Tornadoes strike Texas

Whilst figures have yet to be finalised, the National Weather Service estimated that up to a dozen tornadoes ripped through the Dallas-Fort Worth area – the fourth most populated metropolitan area of the US, bringing damaging winds and large hail.

Two of the tornadoes are suspected to have been large and extremely dangerous, possibly of EF3 or above on the Enhanced Fujita Scale, which would suggest wind speeds in excess of 130mph.

One of the hardest hit places was Lancaster just south of Dallas, where 10 people were injured – two of them severely. Property was also badly hit, with 300 structures suffering heavy damage.

Lancaster resident Carver Malone’s house was damaged by the storm. He said: “I was just laying there and then all of sudden it sounded like a train was coming and I was on the track. I was in the way I guess, I don’t know. It was just: boom, boom, boom.”

He added: “Then I started hearing glass shatter, wind blowing and then I happened to look up and I was in the bedroom and it looked like I could see the sky.”

More than 100 planes were damaged by hail and air travel was severely disrupted, with around 400 flights cancelled at Dallas-Fort Worth airport, the eight busiest in the world. Incoming flights were also diverted, leaving thousands stranded.

As a safety precaution, passengers stuck at the airport were moved away from glass windows and directed towards stairwells and restrooms.

One tornado lifted trucks high up into the air at the Flying J Truck Plaza in Dallas and threw them around like toys. Truck driver Michael Glennon caught the destruction on video with debris being swirled through the air. He said: “We’ve seen roofs blown off, houses totally flattened, tractor-trailers knocked over,”

Authorities were amazed that no-one was killed, given the intensity of the storms, the number of tornadoes, and how densely populated the area hit was. Dallas Mayor Mike Rawlings said: “We dodged a big bullet… It really is a miracle,”

The fact that the tornadoes struck during the daytime is believed to be a huge contributing factor to there being no loss of life as people are able to see the storms coming and are more aware of warnings.

Storms will continue to move eastwards across the mid-west during the next few days, with further tornadoes possible. However, Texas will see quieter weather in time for the weekend, with a return to sunshine and warmth.