Cleanup continues after EF-1 tornado confirmation in North Texas

A big cleanup is underway after three confirmed tornadoes hit Irving and Corsicana on Thursday.

Carolyn McNally Shepherd of Irving has lived in her home on Lucille Street for about 20 years. One of her favorite parts of the house was the abundance of trees in the yard.

“And red jays and bluebirds. I see them every morning here in the trees,” McNally Shepherd said. I don’t think I’ll see them again.

Several trees outside her home were downed on Thursday as severe storms swept across North Texas. On Friday, National Weather Service damage crews confirmed tornadoes, first confirming an EF-1 tornado with winds up to 105-110 mph in Irving. A second tornado was confirmed in Navarro County near the north side of Corsicanawhere the wind speed was estimated at 95 mph.

Friday night, the NWS confirmed that a third tornado, also an EF-1, hit the north side of Irving, just north of Texas 183. Winds were estimated to have peaked at 105 mph.

“We just panicked a little. I know I panicked, simply because I’ve never seen this before, for as long as I’ve lived. I don’t understand how these big beautiful trees could fall like that,” McNally Shepherd said.

The storm caused branches to break and fall on her son’s car, causing some damage. Her house was spared.

Nearby, her neighbors spent Friday cleaning. Alex Rivera visits his relatives whose roof was damaged after a tree fell on part of it.

“I thought, ‘Wow,'” Rivera said. “He was shaking a little, but I thought it looked like a car. When I saw it on the roof of the house, I was surprised that nothing serious had happened.”

Next door, Virginia Romano and her family spent Friday clearing trees from their yard.

“It was a completely different experience. It’s never really happened here,” Romano said, referring to Thursday’s storm.

In Garland, straight-line winds reaching 75 mph on Thursday caused damage to fences, trees and roofs in one area.