Severe storm clouds move across the northwest edge of Davenport, Iowa, on Friday, May 24, 2024. There were several tornadoes, and the storm knocked down power lines and trees.
Roy Dabner/AP/Quad-City Times
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Roy Dabner/AP/Quad-City Times
OKLAHOMA CITY — A tornado touched down and moved across a Texas interstate Saturday night, causing damage and possible casualties as scattered severe storms swept through Texas and Oklahoma.
Forecasters issued tornado and severe thunderstorm warnings for parts of both states, and some heat records were broken during the day in South Texas, where residents were warned of triple-digit temperatures over the long holiday weekend.
A tornado swept through northern Denton County, Texas, on Saturday night, overturning a tractor-trailer and causing damage to Interstate 35, Denton County Community Relations Director Dawn Cobb said in a statement. Traffic is disrupted.
The tornado was confirmed near Valley View and was moving east at 40 mph (64 kph), prompting the National Weather Service to issue a tornado warning for northern Denton County, Cobb said.
The storm damaged homes, RVs, power lines and trees throughout the area, including at Sanger, Pilot Point, Lake Ray Roberts and Dubois Island State Park, Cobb said, adding that it was not immediately clear whether the county’s Number of injured.
The fire department in Denton, Texas, about 37 miles (59.5 kilometers) north of Fort Worth, posted on ”.
Claremore, Okla., police announced on social media that the city, about 28 miles (45 kilometers) east of Tulsa, was “open” due to damage caused by the storm, including downed power lines and trees and impassable roads. closure”.
Earlier Saturday evening, the National Weather Service office in Norman, Oklahoma, said via the social platform . “If you’re in the path of this storm, take cover now!” it said.
A subsequent post at 10 p.m. said the storm had left the area, but warned it would move across northern Texas and could impact parts of south-central Oklahoma.
At 10:24 p.m., the Fort Worth weather service office issued a message warning residents of Era and Valley View that they were in the direct path of a possible tornado and to seek shelter immediately. The Fort Worth office continued to issue notices and shelter warnings, tracked the storm’s movement through midnight, and issued a separate severe thunderstorm warning for the possibility of “golf ball-sized hail.”
The weather service office in Tulsa, Oklahoma, warned on X that a dangerous storm would move through the northeastern part of the state at 2 a.m. and head toward Hugo, Boswell, Fort Towson, Gleno A severe thunderstorm advisory was issued for the communities of La, Foraker and Hurd.
Norman’s office likened Saturday’s situation to a “gasoline-soaked bush.” Forecasters said any storm that formed could produce large hail, dangerous winds and tornadoes.
“Most races have the potential to fail, and today we only saw a few storms. However, this is not a race I want to be in. It only takes one storm to make an impact,” the company said on Facebook.
Excessive heat, especially in May, is a danger in South Texas, with heat indexes expected to approach 120 degrees Fahrenheit (49 degrees Celsius) in some areas over the weekend. Actual temperatures will be lower, although still in the triple-digit range, but the humidity will make it feel hotter.
The area is at the northern end of a heat dome that stretches from Mexico to South America, said National Weather Service meteorologist Zach Taylor.
Taylor said Sunday looks to be the hottest day yet, with record highs expected for late May in Austin, Brownsville, Dallas and San Antonio.
Brownsville and Harlingen, near the Texas-Mexico border, already set new records for May 25 on Saturday – 99 degrees Fahrenheit (37 degrees Celsius) and 100 degrees Fahrenheit (100 degrees Fahrenheit), respectively, according to the weather service. 38 degrees Celsius).
Red flag fire warnings have also been issued for western Texas, all of New Mexico and parts of Oklahoma, Arizona and Colorado. Humidity was very low, below 10%, and wind gusts were as high as 60 mph (97 km/h).
“We have very dry air, warm temperatures and strong winds creating high fire danger over a wide area … which could cause fires to spread quickly or become uncontrollable,” Taylor said.
Meanwhile, several inches of snow fell in Rolla, North Dakota, about 10 miles (16 kilometers) from the Canadian border on Friday into early Saturday.
April and May are busy months for tornadoes, especially in the Midwest. Climate change is increasing the severity of storms around the world.
April saw the second-highest number of tornadoes on record in the United States. According to the Storm Prediction Center in Norman, the number of tornadoes in the country is already 25% ahead of average through 2024.
Iowa was hit hard this week when a deadly tornado devastated Greenfield. Other storms brought flooding and wind damage to other parts of the state.
As the Memorial Day weekend continues, the storm system responsible for the severe weather is expected to move eastward, bringing rain that could delay Sunday’s Indianapolis 500 in Indianapolis, Illinois, and More severe storms were reported in Indiana, Missouri and Kentucky.
Forecasters say the risk of severe weather will move into North Carolina and Virginia on Monday.
