Several twisters caused property damage and personal injuries in various states on Friday. Tornado warnings remained in effect as of late Friday for parts of Texas, Arkansas, Oklahoma and Missouri. An early report from the National Weather Service’s Storm Prediction Center found nine tornadoes formed in Texas, four in Arkansas and one in Oklahoma, CNN reported. The person who died was in southwestern Oklahoma, where the town of Idabel was hit by a possible tornado, local emergency manager Cody McDaniel told CNN. McDaniel later added that dozens of people were missing in the area. A search and rescue effort for the missing later accounted for all those who had gone missing. However, more than 60 homes were destroyed and 100 homes were “affected” by the extreme weather, officials told local media. “There was total devastation on the south and east side of Idabel,” local emergency management coordinator Steven Carter told the Texarkana Gazette. Officials are also working to survey the damage in the area, which has been rife with reports of downed power lines and other widespread damage. Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt toured Idabel Saturday morning, according to the Associated Press. He declared states of emergency — which unlock access to emergency federal funding — for Bryan, McCurtain, Choctaw and LeFlore counties, according to that office. Injuries were also reported in north Texas, where at least two people were taken to area hospitals in “critical but stable” condition, a statement posted on social media by the Lamar County Sheriff’s Office confirmed, NBC News reported. Lamar County resident Craig Holcomb told NBC Dallas-Fort Worth on Friday about what he saw during the tornado: “I joke with people, always talking about the train noise, but it sounded just like this… The only thing all you could hear was a loud whistle and I saw debris flying everywhere.” Holcomb and his wife were able to take refuge in their bathtub. At least 50 homes were also damaged or destroyed in Texas, NBC News reported, with officials promising assistance from local and state agencies to help clear the damage. The disaster followed a series of storms that dumped rain and scattered hail in the Dallas-Fort Worth area before continuing to push eastward. While spring usually marks the peak of severe weather season for the region, including Texas, Arkansas and Oklahoma, tornadoes occasionally develop in October, November, December and even January, said weather service meteorologist Bianca Garcia in Fort Worth. Garcia said such storms are “not very common.” “But it’s happening all over our region,” he added.
