Storms bring golf ball-sized hail, power outages, flash flood warnings in North Texas
Nearly 25,000 customers in North Texas were still without power Thursday morning after severe thunderstorms with strong winds and large hail swept through the region overnight.
Oncor officials said on their website that they are assessing damages and working to restore power to affected areas. More than 8,000 Tarrant County residents were without power as of 7:45 a.m.
Pingpong ball- to golf ball-sized hail, strong winds and heavy rain pounded North Texas Wednesday evening, prompting flash flood warnings.
According to the National Weather Service Fort Worth, hail stones as big as 1.5 inches were first reported just west of Poolville, which is about an hour west of Fort Worth, and that storm moved into Tarrant County.
Of the 53,642 customers in North Texas without power around 11 p.m., more than 26,000 people in Tarrant County were experiencing outages, Oncor reported
Electric outages Dallas - Fort Worth vicinity
Here is Oncor's power outages map. Outage information is sent from Oncor to the outage map every 10 minutes. Source: stormcenter.oncor.com
The severe thunderstorms moved across North Texas and led to a tornado warning in Ellis and Dallas County and flash flood warnings across the region.
National Weather Service Fort Worth spokesperson Patricia Sanchez told the Star-Telegram Thursday morning that they received reports of golf ball-sized hail of 1.75 inches between Weatherford and Springtown in Parker County and flooding in Dallas near Love Field. Trees and tree limbs are down throughout the region.
Sanchez also said there was significant roof damage at a shopping center in the 8300 block of Camp Bowie West in west Fort Worth.
Danie Huffman, the spokesperson for Parker County, said there was a lot of hail in the area. Numerous trees are down too, she said, including a large branch that fell on the courthouse square. County and city crews will be working to clean up the debris Thursday.
NWS Fort Worth reported between 1 and 1.5 inches of rain had fallen as of about 10 p.m. and additional rainfall amounts of 1 to 2 inches were possible.
The flash food warning was issued for several cities in Tarrant County, including Fort Worth, Arlington, Grand Prairie, Mansfield, Euless, Bedford, Grapevine, Haltom City, Keller, Hurst, Burleson, Southlake, Watauga, Colleyville, Benbrook, Saginaw, White Settlement, Crowley, Forest Hill and Azle.
About five high-water emergency calls were reported to Fort Worth police from 9:25 to 9:45 p.m. Wednesday, where callers reported their vehicles being stuck in water or stranded in flooding, according to police call logs.
The flash flood warning was in effect until 12:30 a.m. Thursday.
Weather watches and warnings
A live data feed from the National Weather Service containing official weather warnings, watches, and advisory statements. Tap warning areas for more details. Sources: NOAA, National Weather Service, NOAA GeoPlatform and Esri.
The National Weather Service reported wind gusts over 70 mph in western Tarrant County and large trees down in White Settlement.
White Settlement Police Chief Chris Cook told the Star-Telegram that high winds tore up several awnings at an RV park and downed power poles and about two dozen trees in the city. No injuries were reported, and most of the damage was along North Cherry Lane.
The White Settlement police station also lost power for time Wednesday night, Cook said, but 911 calls were not affected.
Several reports of wind damage impacting poles and street signs. No major damages to structures or injuries reported. The police department is on generator power and back up radio systems. 9-1-1 service is operational. pic.twitter.com/ujutynTRO9
— Christopher Cook (@cooktx) October 5, 2023
Additional wind damages across town. 400 block of N. Cherry RV park out of power with Oncor on scene. Trees also reported down across city. pic.twitter.com/WmwdWuX5nW
— Christopher Cook (@cooktx) October 5, 2023
Additional storm damage between White Settlement Road and Clifford along Cherry Lane. Oncor trying to fix power poles that are down in the area. pic.twitter.com/ucg3YlzSwG
— Christopher Cook (@cooktx) October 5, 2023
Lockheed Blvd. and Cherry Lane intersection lights are not working. @WSPDTX has erected temporary stop signs until power is restored. pic.twitter.com/SXRUX91eGV
— Christopher Cook (@cooktx) October 5, 2023
Two people, including an 8-year-old, were injured when the severe weather hit Toyota Stadium during an FC Dallas game, the Frisco Fire Department told KTVT-TV. The child was taken to a hospital with injuries that authorities said were not life threatening.
A severe thunderstorm warning was in effect for Tarrant, Dallas, Ellis, and Johnson counties until 10:15 p.m Wednesday as the storm system moved southeast.
A tornado warning was issued by the NWS Fort Worth at 10:01 p.m. Wednesday for Ellis and south central Dallas counties. The NWS reported a storm that radar indicated was producing a tornado near Midlothian, moving east at 25 mph.
A severe thunderstorm watch that includes Tarrant, Dallas and surrounding counties was in effect until 2 a.m. Thursday.
Storm Reports
This map contains continuously updated storm reports and damage from the National Weather Service for the past 48 hours. Reports include tornado, wind storm and hail storm reports. The map also includes tornado reports for the past week and recent rainfall accumulations. Sources: National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Esri.
