Tornadoes, storms hit Dallas suburbs; 11 people killed

Three deaths were reported in Collin County, said Lt. Chris Harvey, a spokesman for the sheriff’s office.

The affected areas could receive more than eight inches of snow, the agency said, with possible snowdrifts higher than six feet. Another 75 homes are being reported as “heavily damaged or completely destroyed”.

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. Twenty-three people were injured and 39 homes were “totally destroyed”, City Manager Brian Funderburk said Sunday.

The National Weather Service has confirmed an EF4 tornado hit Garland. On Sunday, the National Weather Service declared that this tornado has been preliminarily rated an EF-4 on the Enhanced Fujita Scale, with winds of 166 to 200 miles per hour.

In Rowlett, northeast of Dallas, the mayor has declared a state of disaster.

Among the dead was a seven-year-old boy killed when a storm picked up and tossed the vehicle he was travelling in, fire chief Kenny Holbrook told reporters in the town of Holly Springs.

DPS officials said they would perform a count tonight to determine how many people have taken shelter across Texas. That woman survived the tornado in a Rowlett neighborhood, but the entire roof of her two-story home was ripped off. There were also multiple injuries reported at an apartment building south of I-30, he said, but the injuries were not considered life-threatening. He encouraged residents to check on their neighbors to make sure they are OK. “At least three families in the Garland SDA Church lost their homes”. Their power was out, so the Lowes came to the school to charge their phones and eat.

“If you don’t need to be out, don’t be out looking around”. “I’m a Texas girl, and I never had one like this before”.

Search and rescue efforts continued Sunday in the damaged areas east and northeast of Dallas. Mayor Todd Gottel shared some photos of his walk through some of the hardest-hit neighborhoods.

“I’ve seen the damage”.

Base hunters recorded the insane tornado that swept through Texas. Prior to this week, only 10 people had been killed by tornadoes in all of 2015. Meteorologist Tom Bradshaw estimates about 7 to 9 actual tornadoes may have touched down across North Texas, though there won’t be an official count until later today. “Dangerous flooding will extend from north Texas to central IL”.

Evacuations were also underway in northern England where heavy rain over the Christmas period caused severe flooding.

Temperatures were expected to plunge to the 30s overnight, with Massachusetts, Rhode Island and CT projected to see a wintry mix of snow, sleet and freezing rain late Monday.

Scientists have linked the extreme weather to warming El Nino currents in Pacific waters stretching from coastal Ecuador and Peru northward to encompass the U.S. West Coast.

The National Weather Service was issuing more warnings Sunday afternoon for areas near the Texas-Louisiana border.