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Deaths reported and dozens injured as tornadoes hit east Texas 'hard and fast' Four dead and dozens injured in Texas tornadoes as storms hit south
(about 4 hours later)
Severe storms including tornadoes have swept through several small towns in east Texas, leaving a trail of overturned vehicles, mangled trees and damaged homes. Severe storms including tornadoes swept through several small towns in east Texas, killing at least four people, injuring dozens more and leaving a trail of overturned vehicles, mangled trees and damaged homes, authorities said on Sunday.
Authorities believe as many as five people were killed and dozens injured, though they were still assessing the damage from the storms that swept through an area about 50 miles east of Dallas on Saturday evening. The storms in Texas were among several in parts of the south and midwest that brought strong winds, thunderstorms and torrential rain, killing a total of at least six people in three states.
“We’re talking about I think maybe five casualties,” Canton fire captain Brian Horton said. “That number may go up ... once we can get into these areas.” In Arkansas, a 65-year-old woman was killed when a tree was blown into her home on Saturday. In Missouri, a 72-year-old woman drowned despite her husband’s efforts to save her as their vehicle was swept away by rushing waters after heavy rains caused flooding. The storms were headed east into Mississippi and Alabama on Sunday.
Video from local television stations showed uprooted trees and overturned cars along rural, wet roadways, along with at least two flattened homes. The tornado flipped pickup trucks at a Dodge dealership in Canton and tore through the business. In Texas, search teams were going door to door, a day after storms cut a path of destruction 35 miles long and 15 miles wide in Van Zandt County, Canton mayor Lou Ann Everett said. The largely rural area is about 50 miles east of Dallas.
Fifty-six people were treated at three hospitals and six remained hospitalized on Sunday morning, two of them in critical condition, ETMC Regional Health Care Systems spokeswoman Rebecca Berkley said. “It is heartbreaking and upsetting to say the least,” Everett told reporters.
The National Weather Service confirmed at least three tornadoes swept through parts of three counties Saturday evening. Video from local television stations showed uprooted trees and overturned cars along rural, wet roadways, along with flattened homes. The storms flipped pickup trucks at a Dodge dealership in Canton and tore through the business.
Horton asked that people who didn’t need to be in the area to stay out, “so that our teams can do what they need to do to take care of these people who are in need”. He noted that a triage center was set up at the local high school. Everett said authorities had confirmed four deaths in the area, down from the five deaths reported earlier, but cautioned that “it is a very fluid situation and that could change”. Searchers were using dogs to determine whether “anyone is trapped and needs help, or worse”, she said.
One resident, Ernestine Cook, told Dallas television station WFAA she rushed to a storm center just in time. Fifty-six people were treated at three hospitals and six remained hospitalized on Sunday morning, two in critical condition, ETMC Regional Health Care Systems spokeswoman Rebecca Berkley said.
“It hit so hard, so fast. It just kept moving,” she said. “I’ve never seen anything like it after 22 years of living here.” Officials urged people to stay away from the area. Rescue workers were dealing with gas leaks and downed power lines and trees, said Judge Don Kirkpatrick, the county’s chief executive. Fences also had been blown over, meaning livestock in the farming and ranching area were roaming free.
“It’s a very dangerous situation out there,” Kirkpatrick said.
The National Weather Service confirmed at least three tornadoes swept through parts of three counties, with two of the twisters tracking nearly the entire south-to-north length of Van Zandt County.
The first reports of tornadoes came about 4.45pm on Saturday but emergency crews were hampered by continuing severe weather, Kirkpatrick said. “We’d be out there working and get a report of another tornado on the ground,” he said.
One resident, Ernestine Cook, told Dallas television station WFAA she rushed to a storm center just in time. “It hit so hard, so fast. It just kept moving,” she said. “I’ve never seen anything like it after 22 years of living here.”
Oncor, the electric utility that serves the area, reported more than 4,500 customers were without power late on Sunday morning. Everett said about 30 crews from around Texas were arriving to restore electricity. Five major transmission towers were toppled and some were difficult to reach. Cellphone service was described as “spotty”.
Canton is known throughout Texas and neighboring states for its First Monday Trading Days, a monthly flea market that draws thousands and goes back 150 years. Everett said the grounds of the market were spared from serious damage, although power lines and trees were down.
In Missouri and Arkansas, some roads remained closed because of flooding. Missouri reported nearly 100 evacuations and three dozen rescues on Saturday. In Arkansas, utilities said tens of thousands of customers were without power.