Woman narrowly dodged EF2 tornado with split-second decision
By
Chaffin Mitchell, AccuWeather staff writer
Updated Mar 30, 2021 1:59 PM EST
A deadly twister damaged homes and businesses near Carthage, Texas, on March 27. One woman says she survived by hiding in an interior hallway of her home.
Residents across the South were barely able to catch their breath between severe weather outbreaks during the middle and latter part of March. Over the weekend, another significant outburst of severe weather erupted across the storm-pummeled region.
As the tornado threat began to ramp up early Saturday evening, tornado watches were posted from eastern Texas to northern Alabama and the western half of Tennessee. For several hours Saturday night, more than 7.3 million people were under tornado watches.
Mobile home tornado damage in Panola County, Texas. (AccuWeather / Bill Wadell)
Tornadoes along the Texas and Louisiana border led to the death of one resident and immense destruction. AccuWeather Reporter Bill Wadell traveled to Panola County, Texas, Monday where cleanup efforts were underway.
“I feel lucky that I’m here,” tornado survivor Bonnie Clakley told Wadell. Clakley recounted her harrowing story of riding out the tornado, explaining that she only had about three seconds to take cover from the violent storm.
If her friend hadn’t called to warn Clakley that a tornado was heading right toward her home in Carthage, Texas, she might have stayed outside since the weather didn’t seem severe enough to spawn a tornado to her.
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Clakley said she didn’t think to go inside beforehand because it was just a bit cloudy. Minutes later Clakley was seeking shelter by putting her back against the wall as the storm ripped off parts of her roof.
“I was praying, "Lord, Lord, Lord," and where I was standing, nothing was touched. I was blessed,” Clakley said.
Wadell said the split-second decision to hide in an interior hallway was likely a life-saving move. Clakley thought about hiding in a bathtub, but the roof on that side of the house was blown away.
Preliminary storm surveys by the National Weather Service office in Shreveport, Louisiana, found EF2 tornado damage with winds estimated at up to 125 mph in the area. The twister tore off roofs, ripped homes off of foundations and tossed an antique vehicle 50 yards away from where it was parked south of Carthage, Texas. The whirlwind's fierce winds wrapped sheet metal around 10 trees in one area as it tore a path of destruction and toppled hundreds of trees along a nearly 17-mile path.
One pine tree crashed into a home and killed 46-year-old Cynthia Laird in Deadwood, Texas, according to KLTV. Her husband, Edward Laird, told KLTV that they were holding hands and praying as they hunkered down during the tornado. He suffered a head injury when the tree hit, and when he was finally able to call out, his wife didn't respond.
“I heard what sounded like people throwing baseballs,” Edward Laird said. “And when I opened the door, I could see it [the tornado]. And by the time I shut the door, I heard that tree out yonder fall. And I said, 'Grab my hands, let’s pray.' And when I did, that tree came down.”
Debris from a tornado in Panola County, Texas. (AccuWeather / Bill Wadell)
Clakley also recalled the sounds as the tornado ravaged part of her home.
“I could hear the glass blowing out of the windows,” Clakley said. “I had a beauty shop. It’s completely gone. My chairs are out in the pasture.”
Keepsakes of Clakley's were scattered across a field, trees were uprooted and parts of her house turned to debris. The tornado leveled one of Clakley's neighbor’s mobile homes.
Clakley says she’s grateful she made it through the storm and she’ll be keeping a closer eye on weather conditions in the future.
“It never happens right through here, and I don’t pay any attention," Clakley said, adding, "I will from now on."
Over the weekend, severe weather reports didn't stop in Texas.
By early Sunday morning, the National Weather Service Storm Prediction Center (SPC) listed a total of 26 tornado reports from northeastern Texas, through Arkansas and into western Tennessee. One tornado was also reported in southern Illinois.
Damage to homes and other structures, as well as downed trees and power lines were reported as a result of the tornadoes Saturday.
More than 100 reports of large hail -- some stones the size of baseballs and larger, up to 3 inches in diameter -- were also spawned by the strongest storms from eastern Texas to North Carolina, and more than 115 damaging wind reports were filed by the SPC.
Additional Reporting by Bill Wadell.
Keep checking back on AccuWeather.com and stay tuned to the AccuWeather Network on DirecTV, Frontier, Spectrum, FuboTV, Philo, and Verizon Fios.
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News / Severe Weather
Woman narrowly dodged EF2 tornado with split-second decision
By Chaffin Mitchell, AccuWeather staff writer
Updated Mar 30, 2021 1:59 PM EST
A deadly twister damaged homes and businesses near Carthage, Texas, on March 27. One woman says she survived by hiding in an interior hallway of her home.
Residents across the South were barely able to catch their breath between severe weather outbreaks during the middle and latter part of March. Over the weekend, another significant outburst of severe weather erupted across the storm-pummeled region.
As the tornado threat began to ramp up early Saturday evening, tornado watches were posted from eastern Texas to northern Alabama and the western half of Tennessee. For several hours Saturday night, more than 7.3 million people were under tornado watches.
Mobile home tornado damage in Panola County, Texas. (AccuWeather / Bill Wadell)
Tornadoes along the Texas and Louisiana border led to the death of one resident and immense destruction. AccuWeather Reporter Bill Wadell traveled to Panola County, Texas, Monday where cleanup efforts were underway.
“I feel lucky that I’m here,” tornado survivor Bonnie Clakley told Wadell. Clakley recounted her harrowing story of riding out the tornado, explaining that she only had about three seconds to take cover from the violent storm.
If her friend hadn’t called to warn Clakley that a tornado was heading right toward her home in Carthage, Texas, she might have stayed outside since the weather didn’t seem severe enough to spawn a tornado to her.
CLICK HERE FOR THE FREE ACCUWEATHER APP
Clakley said she didn’t think to go inside beforehand because it was just a bit cloudy. Minutes later Clakley was seeking shelter by putting her back against the wall as the storm ripped off parts of her roof.
“I was praying, "Lord, Lord, Lord," and where I was standing, nothing was touched. I was blessed,” Clakley said.
Wadell said the split-second decision to hide in an interior hallway was likely a life-saving move. Clakley thought about hiding in a bathtub, but the roof on that side of the house was blown away.
Preliminary storm surveys by the National Weather Service office in Shreveport, Louisiana, found EF2 tornado damage with winds estimated at up to 125 mph in the area. The twister tore off roofs, ripped homes off of foundations and tossed an antique vehicle 50 yards away from where it was parked south of Carthage, Texas. The whirlwind's fierce winds wrapped sheet metal around 10 trees in one area as it tore a path of destruction and toppled hundreds of trees along a nearly 17-mile path.
One pine tree crashed into a home and killed 46-year-old Cynthia Laird in Deadwood, Texas, according to KLTV. Her husband, Edward Laird, told KLTV that they were holding hands and praying as they hunkered down during the tornado. He suffered a head injury when the tree hit, and when he was finally able to call out, his wife didn't respond.
“I heard what sounded like people throwing baseballs,” Edward Laird said. “And when I opened the door, I could see it [the tornado]. And by the time I shut the door, I heard that tree out yonder fall. And I said, 'Grab my hands, let’s pray.' And when I did, that tree came down.”
Debris from a tornado in Panola County, Texas. (AccuWeather / Bill Wadell)
Clakley also recalled the sounds as the tornado ravaged part of her home.
“I could hear the glass blowing out of the windows,” Clakley said. “I had a beauty shop. It’s completely gone. My chairs are out in the pasture.”
Keepsakes of Clakley's were scattered across a field, trees were uprooted and parts of her house turned to debris. The tornado leveled one of Clakley's neighbor’s mobile homes.
Clakley says she’s grateful she made it through the storm and she’ll be keeping a closer eye on weather conditions in the future.
“It never happens right through here, and I don’t pay any attention," Clakley said, adding, "I will from now on."
Related:
Over the weekend, severe weather reports didn't stop in Texas.
By early Sunday morning, the National Weather Service Storm Prediction Center (SPC) listed a total of 26 tornado reports from northeastern Texas, through Arkansas and into western Tennessee. One tornado was also reported in southern Illinois.
Damage to homes and other structures, as well as downed trees and power lines were reported as a result of the tornadoes Saturday.
More than 100 reports of large hail -- some stones the size of baseballs and larger, up to 3 inches in diameter -- were also spawned by the strongest storms from eastern Texas to North Carolina, and more than 115 damaging wind reports were filed by the SPC.
Additional Reporting by Bill Wadell.
Keep checking back on AccuWeather.com and stay tuned to the AccuWeather Network on DirecTV, Frontier, Spectrum, FuboTV, Philo, and Verizon Fios.
Report a Typo