DALLAS – Powerful thunderstorms rocked the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex on Tuesday, leaving more than 800,000 utility customers in the dark as severe weather barreled across the region and produced baseball-sized hail, hurricane-force wind gusts and significant damage in several communities.
Outdoor warning sirens wailed, and cellphones lit up with emergency notifications as the National Weather Service issued numerous Severe Thunderstorm Warnings and Tornado Warnings across North Texas.
Dallas County appeared to be especially hard hit with power outages, which officials warn could last for days.
In addition, Dallas County Judge Clay Lewis Jenkins said he instructed the district attorney’s office to prepare a disaster declaration because of the severe weather and power outages, which he signed on Tuesday afternoon.
This latest round of dangerous weather comes just days after a tornado killed at least seven people, including children, and injured more than 100 near the Texas community of Valley View.
That tornado is the deadliest to impact Texas since 2015.
Texas storms flip tractor-trailers, rip roofs from buildings
Significant damage has been reported across the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex and North Texas, while millions of people brace for another round of dangerous severe weather expected later Tuesday.
In Collin County, north of Dallas, first responders reported baseball-sized hail that fell near Lowry Crossing, with several other communities reporting pingpong-ball-sized and half-dollar-sized hail.
Damaging wind was also reported, with an 83-mph wind gust near Denton and a 75-mph wind gust at Dallas Love Field Airport.
The extreme weather is also responsible for snapping trees in several communities, such as Garland and Dallas.
Officials said a structure collapsed in the community of Lewisville, and several crashes were reported on Interstate 35 in the area.
A storm spotter also reported a roof had been ripped off a commercial building in Addison.
Emergency officials in Frisco said two neighboring homes in the Hollyhock Subdivision were struck by lightning just after 6 a.m. local time, with one of those homes being heavily damaged by fire.
Severe weather isn’t over in Texas
Millions of people in Texas and Louisiana have been included in Severe Thunderstorm Watches as thunderstorms make their way across the region.
Cities such as Houston, Port Arthur, Austin, Tyler and Lufkin in Texas are included in a Severe Thunderstorm Watch, as well as Lake Charles, Lafayette and Morgan City in Louisiana.
A Tornado Watch was also issued for portions of Texas on Tuesday and includes cities like Lubbock, Childress and Brownfield.
Houston, Lubbock, Pasadena, Beaumont and Midland in Texas have been placed in a Level 3 out of 5 risk for severe weather on NOAA’s Storm Prediction Center’s 5-point severe thunderstorm risk scale, while cities like San Antonio, Austin, Corpus Christi and Amarillo are in a Level 2 out of 5 risk.
That Level 2 threat extends to the east, including cities like Alexandria and Shreveport in Louisiana.
The main threats from the severe thunderstorms on Tuesday will be damaging wind gusts and large hail, which were already reported in parts of Texas on Tuesday morning.
In addition, there is a tornado threat across portions of Texas.
Computer forecast models show the threat of wet weather will continue through the week for Texas and expand to include the eastern Rockies and High Plains as energy from the Pacific Northwest helps to initiate showers and thunderstorms.
Due to the scattered nature of activity, flooding could occur where thunderstorms repeatedly move over the same area.
Over the next five days, widespread rainfall amounts of 2-3 inches are likely, with some communities approaching the 5-inch mark by the weekend.
Because of the event’s long duration, Flood Watches have not been posted, with National Weather Service offices likely to issue Flash Flood Warnings on an as-needed basis, as thunderstorms have the potential to pop up over a more than 1,400-mile stretch of the country.
During the daily rounds of precipitation, hail and damaging winds are expected to be the greatest concerns over the Plains, with an isolated tornado chance not being ruled out.
The continued threats of wet weather serve as a reminder that any thunderstorm is capable of producing life-threatening lightning, heavy rainfall and gusty winds.
