Tag Archive for: Garland

Tornado Hits Dallas, Storm Then Brings Destruction To East Texas

Powerful storms blew through Northeast Texas on Sunday night and early Monday morning, leaving behind extensive damage to homes and businesses. There were reports of quarter-sized hail, tornadoes and straight-line winds that reached more than 100 mph in some areas.

The most severe weather struck the DFW Metroplex, and Dallas in particular.

Officials with the National Weather Service have confirmed that tornado touched down near Dallas Love Field on Sunday night before moving northeast through the city. There were no serious injuries reported, but nearly 140,000 people were left without electricity across Dallas, Richardson, Garland, Rowlett, Sachse and surrounding cities.

Power lines were torn down, trees were knocked over and many structures were damaged or destroyed.

A house owned by Dallas Stars player Tyler Seguin was among the buildings ripped apart by the tornado. The athlete explained on Twitter that this property was actually for sale, and that he had recently moved to another home. Seguin thanked those who reached out to him online and called the situation “an extremely sad sight to see.”

Many more homes, schools and shopping centers were left in shambles after the tornado. Tina Devlin of Dallas told KXAS-TV that her house was a “total loss,” and similar reports came from homeowners in the Preston Hollow neighborhood of Dallas, Garland and Sachse. “I heard all the snapping of the trees and the wind blowing, and so I climbed into this bedroom closet, and just as I got in there, the roof blew off,” Devlin said.

Shingles were reported missing from roofs in various cities from Keller, located north of Fort Worth, all the way to Carthage, to the southeast of Longview. That is a path of nearly 200 miles.

Dallas Fire-Rescue also responded to a structure collapse on Sunday night. Seven people escaped from the building, said to be an auto repair shop, just before it came down. Firefighters also received calls about broken glass and debris at multiple homes, and a 7-Eleven convenience store that collapsed. Again, everybody made it outside without injury.

Even a fire station was not safe from the overnight storm’s destruction. According to Jason Evans with Dallas Fire-Rescue, one of the department’s stations sustained significant damage — including a partial roof collapse — as a result of strong wind gusts and flying debris. No firefighters were hurt, but the building was left uninhabitable.

Radio station KNON-FM went off the air when the storm hit. Lew Morris of “Reckless Rock Radio” told The Associated Press that the Dallas building’s power went out just before the “distictive whistle” of a tornado. “We then heard the building shaking and could hear the glass windows shattering everywhere along with debris banging around. We waited until all the noise died down,” Morris recalled. The studio was destroyed, but staff members were not harmed.

Meanwhile, the Dallas Independent School District canceled classes at some schools on Monday, citing damage to campuses.

After the storm ravaged the DFW area, it marched toward East Texas with the same fury. The National Weather Service stated that a tornado also touched down near Fair Play on Sunday night, about nine miles west of Carthage. Power lines were ripped apart and trees were toppled in Henderson, Pine Hill and Alba. A hardware store in Troup was destroyed.

Crews with the National Weather Service will be surveying the storm damage in Rusk County and Panola County on Monday to determine if more tornadoes were responsible for some of this destruction.

Let the experts from Stonewater Roofing help you get your life back on track after this devastating storm. We have crews across East Texas available to assist with the cleanup efforts and inspect your property for damage. We are ready to help homeowners and businesses find peace of mind after this disaster. Stonewater Roofing is here for you.