Texas weather: EF-0 tornado reported near Giddings

Storm damage in Lee County after confirmed tornado

An EF-0 tornado was reported near Giddings on Thursday.

GIDDINGS, Texas - An EF-0 tornado was reported near Giddings on Thursday.

What we know:

According to the National Weather Service, on April 2, around 10:55 a.m., the tornado formed about six miles southwest of Giddings, near CR 208 and FM 2239. It then moved northeast into Giddings before dissipating.

The tornado had winds of 70 mph and traveled about eight miles.

The NWS said there was damage found to power lines, tree limbs, tin sheds, and some small sections of tin roofs and eaves peeled back.

Dig deeper:

Giddings Intermediate School, Giddings Middle School, and Giddings High School were all briefly without power due to an outage in the northern part of Giddings. 

Power has since been restored, and the rest of the day resumed on a normal schedule.

Local perspective:

 "I saw a lot of tin that had blown up on some vehicles. I didn’t really realize how much damage had been done here in town," said Giddings resident Ernest Preuss.

Preuss owns the second-oldest building on south Burleson Street. He spent most of the day cleaning up, but says he’s grateful no one was hurt.

"We were going to go eat lunch, and I’ve got a gentleman that rents a place from me here and a friend of his sent him a picture and said, hey, the canopy on the building had collapsed," said Preuss. 

Crews have been working throughout the day to clear debris and respond to downed lines, especially in the north Burleson and north Main areas of Giddings, where police are urging drivers to avoid the area or use extreme caution.

Storm in Giddings, Texas

Severe weather impacted parts of Central Texas on Thursday, including Giddings in Lee County. Mey Ug shared this video with FOX 7 Austin.

"You can replace buildings, you can replace cars, you can replace things like that, but not people in general. I’m just grateful the good lord took care of everybody and nothing more than what happened," said Preuss. 

City officials say power has been restored to affected areas, but any remaining downed lines or damaged telecommunications equipment should still be treated as dangerous. Crews have also coned off major debris in roadways and will continue clearing operations. 

For Pruess, he says his property held up better compared to some of his neighbors. 

"I was very fortunate the roof is not damaged, but the building across the way over here has got a big hole in the roof and the BNB supply over here there’s working on it as well too, so there’s a lot of damage in the immediate area," said Preuss. 

What's next:

The city will offer limb pickup for the next two weeks. For now, they are asking residents to place debris at the curb.

Officials are reminding residents to stay away from damaged buildings, watch for hazards like gas leaks and downed lines, and check on neighbors who may need help.

Authorities say if you see any immediate dangers, including debris in roadways or downed lines, call 911 right away.