Severe storms left serious damage after Tuesday night in Arlington. NBC 5 meteorologist Grant Johnston believes the damage could have been caused by an EF1 tornado packing slices at speeds of up to 110 mph. The National Meteorological Service is conducting a survey this morning to confirm and determine the strength of the storm.
One of the most severely affected areas appears to be south of West Pioneer Parkway, near South Cooper Street.
The most severely affected were the Mirage and Waterdance Circle housing estates along Pioneer Parkway.
“And suddenly I just heard this big slice and the windows were shaking and everything was just crazy,” Minerva Rios said. “My son came upstairs and helped me get down because I can’t walk. So it was just awful.”
Firefighters turned the normally occupied Pioneer Parkway into a temporary headquarters.
At the Waterdance Circle homes, the roof was blown up by people.
“I don’t know if it happened so fast. It sounded like the windows were slamming,” said Wilma Morris, who was sleeping on the couch when the storm attacked.
When the storm arrived, he was home with his 17-year-old grandson.
“The ceiling suddenly started to rise,” Morris said. “He laid it on top. He saved my life. The plywood, all the stuff was on us. But he laid it on top. It saved my life.”
The roof of the driveway of the Burger Box restaurant along South Cooper collapsed on top of two cars waiting in line. There were two people in those cars when the roof crashed to the top of their cars. Firefighters helped free them. Fortunately, no one was seriously injured.
Debris could be seen in the area.
A Safelite AutoGlass store near the Burger Box was also damaged. A video of the scene showed the store’s garage doors blowing out and there was glass all over the parking lot.
The Arlington Fire Department has reported gas leaks and the expiration of power lines from several sites. Atmos and Oncor were on site to make repairs.
The National Meteorological Service will assess the damage to assess what caused the damage and confirm if there was a tornado.
A total of three people were transported to local hospitals with minor injuries, the fire department said. Residents are just grateful it wasn’t worse.
“Everything else. So everything else can be replaced. Your life can’t,” Rios said. – And I’m just blessed to be fine.
