DALLAS -- The National Weather Service has confirmed that at
least five tornadoes damaged parts of east Texas.
Near Canton tornado, about 55 miles east of Dallas, at least one
twister left a 15-mile trail of destruction Wednesday afternoon.
The vortex stripped the roof and some of the walls from one home,
destroyed a rural church, toppled and uprooted trees and damaged
sheds, barns and outbuildings from northwest Canton to near Silver
Lake. A National Weather Service statement Thursday estimates the
tornado packed winds of 110-120 mph.
Van Zandt County Chief Deputy Sheriff John Turner said that 50
buildings suffered varying degrees of damage from the afternoon's
storm.
South of Canton, at least two tornadoes snaked across part of
eastern Henderson County. The first near the town of Larue, about
10 miles southeast of Athens and 80 miles southeast of Dallas,
collapsed some structure walls with winds estimated at up to 130
mph. Another tracked from near Poynor northeast toward Coffee City,
near Lake Palestine, dislodging a mobile home and damaging a
wood-framed home along a three-mile damage path. The weather
service estimated its winds at 90-100 mph.
Another weather service statement Thursday says at least two
twister tore across parts of Hopkins County in northeast Texas. One
tracked 1 1/2 miles from four miles southwest of Sulpher Springs to
the northeast. It destroyed one mobile home, injuring two
occupants, and damaging a metal shed. The weather service estimated
its speeds at near 80 mph.
Another twister touched down about a mile south of downtown
Sulphur Springs and tore northeast for 1 1/2 miles, damaging about 50
homes and impaling one with large tree branches. Its winds were
estimated at about 80-85 mph.
