Journalist: Lina Quinones (TCC)
Coming soon into the House of Representative is a House Bill SE-505 by Representative Hanson (SE) this is an act relating to storm shelters in Oklahoma.
Currently Oklahoma is one of the top states with the average number of tornadoes in the state. Within Oklahoma, the state has about a yearly average of about fifty-eight point eight (58.8) tornadoes, with one of the peak months being May. Which in Oklahoma is considered part of our tornado season. The most tornadoes Oklahoma had in a single year happened in twenty nineteen (2019) where there were one hundred forty-nine (149) tornadoes within a single year.
With other storm statistics, such as thunderstorms, Oklahoma averages about fifty-five (55) days with those types of storms within Eastern Oklahoma, and about forty-five (45) days in the Southwest part of Oklahoma. Continuing with this, the most disasters Oklahoma has seen in relating to storms is twenty twenty-three” (2023) where there were twenty-eight (28) related disasters that were declared with about seven (7) of them being extremely severe events.
Oklahoma has a long history of violent tornadoes and storms. This bill wishes to help alleviate the death we see within these storms.
House Bill SE 505, otherwise known as the “No Oklahoma Left Outside” act of 2025, wants to create a new law that will start the construction of storm shelters around the state. That will be following the ICC 500 guidelines that is for community/residential storm shelters.
This law must make the rooms to accommodate any number of people that are intended to enter said storm shelter
There will be enforcement according to this bill where if local counties, city codes enforcement, and builders do not follow this bill they will be in violation.
As stated, before Oklahoma had many severe weather events all over the state. That affects many different Oklahomans that have and will continue to affect Oklahomans. By having this bill come to pass will greatly impact the people of Oklahoma
This bill has yet to come onto the house floor, as it was on the counter for Friday. But as Friday now passes, hopefully this bill will be heard tomorrow on Saturday on the house floor.