Cleanup and repairs are underway at Autos of Dallas in Irving on Thursday after a storm ripped through and caused some damage to the structure.
David Mullins, general manager at Autos of Dallas in Irving, said his team was watching the weather closely Thursday afternoon. Several of them walked outside to get a closer look, Mullins said.
“We decided to get back inside and as soon as we did, the façade came down and crashed up against the windows,” he said. “As we were running to the back to get to the designated tornado shelter area, you can see the windows were like, fluctuating, because of all the pressure.”
Mullins said they are in the process of examining exactly what kind of damage the storms Thursday caused. He said there is likely some roof and ceiling damage, along with at least one car at the dealership.
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“We had a car, an SUV that was parked right here. Unfortunately, a customer came and bought it this morning. He went home and was going to come back and get it,” he said. “We called and said, ‘Hey, we’re going to put it inside’ and he said, ‘No, I’m on my way. Just leave it out. I’ll come get it.’ He didn’t make it. We’ll take care of him.”
The storms Thursday brought hail the size of golf balls, strong winds, heavy rain, and at least one report of a tornado. The storms included strong winds in Irving, along with heavy rain in Fort Worth. Parts of Tarrant County were under a tornado warning until 5 p.m.
The area by West 7th and Montgomery was flooded for a portion of the afternoon. Alyssa Felan frequently parks her car along West 7th and left work to find it surrounded by flood water.
“This was awful,” Felan said. “I don’t even know if it starts.”
She waited until the storm passed to leave work Thursday and decided to call a family member once she saw her car.
“Just…a bunch of flooding,” she said. I have never seen it flood this bad.”
As parts of North Texas clean up, people like Mullins remain grateful it was not much worse.
“Just glad to be alive,” he said.
Mullins said he expects repairs to take a few days. They plan to remain open but will move to other parts of the building if portions are deemed unsafe to work in.
