Tuesday, Sept. 26, 2023
Volume 121, Issue 4
VISTA The
Homecoming page 6
Tuesday, Feb. 22, 2022
“OUR WORDS, YOUR VOICE.”
Volume 119, Issue 19
Two arrests, one critical injury at Oklahoma State Fair
The State Fair enacted a curfew for the remaining day of the fair after an incident occurred Saturday night at the Motley Crue concert. (OK STATE FAIR) (PROVIDED/SKY FIVE).
Zakary Royka Reporter
Just before 9 p.m. Sept. 23 at the Oklahoma State Fair, shots rang out across the attractions and music, critically injuring one person. A flurry of motion and police action followed, culminating in two arrests. The threat of a shooting is concerning, it sets a worrying precedent for public spaces. This article comes from a firsthand perspective. I was an attendee of the Vince Neil concert that was
cut short. There is a certain kind of chaos that comes with a shooting. It is heart-wrenching. At first, a mixture of surprise and fear hit me, followed closely by frustration. I was immediately angry that this happened; I still am. Thankfully no one lost their lives that night. Beyond the initial shooting, hundreds of people fleeing from danger is dangerous in itself. This is due to a lack of coordination of crowds. You can get hurt or separated from your group. A psychological toll is taken on everyone
present. The shooting was not, however, a well-planned attack on the general populace of the fair. This crime started with a fight in the Bennett Event Center and ended with hundreds of people running for their lives and hours of traffic as people flooded the streets around the fair. The Oklahoma State Fair has a policy prohibiting firearms; this was insufficient to protect attendees Saturday night. The fair has now introduced a chaperone/curfew policy they outline in a post on
social media. This policy entailed a chaperone over the age of 21 to accompany any minor entering the fair after 5 p.m., with no more than six minors chaperoned by one individual. With the shelter-in-place/ lockdown exercise on campus this week, there is no better time to educate yourself on what to do during a shooting or similar threat to your well-being. It falls on everyone to keep each other safe from this strange reality we have found ourselves in. Stay safe out there.
Oklahoma weather proves global weather impacts state
El Nino event could be in state’s future as Pacific waters get warmer
Water levels at Lake Hefner recorded September 1, 2023 at shores and compared to piers (THE VISTA/JAYDON SIMS).
Jake Ramsey Managing Editor
of La Niña, causing Oklahoma to experience a drier, warmer climate, combined with the “heat dome,” which is caused by
crease of two-to-five degrees,” said KFOR meteorologist Emily Sutton. The increase in temperature
As temperatures rose this summer in Oklahoma, many factors contributed to the harsh heat faced throughout the latter month of the season. Those factors included the heating and cooling of the Eastern Pacific, the rainfall and water levels, as well as the heat dome. “It’s a naturally occurring change in sea pressure and air temperature,” said Oklahoma state climatologist Gary McManus. This is in reference to the events known as La Niña and El Niño, two weather phenomena that take place in the Eastern These are two climate patterns that work together (THE VISTA/TESS PETERS). Pacific. La Niña events cause a shift the air compressing towards the isn’t the only thing Oklahoma is in the jet stream which create ground and heating up due to facing. There has also been an warm and dry conditions across the high density, and that’s what increase in rainfall. the southern United States, led to the extreme heat faced In early July, Oklahoma expewhereas El Niño events cause throughout the latter part of the rienced the fifth wettest July on cool and wet conditions across summer. record, shown by water levels at the southern states. “By mid-century Oklahoma Lake Hefner, which grew from As the summer months began, can expect a temperature ina gage height of 1,196.70 feet the earth was in the cold phase
on July 4, 2023 to a gage height of 1,200.26 feet by July 19. The water levels have remained consistently high since, showing that Oklahoma rainfall is heavier than normal. “This is going to impact our agriculture, our economy and our infrastructure,” said Sutton. Oklahoma is likely to experience more intense storms, followed by stages of flash droughts throughout the next few years due to this shift in climate, Sutton said. McManus said, when asked about the impact of climate on infrastructure, “Oklahoma deals with a wide range of extreme weather, so we should be able to handle an El Niño event.” Should an El Niño event occur, Oklahomans can expect larger amounts of rainfall, as well as cooler conditions, but should another heat dome happen, there may be flash droughts and extreme heats following the harsher storms.