By Trent Rosser
On this date, 23 years ago, it started out like any other spring day in Pampa. The only difference was, Pampa, like the rest of the panhandle of Texas, was prepared for some bad storms. But nothing could compare to what would await them that afternoon. Pampa had been in a severe weather situation all day. Meteorologist were anticipating a few destructive storms that were brewing, and through television and radio, they were informing the public of all the dangers that could possible take place. Just a few days earlier, on June 2, 1995 a large tornado formed outside of Dimmit. It was surrounded by storm chasers and was one of the most documented tornados in history. But, on June 8, 1995, Pampa was prepared for the worse. Unfortunately, they received it.
Pampa was in a tornado warning. A tornado had formed just east of Pampa at about 4:27 PM and it was headed west. The industrial part of Pampa sat on the west side of town, just north of Highway 60. It started into town at 4:35 and was causing havoc with the industries located there. One famous dashcam video from one of the sheriff’s cars shows him parked on Highway 60 blocking traffic as the tornado starts destroying buildings. Like a phoenix rising out of the ashes, metal, wood, and buildings were rising out of the dirt at the base of the tornado. As the tornado hits the business there, another video shows it lift a 100ft long factory warehouse, it is lifted into the air, nearly fully intact and whirled around the far side of the funnel, while steel cables are shown still hanging in the circulation of the tornado. The Sheriff video shows a couple of vehicles thrown like they were toys. A van and a pick-up truck, flattened by the tumbling from inside the funnel, were thrown from tunnel. The van was reached a height of about 100 feet and it also landed about 100 feet from where it was picked up. The tornado passes across Price road, just north of Alcock Street. This is where it left the industrial park and was headed to residential homes. Luckily, the tornado started to diminish in intensity. While on the ground for about 20 minutes, the tornado finally dissipated back unto the sky. Classified as a F4 tornado (the strongest tornado is a F5 classification) it had left a path of destruction over 3 miles long. It was on the ground for over 15 minutes. Over 250 buildings were either damaged or destroyed. A tornado that is considered an F4 is also a killer. But, like I said, Pampa was prepared. Luckily only 7 people were hurt that day. There were 216 tornados reported that month with damages of over $30 million for the Pampa tornado alone.
Pampa is not the only one to suffer from mother nature. June 27, 1992 not one, but many tornadoes touched down and decimated the town of Fritch. Like the Pampa tornado, one of the ones that hit Fritch was classified as an F4 as well. Like the Pampa tornado, many of these tornadoes were caught on tape. At least 3 tornados touched down with over 200 homes destroyed. One man was inside his home filming the tornados. As he was panning from one window to film a tornado to a different window to film a different tornado, he was struck by lightning. With courage and tenacity, he got back up and resumed filming the tornados.
In Tulia, on April 21, 2007 a tornado touched down inside the city limits. This tornado touched down on the west side of town and moved north. A local Alco store was destroyed, while the new car dealership across the street had major damage. Mainly from debris, but a R.V parked on the lot did turn over and take out part of the building. As the tornado moved north, it gained strength and torn down many other buildings. A total of 30 homes and 20 businesses were damaged or destroyed. A storm chasers car was thrown into a brick building and then a semi-trailer was thrown into the chase car for good measure. It was classified as a F2 tornado, luckily only 3 people were hurt and there were no deaths. Damage for this tornado was at $2 million.
Amarillo has had a tornado hit within the city limits as well. May 15, 1949, a tornado touched down on 28th street just east of Washington street and worked its way southeast towards the brand-new Trade winds airport. 7 people were killed, over 80 injured and over 200 homes damaged or destroyed. 45 planes at the airport were also damaged or destroyed. This was not the biggest or the deadliest in the Texas Panhandle, but it is the strongest storm to directly affect the city of Amarillo. Tyler Street was nothing but foundations. Concrete porches were the only things left. Looking at the old photographs, it looks like a barren landfill with wood lying all around, but no homes. Train cars were derailed. Damages for this was in excess of $5 million and again that was for 1949.
Tornadoes can strike at any time: day, night, summer spring, fall, and even winter. There have been recorded cases of snow tornado. We have already entered the peak season for tornadoes and we are still in tornado alley. Keep your ears open to the weathermen to inform you if you need to take shelter in bad weather. Tornadoes have a way of fascinating people and we want to see them. Some of us try to chase tornadoes. This is a very bad idea. The last few years trained storm chasers have been killed due to bad storms and tornadoes. A crew was killed when a tornado crossed the highway and struck their vehicle. Another crew was killed when another car wrecked into them. These are trained professionals and we are putting not only our lives but the lives of others at risk when we try to chase down a storm. If you absolutely want to check out tornadoes, there are plenty on YouTube, including the Pampa and the Tulia tornadoes. Remember, be safe and take cover.
