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At least three people are dead after a tornado struck Matador, Texas, on Wednesday, destroying buildings and flipping over semitrucks, according to officials and reports from the town.
At least three fatalities had been confirmed in connection with the tornado as of early Thursday morning, the Motley County Sheriff’s Office said. It could not share details on how many people were injured, if any.
“There was definitely a tornado” that struck Matador around 8 p.m. Wednesday, but its strength and rating won’t be known until surveys are done, said Matt Ziebell, the lead meteorologist for the National Weather Service in Lubbock.
He said that video and photos showed a tornado had occurred and that an off-duty weather service employee had been in the area.
“Definitely buildings and some vehicles were pretty severely damaged,” Ziebell said.
Brandon Moore, the senior water superintendent for Matador, said in a phone interview that at least 20 businesses and homes were destroyed and that officials would know more during daylight hours.
Video from NBC affiliate KCBD of Lubbock showed first responders at a flattened commercial building and a tractor-trailer that had been flipped on its side. The station reported it had seen three other toppled big rigs.
The Texas Transportation Department said a highway west of town, U.S. 62, was impassible because of damage from the tornado.
The fire department in Lubbock, around 70 miles to the southwest of Matador, said it was sending a heavy rescue team to assist the town.
“Our hearts and prayers are with the communities affected by this disaster,” the fire department tweeted.
The National Weather Service said in a warning that at 8:02 p.m. a confirmed tornado was over Matador, a community of around 600 about 66 miles northeast of Lubbock.
Tornado watches covered most of the Texas and Oklahoma panhandles Wednesday.
There were 11 reports of tornadoes in Nebraska, Colorado, Texas and Wyoming, according to the National Weather Service list of reports. Typically, damage surveys are done to determine whether tornadoes occurred.
Last week in Texas, three people were killed and dozens more injured when an EF3 tornado with peak winds of 140 mph struck Perryton, a city around 160 miles north of Matador.
That tornado, which had a path of more than 6 miles and a maximum width of 880 yards, hit the town on June 15, the weather service said.
Chantal Da Silva and Josh Cradduck contributed.
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