At least three persons were killed and major damage was caused in the area surrounding the northern town of Matador by a line of strong storms that created numerous tornadoes on the Texas Rolling Plains on Wednesday evening.
According to the National Weather Service in Lubbock, the storms also produced softball-sized hail and wind gusts exceeding 100 mph (161 kph) in other communities, including Jayton, which was also under a tornado warning as the line moved southeast Wednesday night.
According to The New York Times, Matador Mayor Pat Smith claimed there had been “a whole lot of damage,” at least three fatalities, potential injuries to further persons, and at least three fatalities.
According to South Plains Electric Cooperative, there were several power outages throughout the Rolling Plains, including more than 700 people without power in the Jayton region.
The community of Matador, which has a population of roughly 570, is located in Motley County and is located about 70 miles (112 km) northeast of Lubbock.
The tornado outbreak on Wednesday occurred six days after a tornado in Perryton, in the northern Texas Panhandle, left three people dead and more than 100 injured.
Just after eight o’clock on Wednesday, the National Weather Service in Lubbock announced that authorities had confirmed the existence of a tornado just north of Matador.
There were three tornadoes in the line of storms, according to William Iwasko, a senior forecaster with the National Weather Service in Lubbock, but it seemed that just the one in Matador had caused major damage.
Social media posts from storm chasers and meteorologists revealed extensive property damage around Matador, including destroyed homes, utility lines, trees, and infrastructure.
The Avalanche-Journal received confirmation from Lubbock Fire Rescue that it was sending a crew to help with the damage and recovery.
“I gave the order for Heavy Rescue 1 to respond to the town of Matador to assist in freeing trapped residents from collapsed structures,” LFR Chief Shaun Fogerson said.
AMBUS, a mobile medical unit, will be sent to Matador, according to University Medical Centre in Lubbock.
According to a tweet from the weather service, a new tornado warning was issued for Dickens and King counties through 10 p.m. as the line of storms continued to move southeast.
Tornado Warning including Pueblo County, CO until 12:30 AM MDT pic.twitter.com/C5MErxqPKz
— NWS Tornado (@NWStornado) June 22, 2023
