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Thursday's Texas Panhandle tornado that killed 3, including an 11-year-old, designated EF-3
Officials on Saturday upgraded the intensity of the tornado to EF-3, saying it packed winds of up to 140 mph.
Associated Press, Sammy Turner, KHOU 11 Staff, WFAA Staff
3:22 PM CDT June 17, 2023
3:22 PM CDT June 17, 2023
PERRYTON, Texas — Two women and an 11-year-old boy were killed Thursday when an EF-3 tornado devastated the Texas Panhandle town of Perryton.
Dozens others were injured in the storms and widespread damage was reported.
Perryton Fire Chief Paul Dutcher said one of the people who died was in a mobile home park that took a “direct hit” from a tornado. He said at least 30 trailers were damaged or destroyed.
Officials on Saturday upgraded the intensity of the tornado to EF-3, saying it packed winds of up to 140 mph.
First responders from surrounding towns and cities and from neighboring Oklahoma descended on the town, which is home to more than 8,000 people and about 115 miles (185 kilometers) northeast of Amarillo, just south of the Oklahoma line.
Mobile homes were ripped apart and pickup trucks with shattered windshields were slammed against mounds of rubble in residential areas.
On Saturday, Gov. Greg Abbott visited Perryton a day after he issued a disaster declaration for communities impacted by Thursday’s storms.
“I want to thank the local hospital. They treated 160 people,” Abbott said. “Nonstop heroic efforts by healthcare providers. Healing people and letting them go as quickly as possible so they could address the health needs of others.”
Perryton’s downtown area was also walloped. About two blocks of businesses were heavily damaged, including an office supply store, a floral shop and a hair salon along the town’s Main Street. A minivan was shoved into the outer wall of a theater.
With a few hours of daylight left after the storm passed through, broken windows were being boarded up.
“One thing that you see epitomized when you come into a room like this and sit with the local officials and responders can be summed up in one word, and that is resiliency,” the governor said on Saturday. “There is a remarkable strength and resiliency in this community.”