Dozens injured as surprise EF-2 tornado hits Oklahoma

Accra, Aug. 7 - (UPI/GNA) - Dozens of people were injured on Sunday, by a tornado that struck in Oklahoma and left more than 14,000 people without power, officials said.

The sudden EF-2 tornado, for which the classification indicates wind speeds of 111 to 135 mph, left a 10-block path of damages early Sunday morning.

At least 30 people were hurt, officials said -- eight of whom in a restaurant that was destroyed.

"It completely collapsed right on top of everybody, so it's lucky that people came out with their lives," TGI Friday manager Zane McCollough, told NBC News.

Among those injured was a Tulsa firefighter, who was burned in a house fire. Most of the injured were treated for lacerations and similar injuries at nearby St. Francis Hospital.

Officials said most patients were treated and released by Sunday afternoon.

At least 125 utility poles snapped or were damaged, causing the power outage, Public Service Company of Oklahoma reported.

The storm moved through the city so quickly that emergency sirens did not sound, Tulsa Area Emergency Management Director Roger Joliff said.

The tornado was unusual for Oklahoma in that it developed months after the typical spring tornado season, and that it emerged from a "garden variety" thunderstorm on Saturday, Joliff said.

It was the first August tornado in Tulsa County since 1958.

GNA