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Wednesday Sunrise Weather 5/22/13
West Texas Wind Damages Andrews 2/25/13
Felicia Bolton
fbolton@cbs7.com
CBS 7 News Reporter
February 25, 2013
ANDREWS, TX - Wind speeds reached over 50 miles per hour in Andrews. The powerful winds were flipping over whatever was in its path and knocking out power for many residents.
The cold weather blew in gently in the morning; then quickly turned into strong gusts ripping through lawns, damaging homes and businesses.
"I have all my lawn furniture blown over, like our pool. The kiddy pool with water in it, it's all blown over. Everything is a mess," said Andrews resident Ashley Gibson.
Gibson stated that even her small dogs couldn't manage the weather.
The fierce wind kept some West Texans from venturing out and heading to work.
"We [my job] got shut down from work today… at least it’s a free day off, " said Andrews resident David Sanz.
But for those who worked at one company, the forceful weather gave them an extra work load. Several large tanks flipped to the side, rolling several feet before stopping.
For many living in Andrews, they were without power when the high gusts snapped light poles and wires.
"The only thing holding the pole up was some of the lines themselves," said Andrews Police Chief Bud Jones.
Chief Jones stated that the after math was felt across the city and on the highways the most.
About 19 miles from the city, an 18 wheeler lost control and jack-knifed.
Jones said it split in two because of the strong winds.
He said people hitting the streets to battle the winds are up for an unexpected rebuttal.
"You can't beat it. You can't buck that wind driving real fast. [Don’t think] I'll drive real fast and it won't get me. No. It'll still get you and it's just worse," stated Jones.
He said the best bet is to stay home and wait it out.
Oncor reported that more than 250 customers in Andrews were without power today. Since then Oncor stated they have quickly worked to restore power to majority of the customers.
No wind related injuries have been reported.