A storm system moved through East Texas on Sunday, leaving thousands without power and leaving residents and officials dealing with the storm’s aftermath.
Smith County experienced heavy rainfall, strong winds and severe thunderstorms. Hundreds in the Tyler area were still without power as of Monday afternoon, but by Tuesday morning, power had been restored to all Oncor customers in Smith County.
In Tyler, a fast food restaurant — Dairy Queen on South Broadway in the Village at Cumberland — was struck by lightning, causing a fire, according to CBS19 via Tyler Police Department.
Over in Cherokee County, Sheriff Brent Dickson on Sunday night told our news partners at CBS19 that a storm chaser called in to say they spotted what looked like a tornado on Highway 21 east of Alto. Dickson believes it was possibly near the Cherokee and Nacogdoches County lines. However, as of Tuesday morning, that report had not been confirmed as a tornado and investigation was still underway.
He said there had been no reports of injuries as of Sunday evening. Crews cleaned up downed trees and debris throughout the county.
Power had been restored to thousands of Oncor customers in Angelina County, most heavily impacted by power outages at their peak. Still, hundreds remained in the dark as of Monday afternoon. By Tuesday morning, only a handful of customers were without power, expected to be restored by 10:30 a.m.
Over 50 Anderson County Oncor customers were still out of power Tuesday morning, but it was expected to be restored by 11:30 a.m. Tuesday. About 40 homes or businesses in Cherokee County are still without power, and Oncor doesn’t have a restoration time listed on their website at this time.
“Oncor teams are working to assess damages, make repairs and restore outages following the recent storm systems. We appreciate your patience as restoration continues as quickly and safely as possible,” the utility company stated on its website.
To report an outage, text OUT to 66267, use the MyOncor app, or select “Report an Outage” located above the map.