Today the National Weather Service reported that the May 31, 2013 EF-5 tornado that struck El Reno, Oklahoma (25 miles west of Oklahoma City), was the widest tornado on record. Measuring 2.6 miles across, it beat the previous 2.4-mile wide twister that hit Hallam, Nebraska on May 22, 2004. The Friday tornado and its resulting flooding claimed 18 lives, including six children, a dozen adults, and the famed storm chaser, Tim Samaras. Area hospitals treated 115 injuries after Friday’s storm. The tornado’s width was measured by a mobile radar unit as the storm passed south of El Reno near Highway 81, and only includes the tornado itself, and not winds surrounding the storm.