Incredible videos capture tornado forming along I-10 in Orange, Texas
A number of videos from the time power tornadoes tore through Southeast Texas on Wednesday, October 27, went viral on Twitter. After the National Weather Service issued tornado watches for the entire area, thousands of people ended up without power and a number of homes were damaged.
A tornado watch was put into effect for places like Jasper, Newton, Jefferson, Orange, Hardin, Tyler, Chambers, and Liberty counties. According to reports, the worst of the activity moved out of the area before 1 pm on Wednesday. Some of these places still have severe thunderstorm watches and warnings in effect. Southwest Louisiana has tornado watches in place. A squall line of thunderstorms was forecasted for Wednesday and the severe weather was a result of that.
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There were no fatalities due to the tornadoes. There were, however, reports of at least one person getting injured. Several residents of Orange County recorded videos of the scary tornadoes and many of them went viral as soon as they were uploaded on Twitter. Some of the other places that were previously hit with tornadoes in the past include Illinois, California, Mississippi, and South Carolina.
Here are a few of them:
Casual ATV falling out of the sky from the earlier tornado near Orange, TX pic.twitter.com/FFovICxaPY
— JumpWx (@JumpWx) October 27, 2021
Here's amazing video of a tornado in Orange near Interstate 10 and Highway 62 shot just before 9:30 a.m. Wednesday morning. https://t.co/Hp5MQaEiyS pic.twitter.com/VMRY9y4HNa
— 12NewsNow (@12NewsNow) October 27, 2021
INSANE - Damaging Tornado this morning in Orange, Texas near i-10 and 62!
— Live Storm Chasers (@LiveStormChaser) October 27, 2021
Permission: Jacob Howell@WeatherBug #TXwx #Texas #Tornado #Tornadoes pic.twitter.com/IPF5YnWumK
Here's amazing video of a tornado in Orange near Interstate 10 and Highway 62 shot just before 9:30 a.m. Wednesday morning. https://t.co/Hp5MQaEiyS pic.twitter.com/VMRY9y4HNa
— 12NewsNow (@12NewsNow) October 27, 2021
American Red Cross helping affected residents
National Weather Service confirmed the tornado that touched down in Orange County Wednesday morning was an F2 tornado with winds of 120 mph which emerged out of a cold front. Orange County residents affected by the severe weather were urged to report property damage using the Texas Department of Emergency Management survey.
Meanwhile, the American Red Cross has also set up resources to help Orange County residents who have been impacted by Wednesday's severe weather and tornado activity. The Red Cross Reception Center at the Cowboy Church is prepared to provide shelter to anyone in need of it. Red Cross volunteers will meet with those affected and help assess their sheltering needs, according to a news release.
Large Scale power outages in Texas and Louisiana
Orange County Judge John Gothia issued a Declaration of Disaster for Orange County, Tuesday, due to the tornado activity citing "extensive and widespread damage to public and private property." A spokesperson for the Orange County Sheriff's Office told 12News by phone that a tornado was "touching down right now in the Bessie Heights area of Orange County and multiple touchdowns reported by deputies." Also in Orange County, a passenger in a vehicle captured on video a tornado crossing Interstate 10.
A 12News employee in Orange County took a picture that showed a side-by-side tornado that had been thrown into the air and landed near his house. As of Wednesday, close to 10,000 families are without power in Orange County. More than 90,000 outages were reported statewide Wednesday morning. That number included about 17,000 in Harris County. Other counties included Brazoria, Calhoun, Austin, and Chambers. About 20,000 outages were reported in Louisiana Wednesday afternoon, nearly all of them in the Lake Charles area.