The National Weather Service in Fort Worth confirmed Sunday there were four tornadoes rated EF-2 or greater that touched down east of the Metroplex on Friday.
NWS survey crews began canvassing areas where the damage had been reported and where data suggested tornadoes may have touched down and confirmed one tornado touched down in Lamar County, one in Hopkins County, one in Rains and Hopkins County and one in Henderson County.
LAMAR COUNTY TORNADO
Preliminary information from the NWS indicated a long-track EF-3 tornado with peak winds of 160 mph touched down in Lamar County at 4:19 p.m. The tornado had a width of 1350 yards and traveled 22 miles on the ground from Toco, near U.S. Highway 82, and tracked northwest of Paris through Powderly, toward the Red River, before falling apart at 4:48 p.m. near Ord, Oklahoma. There were no fatalities or injuries reported with this tornado.
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The NWS said several dozen homes, businesses and outbuildings were damaged across western and northern Lamar County where damage was consistent with EF-3 intensity. Along the track of the tornado, storm survey teams found several homes and small buildings without their roofs and with most internal and external walls destroyed. There were also a number of power poles snapped in the area.
The United Way of Lamar County has established a Tornado Response Fund to help those affected by the tornado. The Red Cross also has an established service center at the Lamar Church of Christ in Paris at 3535 Lamar Ave.
RAINS/HOPKINS COUNTY TORNADO
Preliminary information from the NWS indicated an EF-1 tornado with peak winds of 100 mph touched down in Rains and Hopkins counties at 5:08 p.m. The tornado had a width of 50 yards and traveled 4.5 miles on the ground near Emory before falling apart about six minutes later at 5:14 p.m. near Point in Rains County. There were no fatalities or injuries reported with this tornado.
The NWS said the tornado started in northern Rains County and crossed Farm-to-Market 514 near Daughtery. Minor damage to carports and large trees was seen in the area. The tornado continues south into Hopkins County where additional tree damage was spotted.
SULPHUR SPRINGS TORNADO
Preliminary information from the NWS indicated an EF-2 tornado with peak winds of 120 mph touched down in Hopkins County at 5:15 p.m. The tornado had a width of 160 yards and traveled 3 miles on the ground near Emory, west of Texas 19, and tracked northeast toward Sulphur Springs before dissipating at 5:19 p.m. There were no fatalities or injuries reported with this tornado.
The NWS said eyewitness accounts and video showed the second Emory-area tornado started in a field west of County Road 1164 and moved northeast where it hit a home causing EF-2 damage, ripping off the roof and attic. The tornado hit a few other homes near County Road 1181, including one that was pushed off its support.
HENDERSON COUNTY TORNADO
Preliminary information from the NWS indicated a long-track EF-2 tornado with peak winds of 115 mph touched down in Henderson County at 5:35 p.m. The tornado had a width of 150 yards and traveled 15 miles on the ground from south of Malakoff, west of Farm-to-Market Road 3441 near the Anding Acres Wedding Venu, and tracked northeast through Athens before falling apart at 5:48 p.m. three miles southwest of Murchison, not far from the Henderson County Regional Fair Park. There were no fatalities or injuries reported with this tornado.
As the tornado tracked northeast toward Athens, it damaged a family home along County Road 1208 along with outbuildings and trees. In Athens, trees were uprooted and snapped and a Dollar General had its windows blown out. The worst damage, the NWS said, was to the Athens Steel Building Corporation whose building along NE Loop 7 was partially collapsed by the tornado.
