Tornadoes tear through Texas and Oklahoma leaving trail of destruction

More than a dozen people were injured on Monday when tornadoes tore through parts of Texas and Oklahoma, damaging a school, homes and businesses.

The same storm system was poised to move into Louisiana and Mississippi on Tuesday, carrying the risk of dangerous tornadoes and powerful winds.

In Texas on Monday, several tornadoes were reported along the Interstate-35 corridor, particularly in the Austin suburbs of Round Rock and Elgin and close to Dallas-Fort Worth. Unconfirmed tornadoes caused damage in the Lake Texoma area of northern Texas and southern Oklahoma.

The tornadoes came on a wild weather day in Texas wildfires burned in the west and a blizzard warning was issued for the Texas Panhandle, where up to 9in of snow fell.

More than a dozen injuries have been reported in Texas, including 10 in Grayson county, about 60 miles north of Dallas, the county emergency management office said. A 73-year-old woman who lived in Sherwood Shores died in the storm but officials did not immediately provide details.

By Tuesday the system was bringing heavy rain and thunderstorms to parts of Texas and Arkansas, said Jeremy Grams, lead forecaster with the Storm Prediction Center, in Norman, Oklahoma. A tornado watch was in effect for parts of Texas and Louisiana.

In Louisiana, high water early on Tuesday posed a threat to motorists on several roads, including a stretch of I-20 and several state highways after rains overnight, authorities said.

Deputies in Caddo parish, which includes Shreveport, rescued three drivers from high waters during the night, the sheriff ’s office said.

The storms were expected to intensify throughout the day as temperatures rose, increasing the threat of tornadoes, hail and strong winds. Much of Louisiana and Mississippi were at a moderate risk of severe weather, the second-highest risk category issued by the Storm Prediction Center. Baton Rouge, Louisiana, and Jackson, Mississippi, were among the cities at risk.

“We’re still a bit uncertain on just how intense and how longer-lived some of these tornadoes may be, so we’re going to be just below that threshold of the greatest risk,” Grams said.

Forecasters were predicting intense tornadoes and widespread damaging winds, some hurricane-force with speeds of 75mph or greater, in much of

Mississippi, southern and eastern Louisiana, and western Alabama.

Louisiana federal and state authorities reminded thousands of hurricane survivors living in government-provided mobile homes and recreational vehicle trailers to have an evacuation plan because the structures might not withstand the expected weather. More than 8,000 households live in such temporary quarters, officials said.

The storm left misery in its wake in Texas. Damage to homes and businesses occurred in at least a dozen counties, according to reports submitted to the Storm Prediction Center.

Officials reported damage throughout Jacksboro, about 60 miles northwest of Fort Worth. There, photographs posted on social media showed a storm ripped the wall and roof from parts of Jacksboro high school, especially its gym.

“It brought tears to my eyes,” school principal Starla Sanders told WFAA-TV in Dallas.

Thirty miles north-east of Jacksboro, near Bowie, the damage was widespread. Four people suffered minor injuries.

The Texas governor, Greg Abbott, said at a news conference on Monday night in suburban Austin he was thankful that there were no reports of fatalities.

“We know there are many people whose lives have been completely disrupted and people who’ve lost their homes,” Abbott said. “At the very same time ... it may be a miracle also, because even though there’s been some devastating physical damage, to my knowledge, as of right now, there is no report of loss of life, which is just stunning.”