As the tornado developed, Mid-Way Regional Airport clocked a wind gust of 105 mph between 5:55 and 6:15 p.m. The airport is halfway between Midlothian and Waxahachie, 23 miles south of Dallas. “It looks like the tornado did severe damage”, Thompson said.
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The death toll in the Southeast climbed to 18 on Saturday after less than a week of tumultuous weather – unusual warmth, tornadoes and torrential downpours – sparked flooding and caused damage that wreaked havoc during the Christmas holiday.
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A tornado warning was issued for Dallas, Plano and Garland until 7:30 p.m. local time.
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Six people were killed in Tennessee, including three who were found in a vehicle submerged in a creek, according to the Columbia Police Department.
At least 11 people died and dozens more were injured, adding to tornado-related deaths earlier in the week in the Southeast.
In some neighborhoods in Garland, the storms ripped facades off houses, leaving gaping holes. Ranager Tyler and his son waded into flood water Christmas night and used rope to pull an 11-year-old boy out after his family’s auto was swept away near Pinson, about 15 miles northeast of Birmingham.
A Garland police spokesman said the deaths there are believed to have occurred when a tornado struck vehicles in the area of I-30 and Bush Turnpike.
The twisters hit a part of the state that’s no stranger to damaging tornadoes, but some residents were stunned by the scope of devastation left behind. “Then we went across the hall to make sure everyone was OK”. On one side of a street, windows were blown out, on the other side of the street, the homes were destroyed.
Afterward, they left their house and sought shelter elsewhere.
Lafayette Griffin and his family hid under a mattress and prayed as the tornado hit.
National Weather Service Meteorologist Anthony Bain in Fort Worth said several tornadoes touched down in the Dallas area, although the full extent of damage would not be known until daylight Sunday.
The weather service said the tornado in the suburb of Garland has been rated an EF-4. It was unclear if it was the same tornado.
Mississippi Governor Phil Bryant and Georgia counterpart Nathan Deal also declared states of emergency in counties affected by the weather.
Parts of Interstate 40 west of Amarillo, Texas, and into Santa Rosa, New Mexico, were shut Sunday.
“By Sunday morning, the snow, sleet and freezing rain will expand northeast across the southern Plains”, the National Weather Service said.
Albuquerque, New Mexico, received about 6 inches of snow and saw almost 200 weather-related accidents Saturday.
Five tornados were reported in the Dallas area Saturday, causing widespread damage to homes and buildings.
In addition to snow, icy conditions and strong winds are expected from central Oklahoma up into Kansas, making the roads unsafe for driving. According to the update, there are at least 8,000 power outages around the state, with the most being in Lawton, about 90 miles southwest of Oklahoma City.
Two deaths attributable to weather were reported Saturday in MS: two people who have been missing since Wednesday, bringing that state’s death toll to 10.
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Four people are confirmed killed in vehicle accidents near the intersection of two major highways in Garland, east of Dallas.
