Storm Damage Delays Start of School in Tolar, Texas – NBC 5 Dallas-Fort Worth

2022-08-20 04:03:39 By : Ms. Jane Yin

A cold front that brought rain and storms to North Texas hit a Hood County town particularly hard.

A strong storm Wednesday night damaged buildings, downed trees and took out powerlines leaving many people in the dark until Thursday morning. Power outages caused by the storm took out the city's water and sewage plant.

Tolar Mayor Terry Johnson confirmed all power and water operations had been restored by Thursday afternoon and residents were no longer being asked to conserve water. No injuries were reported, according to Johnson.

"Pretty much every street had some trees down, we had small buildings that the wind blew them away, we got lawn furniture everywhere, we got trampolines from one side to the other. A little bit of everything," Johnson said.

📍Tolar, TX Images of the clean-up this morning after a cold front that brought rain and storms last night hit this Hood County town particularly hard. Thankfully, no injuries to report. Seeing lots of downed trees and debris @NBCDFW @NBCDFWWeather https://t.co/g0Prb0cIh0 pic.twitter.com/GgDRN9cALp

NBC 5 crews found residents with chainsaws working to clear large trees downed by the storm. The first order of business was clearing streets so that power crews could get to work.

"Hood County has called me, they're sending crews over to help us get the roads open, finish getting all the trees out of the road and everything," said Johnson.

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Jimmy Barron has lived in Tolar for more than 40 years. He was home Wednesday night when the storm hit.

"It sounded like, you heard wind coming out of a tunnel? It was a 'whoo' and it got louder, and a freight train came through. It was scary," Barron recalled.

His home was spared, though a large tree was uprooted.

"Excuse the expression, it’s the damndest thing I’ve seen. I just can’t believe how big of a hole it made," he said.

Joanne Hagiscostas said the storm hit about 15 minutes before she was able to get home.

"I was in total shock. I didn’t know if I should be crying or thankful that my house is still here and the roof that was taken was just off the barn," Hagiscostas said. "The roof, gone. The tree is down. The roofing material, up in the trees and across the street at the church."

Despite the damage, she said was grateful for all the help from neighbors while cleaning up Thursday.

"There is a reason for everything. Maybe this is a sign, clean up your act. Everybody," she said. "We needed the rain. We desperately need more rain. Hopefully, God will be a little more gentler on us next time."

Garcia's Mexican Restaurant posted video on Facebook at the height of the storm showing driving rain and gusty winds.

The Tolar Independent School District announced that due to damage and power outages the start of school was delayed until 10 a.m. Thursday.

The district said school buses will run two hours later than their regularly scheduled time to give school administrators need time to assess the damages and power issues.

Tolar is about 50 miles southwest of Fort Worth between Granbury and Stephenville.