Eagle Pass Disaster
Unfortunately, 2007 continues rampaging through towns and cities. The latest strike against Eagle Pass is quite disheartening this morning. The latest details coming in are heartbreaking. Ten people are now confirmed to have lost their lives. Five of those that perished appear to have been a family in a mobile home that was demolished. Some links below to San Antonio and Austin TV stations reporting on this tragedy:
http://www.woai.com/
http://www.ksat.com/
http://www.mysanantonio.com/
http://www.kvue.com/
Search and rescue teams are still combing through the damage which appears to be very significant. I fear that many families were huddled in those mobile homes similar to the account I mentioned above. I saw one video clip this morning on the news prior to coming to work where a witness described a mobile home being destrroyed, but the family inside escaped without serious injury. Several mobile homes are reported to still be missing. It is likely that the number of lives lost will increase today. :-(
Two schools were destroyed and the town's sewage treatment plant is heavily damaged/destroyed as well. All reports coming in make it appear that this was a large, violent tornado that plowed through the town. There was a tornado warning 15 minutes prior, so there was time to take action. However, how many people received it? How many knew what to do? Were there storm shelters available? I'm afraid that the answer to these questions isn't a good one.
This being a border town, I'm sure many of the mobile homes were occupied by spanish-speaking residents...as is the whole town. It is likely that a good portion of residents do not speak or understand English. Many probably couldn't justify purchasing or using a NOAA Weather Radio even if they did. Were there even tornado sirens? After all, that part of the country isn't part of "tornado alley". I put that in quotes because although it technically isn't, that area along the Rio Grande from Del Rio to Laredo get quite a few large, violent supercells rolling off the Serranias del Burro mountains in Mexico and churn eastward. Some of the most impressive supercell signatures I've seen on radar have been down there. One even took out the Del Rio WSR-88D. This is a miniature "Eastern Colorado" and a miniature tornado alley.
So, there is the likelihood that community shelters for the mobile home park don't exist. The ugly truth is that residents there didn't have a place to go or time to get to a more sturdy shelter. Even then some of those structures were also demolished...including two schools. I'm afraid that this is a repeat of the 1987 Saragosa, Texas tornado where 30 people lost their lives.
A sad day indeed.
http://www.woai.com/
http://www.ksat.com/
http://www.mysanantonio.com/
http://www.kvue.com/
Search and rescue teams are still combing through the damage which appears to be very significant. I fear that many families were huddled in those mobile homes similar to the account I mentioned above. I saw one video clip this morning on the news prior to coming to work where a witness described a mobile home being destrroyed, but the family inside escaped without serious injury. Several mobile homes are reported to still be missing. It is likely that the number of lives lost will increase today. :-(
Two schools were destroyed and the town's sewage treatment plant is heavily damaged/destroyed as well. All reports coming in make it appear that this was a large, violent tornado that plowed through the town. There was a tornado warning 15 minutes prior, so there was time to take action. However, how many people received it? How many knew what to do? Were there storm shelters available? I'm afraid that the answer to these questions isn't a good one.
This being a border town, I'm sure many of the mobile homes were occupied by spanish-speaking residents...as is the whole town. It is likely that a good portion of residents do not speak or understand English. Many probably couldn't justify purchasing or using a NOAA Weather Radio even if they did. Were there even tornado sirens? After all, that part of the country isn't part of "tornado alley". I put that in quotes because although it technically isn't, that area along the Rio Grande from Del Rio to Laredo get quite a few large, violent supercells rolling off the Serranias del Burro mountains in Mexico and churn eastward. Some of the most impressive supercell signatures I've seen on radar have been down there. One even took out the Del Rio WSR-88D. This is a miniature "Eastern Colorado" and a miniature tornado alley.
So, there is the likelihood that community shelters for the mobile home park don't exist. The ugly truth is that residents there didn't have a place to go or time to get to a more sturdy shelter. Even then some of those structures were also demolished...including two schools. I'm afraid that this is a repeat of the 1987 Saragosa, Texas tornado where 30 people lost their lives.
A sad day indeed.
Labels: Eagle Pass Tornado
posted by Steve Miller TX at 4/25/2007 10:12:00 AM
2 Comments:
It breaks my heart... I wish there was some better way to protect people, to protect them, to educate them, to help them to appreciate and realize how truly powerful and destructive a tornado is.
Steve, excellent coverage of the event, sad as it is.
Well, I am happy to report that my worst fears of a higher death toll has not come true. They are still searching the debris and rubble though. But, with 10 people killed, it's just not getting a whole lot of media attention. I would rant about it, but I found a very good editorial/rant from somebody in the media themselves:
http://tinyurl.com/275vvw
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