At Least Four Tornadoes Hit North Texas
Updated 9:20 p.m. 4/11/2011
NORTH TEXAS (CBSDFW.COM/AP) - Thunderstorms brought hail, high winds and at least four tornadoes to North Texas late Sunday night, knocking down trees, taking out power, breaking windows and damaging roofs.
The National Weather Service said all four confirmed tornadoes were rated EF1 in strength.
One struck near the Johnson County town of Rio Vista and damaged five homes.
"I'm just glad to be alive," said 17-year-old Jeremiah Marioni as he combed through debris in his back yard. "The front porch went through the window" of Marioni's parents' home.
A second tornado also hit Johnson County, just west of Alvarado. The third storm struck Kaufman County, on the north side of Forney. The fourth hit the town of Cash, in Hunt County. Winds from the storms were in the range of 100-110 miles per hour.
Damage was widespread in Johnson and Ellis Counties, just south of the metro area.
Johnson County emergency management coordinator Jack Snow said that several homes in his area had roof damage. And the Waxahachie Fire Department's battalion chief said that his location – about 30 miles south of Dallas -- had "sporadic structural damage all over the city." The NWS said the straight line winds there reached 80 m.p.h.
Other areas – such as Prosper – saw hail stones the size of quarters and golf balls.
A hotel in Waxahachie was one of the hardest hit locations. Guests woke up amazed to find a large part of the building's roof and façade broken from the structure and resting on the ground below. Debris littered the hotel's parking lot. The storm rolled through Waxahachie at about 2:00 a.m. Monday morning.
"Once the wind picked up, we could watch our window moving in and out good three inches from the wall. We thought for sure it was coming in on us," said one Waxahachie hotel guest. "Only thing on our mind was calling to check in on our wives and girlfriends."
Anita Foster with the Red Cross says its crews are spread out looking for storm victims. "[We] just want to make sure that if your home isn't livable that we know where you're at," explained Foster. "It can be tough sometimes when we're spread real thin in rural communities." North Texas Red Cross agencies are relying on volunteers who live in some of the rural communities to make sure they don't miss anything.
"We've got a number of counties that our teams are, are really just out [in] making sure that families are okay," said Foster. "We're up in Collin County, Denton, Hunt, Kaufman, Ellis County and possibly Navarro County later today too."
In all, Red Cross officials say more than 200 homes in four North Texas counties were damaged by the storms. Fifteen of those homes sustained major damage or were destroyed. More than 175 homes sustained minor damage, like downed fences, shingles blown off and tree limbs blown down.
Click here for more photos of damage from this storm.
Rio Vista resident Raul Fonseca said his mother prayed out loud while he lay on his five-year-old son when the tornado hit at about 1:20 a.m. He said the tornado appeared to have lifted the mobile home off its foundation and slammed it back down.
"I was laying on top of him just trying to keep calm in case anything did happen," he said. "Any sort of tornado matter, I go before he goes."
Elvia Guzman, another Rio Vista resident, survived the storm. Her house, however, did not.
"I said, if this is the time for me to go, I'm ready," she said. "But if y'all don't want me to go, if it's not time for me to go, God is the only one that's going to save me."
Then, her house began to break apart.
"I've always been a strong woman, I've always. But I'm not scared," she said. "Oh, I was scared last night though, I was really scared last night."
Guzman wasn't hurt, but two of her horses in her pasture were. The home she built with her late husband was a total loss, though. She said her children will help her rebuild.
As of 9:20 p.m, the website of energy provider Oncor said about 40,000 DFW customers still did not have power. Crews are working to get the lights back on, but the company did not have a time frame for repairs.
A handful of North Texas school districts delayed Monday start times – including the Crandall Independent School District and the Waxahachie Independent School District -- to give cleanup crews more time to get facilities ready after the Sunday night storms. The Alvarado Independent School District and the Red Oak Independent School District completely closed on Monday.
>> Check Area Closings & Delays
The good news is that the storms have moved out and the atmosphere is now quieting down. Look for lots of sunshine to kick off the work week, with high temperatures in the 70s on Monday and low temperatures dipping into the 40s for most of North Texas on Monday night. Western parts of the area will drop down to the upper 30s. Tuesday afternoon brings more sun and temperatures close to 80 degrees.
On Tuesday night, the winds will shift back to the south and warmer, humid air will start pushing into North Texas. A mild pattern is expected with temperatures in the low 80s. Storm chances might be back for late Wednesday night into Thursday morning, but they do not look promising – only a 20 percent chance at this point.
This storm front will usher in another round of cooler air that should hold through much of the weekend, in time for the Main Street Fort Worth Arts Festival. Friday through Sunday will feature comfortable times for art viewing – sunshine and temperatures in the 70s. Clouds will build Sunday morning through afternoon.
>> Check The Current Weather Forecast
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