.4 tornadoes since 1950, according to the weather service and there have been an average of 41 tornadoes during the months of January to May.
Cooler weather thus far in 2020 is likely a reason for the decline in the number of tornadoes, McManus said in a June 1 news release.
The average temperature statewide was 66.8 degrees, 1.4 degrees below normal, McManus said, despite summer-like temperatures early in the month that included a high of 108 degrees recorded at Frederick in southwestern Oklahoma on May 4.
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This story was first published on June 9. It was updated on June 11 to correct that there were 127 tornadoes through the first five months of 2019, not 186.
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