Thunderstorms are spreading throughout the southern plains, leaving about 33,000 homes without power. While a tornado is confirmed to have touched down in Texas, suspected tornado damage is visible in Oklahoma.
Blizzard, Massive Winter Storm System, Two Tornadoes
As blizzard conditions develop across several states further north, severe storms, with reports of a tornado and damaging winds, are raking sections of Oklahoma and Texas. They have already caused significant damage as of Tuesday morning and continue to pose a threat of further destruction.
All of this is part of a massive winter storm system that is currently moving into the US's heartland after battering the West over the weekend. From Texas to Mississippi, about 25 million people could experience severe storms on Tuesday, including tornadoes. On Tuesday morning, about 15 million people, mostly in the north-central US, were subject to winter weather warnings or advisories, with power outages being a major worry.
There are two tornado watches in effect: one until 11 AM CT for portions of the southern Oklahoma and Dallas area, and another until 5 PM CT for portions of Arkansas, southeastern Oklahoma, and eastern Texas, CNN reports.
Latest Weather Updates
According to The Weather Channel, tornadoes and severe thunderstorms have been produced by the South's extreme weather.
Multiple tornado warnings were placed in effect early on Tuesday in east Texas and Oklahoma, and the South will likely experience a busy two days of severe weather. Here are the rest of the updates:
10:40 AM: Over 33,000 businesses and homes in Texas lost power as a result of the storms. In Tarrant County, there are almost 19,000 of them.
10:03 AM: A trained spotter reports that wind caused damage to a commercial building close to Grapevine, Texas. For the counties of Tarrant, Denton, and Dallas, a tornado warning is in effect. According to reports, Sam's Club was harmed, and semitractor trailers were turned over.
​9:57 AM: Due to a tornado warning for the region, a "Shelter in Place" order was activated by the Dallas Fort Worth International Airport. The airport issued a warning to stay indoors and away from windows and the outside. The storms have caused some flights to be delayed.
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9:30 AM: The McClain County Emergency Management organization reports that no injuries have been connected to the tornado that hit the Oklahoma town of Wayne. There is no power in the town, and several houses have been damaged.
8:28 AM: Tornado damage was reported in Decatur, Texas.
8:00 AM: After a tornado north of Wayne, Oklahoma, was confirmed by radar early on Tuesday, only a few walls were left standing.
When the storm hit, the family sought refuge in their basement, according to a KOCO report. The family was unharmed in the tornado, which struck at around 5:30 AM CST, according to neighbors who spoke to the TV station.
According to Ron Johnson, the McClain County Emergency Manager, the twister severely damaged at least two homes.
The Wayne Public Schools made the following Facebook announcement: Due to the lack of electricity along with the high likelihood of storm damage, schools will be closed on Tuesday. Seminole schools opened at 10 AM, while Wewoka schools opened at 9 AM, News 9 reported.
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