Tornado tears through Burnet County, damaging homes and injuring driver
A tornado hit northeast Burnet County on Thursday, May 1, damaging five homes and injuring one driver. Crews are clearing debris near the area. Photo courtesy of Damon Beierle
Burnet County officials are assessing the extent of the damage caused by a tornado that tore through the northeast portion of the county May 1. Five structures were damaged or destroyed and at least one person was injured.
At 4:13 p.m. Thursday, the National Weather Service in Austin issued a tornado warning as a severe storm moved south into Burnet County from Lampasas and Coryell counties. The tornado touched down around 4:20 p.m. near CR 223, a winding road near the small, unincorporated community of Oakalla.
Burnet County Office of Emergency Management Coordinator Derek Marchio confirmed Friday morning that five houses were damaged in the storm. Precinct 2 Commissioner Damon Beierle said drone flights were currently surveying damage.
“The houses that were damaged were not occupied,” Beierle told KBEY 103.9 FM Radio Picayune’s Mac McClennahan. “So we’re gonna be helping those folks out and, you know, trying to get people to their houses. … That’s our priority.
A UPS truck driver on CR 223 suffered minor injuries during the storm when his vehicle was tipped over by strong wind gusts near the Lampasas County line. Hamilton EMS responded and transported the driver to a hospital.
“We’re going to be there for them,” Beierle said about residents in the affected area. “That’s our priority.”
Resident Gary Madsen said cleanup efforts were underway on his property, which took a direct hit from the tornado.
“We’ve gotten lots of folks helping us work right now,” Madsen told DailyTrib.com. “The back of our house is the only thing standing, and our belongings are scattered all over my pasture. … We’re just very busy trying to get everything cleared up and get our furniture out of there before the next storm hits.”
Madsen is waiting on direction from his insurance provider before making any decisions about the home’s future.
“We’re waiting on the insurance company to tell us what we can and can’t do,” he said. “But we’ll see down the road, in a few days, hopefully they can tell me whether there’s anything salvageable for the house.”
Beierle, who visited the area Thursday evening, said first responders and road crews worked late into the night to clear CR 223.
“We were out there until almost midnight getting the road passable,” Beierle said during the KBEY interview. “(Pedernales Electric Cooperative) was out there. It was a huge cooperative effort. … Oakalla Briggs Fire Department, sheriff’s department, all working together.”
Beierle also commented on a video he was shown by a resident showing two separate tornadoes passing through the area.
“I’d never seen anything like that in my life,” he said. “The trees being topped and just the amount of damage. … It’s a little unbelievable unless you see it.”
County officials are urging residents to remain aware as another round of severe weather is expected Friday afternoon. The National Weather Service reported in a Facebook post that large hail, damaging winds, heavy downpours of 1-3 inches, and isolated tornadoes are possible with the incoming storms.
Residents who experienced storm damage are asked to report it using the Texas Division of Emergency Management’s iSTAT tool at https://damage.tdem.texas.gov.
The public is also encouraged to sign up for emergency alerts through Warn Central Texas at warncentraltexas.org.
With damage assessments ongoing, DailyTrib.com will post updates when new information is released.