The skies darkened.
The wind picked up. Alerts sounded on cell phones. Throughout Dickens County and surrounding areas, those tuned in to Lubbock weather coverage the evening of April 25 heard the words “possible tornado.” Storm spotters raced for Dickens and McAdoo.
Though no official report from Dickens County Emergency Management has confirmed a tornado on the grounds, Lubbock’s KLBK and Avalanche-Journal both noted that a tornado was reported in Dickens Tuesday night, packing softball-sized hail and 90 mph winds.
Part of a line of severe thunderstorms starting to the northwest, around Dimmitt, the worst of the storm hit McAdoo and Dickens just before 10 p.m. Emergency sirens went off in Spur, which ended up getting only a dramatic show of thunder and lighting; those in Dickens, especially west of the city, said they we unable to hear any siren over the battering of hail.
Dickens County Emergency Management Coordinator Matt Hindman was in constant communication with county officials and officials with the Texas Division of Emergency Management(TDEM) within minutes of the damage being reported Tuesday night, according to County Judge Kevin Brendle. Hindman went to McAdoo and Dickens late Tuesday night to begin the damage and coordinating with first responders for next steps.
Brendle and Hindman were among those joining McAdoo volunteer fire chief Mack Gardner in McAdoo Wednesdau morning, well before thick fog had lifted.
Hindman also noted that a team of up to three from TDEM was in Dickens County by 8 a.m. on Wednesday. TDEM team members attended the major damage sites, corresponded with residents impacted, assessed damage at homes, and made efforts to locate any storm victims that were uninsured to offer assistance. Many insurance adjusters were in the area starting early Wednesday as well. Hindman said there is no estimate of a total dollar figure yet.
To date, no harm to people or livestock has been reported, either, said Hindman. No persons or families have been displaced due the storm.
Gardner, whose abandoned family store in McAdoo was flattened by the storm, welcomed help Tuesday night from the Crosbyton Volunteer Fire Department, who were nearby, in checking house to house to ensure residents’ safety. Units from Spur’s volunteer fire department responded as well.
McAdoo hit hard, coop roof destroyed.
The unincorporated community of McAdoo, at the junction of Farm roads 193 and 264, sustained the worst damage, losing a large portion of the roof on the McAdoo location of Crosby County Fuels.
One resident’s home ended up with a hole in the roof the size of a 55-gallon drum, said Gardner. Twisted sheets of roofing metal were scattered widely across the community from numerous barns, homes, fences and outbuildings.
The coop—McAdoo’s only remaining business in operation—served as the heartbeat of the community explained Gardner. Locals gathered there for coffee daily. The storm ripped off the building’s roof and sent sodden drywall to the floor. Steven Riley, owner of Crosby County Fuels, came out Tuesday with his wife.
“In general as far as homes, we lucked out,” said Garnder. “They didn’t issue a warning until it was on top of it. That thing came right over the top of me. The wind was blowing 35-40 miles and hour, then it just went completely silent.” Gardner knew something was amiss, and gathered up his family to head for the cellar—but the wind hit again suddenly and they couldn’t get out of the front door. He said he saw the storm touch down in a nearby field and track straight into town.
Power lines were down everywhere, but crews quickly removed any that were hot.
The clock in the coop, said Garnder, stopped at twelve minutes till ten.
Damage in Dickens.
The City of Dickens saw more damage from baseball- to softball-sized hail, said Hindman. Many businesses and homes lost windows. Backyard playscapes, porch awnings, light duty carports and external lighting received extensive damage. Roofs on homes and businesses of all styles and material resulted in damage ranging from minor repair to total losses. Some wind damage was reported to vulnerable sheeting.
Vehicle damage was extensive throughout the northern part of Dickens County, including to vehicles passing through on the highway. Auto glass installers returned to the Dickens County courthouse annex Thursday morning to finish replacing windshields on government vehicles.
Elsewhere in the county, no damage has been reported, Hindman said.
At the 125,000-squarefoot Bitcoin mining facility in Glenn, near Afton, no damage was reported, though owners Galaxy Digital had not responded to inquiries by press time this week.
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