BlockBefore

Altus, Oklahoma

9 topographic sheets cover this place, the earliest surveyed in 1955 and the latest in 1985. It stands in the Altus census division. It lies in ZIP code area 73521. The Survey maps it on the Altus quadrangle. 18,729 people lived here at the 2020 count. It stands 1,398 feet above sea level.

Altus within Jackson County

On record in Altus

Buildings and businesses the archive holds for this place. Each opens its own page, with the source record it came from.

On the National Register 8 records

Population over time

2 figures

Altus fell from 19,813 to 18,729 between 2010 and 2020. These are the recorded population figures Wikidata holds for this place, reached through the Geographic Names Information System number this page is keyed on rather than by name, so they belong to this place and not to another of the same name. Most are census counts, but not all are: an early figure may be a founding or settlement estimate, and an estimate published within five years of a census is left out. The change column is computed, and is left blank where more than 20 years separate a figure from the one before it, because a gap that long is not a change between two counts.

YearPeople Change
201019,813
202018,729-1,084 (-5%)

Topographic sheets covering this place

3 surveys from 9 printed sheets

Matched by testing this settlement's coordinate against the published boundary of every sheet in the United States Geological Survey's historical collection. Each opens the scanned sheet at the Survey.

Mines and quarries near this place

2 within 5 miles

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal mineral resources record lists 2 workings within 5 miles of Altus: 2 past producers. None of them still produces. What was taken out: Sand and Gravel, Construction, Clay. Distance is straight-line from the map coordinates, so a quarry counted here may appear on a neighbouring settlement's page as well.

Where SiteCommodity StatusRecorded
Unknown Gravel PitSand and Gravel, ConstructionPast Producer
Unknown Shale PitClayPast Producer

Every working recorded in Jackson County

Storms near this place

60 of 279 shown

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The National Weather Service names Altus in 279 storm reports between 1993 and 2026: 132 hail, 119 thunderstorm wind, 15 flash flood, 8 lightning. No death or injury is recorded in these reports. Each account below is quoted exactly as the forecast office filed it, from the NOAA Storm Events Database, and each date opens the federal record of that event.

WhenEvent Place namedHarm What the report says
June 2008Thunderstorm WindAltus$750,000,000Substantial wind damage was reported in Altus. One hundred and seventy-nine homes sustained some kind of damage, with two destroyed, five with major damage, forty-three with minor damage, and one hundred twenty-nine affected. Seventeen businesses were damaged, with two destroyed, four with major damage, and eight with minor damage. One hundred and seventy power poles and numerous trees were blown down. Sixty percent of the town was without power at one point. Roof damage was reported to several buildings. Part of the roof at Altus Junior High caved in. Several buildings on East Broadway had roofs blown off or collapsed. Highway 62 was closed on the east side of town due to debris.. One injury was reported when a semi-truck was blown over injuring the driver. A train car also was overturned on the southeast side of town. No injuries were reported with it. Monetary damages were estimated.
June 2008Thunderstorm WindAltus$6,400,000Numerous large tree limbs were downed around town. Monetary damages were estimated.
April 2000HailAltus$2,600,000Baseball size hail (2.75 inches in diameter) caused an estimated 2 million dollars in damage to homes and businesses and 600 thousand dollars to vehicles.
May 1999HailAltus$800,000no account filed
May 1999HailAltus$500,000no account filed
March 2009Thunderstorm WindAltus$50,000Altus emergency management reported three structures damaged by the strong winds. One mobile home in Headrick was destroyed. One house in Altus sustained roof damage, and a tin roof was torn off a barn on the southwest side of Altus. Monetary damages were estimated for the entire county.
April 1994HailAltus$50,000no account filed
May 1993Thunderstorm WindAltus$50,000no account filed
May 1993Thunderstorm WindAltus$50,000no account filed
May 2015Flash FloodAltus$30,000Two vehicles off the road along Highway 171 and 283 due to flooding.
May 2019Thunderstorm WindAltus$25,000Trailer house blown into the road blocking the road, and a large tree is blown over on Park Lane.
August 1997LightningAltus$25,000Lightning struck and set fire to a small bar. The fire was quickly contained and damage was limited to an estimated $25,000.
May 2022Thunderstorm WindAltus$20,000Power poles downed across the county, time estimated from radar.
May 1996LightningAltus$20,000no account filed
April 2016Flash FloodAltus$15,000Numerous cars became stranded and many roads were closed. A storm chaser passing through Altus made this report.
June 1999LightningAltus$15,000no account filed
June 2008Thunderstorm WindAltus$12,000Tree limbs and power lines were blown down. Monetary damages were estimated.
June 1996LightningAltus$10,500no account filed
May 2013Thunderstorm WindAltus$10,000Several power lines and power poles downed. Damage estimated.
October 2012Thunderstorm WindAltus$10,000Mesonet site at Altus recorded a gust to 58 mph. Power lines were blown down in the city, and there was damage to the Atwoods sign.
May 2003LightningAltus$10,000A house was reported damaged by a lightning strike.
June 1999Thunderstorm WindAltus$8,000no account filed
May 2004Thunderstorm WindAltus$7,500Power poles were downed.
October 2014Thunderstorm WindAltus$6,000Relayed by Altus emergency manager. Minor damage was reported to one hotel roof.
May 2019Thunderstorm WindAltus$5,000Front bay doors on the fire station in Altus damaged.
December 1993Thunderstorm WindAltus$5,000no account filed
June 1997Thunderstorm WindAltus$4,500Five electric poles were blown over and four hangar doors were blown out at the Municipal Airport. Tree branches were reported down over all of the surrounding area.
September 2017Thunderstorm WindAltus$4,000Power lines were downed by winds.
May 1999Thunderstorm WindAltus$2,000no account filed
August 2023Thunderstorm WindAltus$1,000Social media video showing multiple tree branches blown down and damage to a small outbuilding. Time is radar estimated.
June 1997HailAltus$1,000Hail slightly larger than golf balls broke the windows out of a pickup truck.
June 1999LightningAltus$500no account filed
May 1999LightningAltus$200no account filed
September 2005Thunderstorm WindAltus$100Two inch diameter tree limbs were downed near the intersection of Highway 283 and Highway 5.
March 1999LightningAltus$100Lightning struck a tree, destroying it.
June 1999Thunderstorm WindAltus$100no account filed
September 2001Thunderstorm WindAltus$10Eight inch diameter tree limbs were downed.
April 2026HailAltus-The report was relayed through mPING.
April 2026Thunderstorm WindAltus-Altus (ALTU) Mesonet observation.
May 2025Thunderstorm WindAltus-Altus (ALTU) Mesonet observation. Intermittent severe (>50-knot) wind gusts during the listed event time, with the peak gust of 58 knots at 0135 LST. A heat burst was likely responsible for this event.
June 2025Thunderstorm WindAltus-Altus (ALTU) Mesonet observation.
June 2025Thunderstorm WindAltus-Altus (ALTU) Mesonet observation.
June 2025Thunderstorm WindAltus-Altus (ALTU) Mesonet observation.
June 2025Thunderstorm WindAltus-Altus (ALTU) Mesonet observation.
April 2025HailAltus-The report was relayed through mPING.
May 2024Flash FloodAltus-Multiple broadcast media and social media confirmations of roadway flooding in and around the community of Altus. This included along portions of U.S. Highway 62 west of the community. Event time is approximate.
May 2024Thunderstorm WindAltus-Altus (ALTU) Mesonet observation.
May 2024Thunderstorm WindAltus-Altus (ALTU) Mesonet observation.
May 2024Thunderstorm WindAltus-Altus (ALTU) Mesonet observation.
May 2024Thunderstorm WindAltus-Altus (ALTU) Mesonet observation.
May 2024Thunderstorm WindAltus-Altus (ALTU) Mesonet observation.
May 2024HailAltus-MPing report.
May 2024Thunderstorm WindAltus-Altus (ALTU) Mesonet observation.
June 2024HailAltus-MPing report.
June 2024HailAltus-MPing report.
June 2024HailAltus-MPing report.
August 2023HailAltus-Social media report of dime to nickel size hail in south-central Altus.
August 2023Thunderstorm WindAltus-Altus (ALTU) Mesonet observation.
August 2023Thunderstorm WindAltus-Altus (ALTU) Mesonet observation.
September 2023HailAltus-MPing report.

Every storm recorded in Jackson County

Nearest settlements

The eight closest, with where each one stands in the county. Distances are straight-line, computed from the Geographic Names Information System coordinates.

Map PlaceDistance Sheets
Welon1.2 miles9
Hightower4.3 miles9
Victory5.7 miles9
Ozark6.5 miles8
Martha6.6 miles9
Friendship6.8 miles8
Humphreys7.6 miles9
Olustee7.7 miles9

Elsewhere

Matched on this settlement's Geographic Names Information System number rather than its name, so it cannot be a different place of the same name in another state.

Wikipedia article on AltusAn encyclopaedic summary. Its text is share-alike, so it is linked here rather than copied.
Wikidata item Q446314The structured record the population and elevation above come from. Public domain (CC0).

Provenance

This settlement is recorded in the Geographic Names Information System as feature 1089598. The sheet list is computed by point-in-boundary test against the United States Geological Survey's historical topographic inventory. Both are works of the United States government and carry no copyright under 17 U.S.C. 105.

Mines and quarries. USGS Mineral Resources Data System (MRDS) https://mrdata.usgs.gov/mrds/ A work of the United States government, no copyright under 17 U.S.C. 105.

Storms. NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Storm Events Database https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/stormevents/ A work of the United States government, no copyright under 17 U.S.C. 105. Narratives are quoted verbatim from the National Weather Service report and are not edited or summarised.