{"id":5680,"date":"2026-04-28T20:21:37","date_gmt":"2026-04-29T03:21:37","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/infonews.ca\/news\/7629095\/at-least-2-injured-as-storms-tear-through-texas-damaging-homes\/"},"modified":"2026-04-29T14:30:16","modified_gmt":"2026-04-29T21:30:16","slug":"texas-tornado-leaves-5-injured-buildings-collapsed-and-homes-without-roofs","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/infonews.ca\/inwheels\/news\/5680\/texas-tornado-leaves-5-injured-buildings-collapsed-and-homes-without-roofs\/","title":{"rendered":"Texas tornado leaves 5 injured, buildings collapsed and homes without roofs"},"content":{"rendered":"

MINERAL WELLS, Texas (AP) \u2014 Vicious winds burst through the front door of Christopher Hester’s duplex apartment, then started ripping the roof apart. Hester and his wife grabbed their dog and ducked into a hallway to the sound of breaking glass, furniture hitting the walls and a howl like a monstrous vacuum cleaner.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was kind of hard to see because of the debris,\u201d Hester, 33, said Wednesday, standing amid the ruins of his home. \u201cI was able to see the tornado. And all of my stuff go into the sky.\u201d<\/p>\n

Officials confirmed that a tornado on Tuesday tore through this small Texas city, sending five people to a hospital as it flattened buildings used for manufacturing and ravaged nearby homes. Police and firefighters said they feared the worst when they first saw the damage in Mineral Wells, home to about 15,000 people.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe are most grateful for no loss of life in this event yesterday,\u201d Mayor Regan Johnson told a news conference Wednesday. “When you see the destruction that’s here, you can tell that\u2019s really amazing.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hester and his wife searched through overturned furniture and scattered debris Wednesday for their two missing cats and any belongings they could salvage. Their roof was gone and the windows were blown out, along with the apartment’s front and back walls.<\/p>\n

\u201cBy the grace of God we are still standing here today,\u201d Hester said.<\/p>\n

Allison Prater, a National Weather Service meteorologist in Fort Worth, said the tornado touched down in Mineral Wells with winds of at least 120 mph (193 kph). The weather service sent a team Wednesday to survey the destruction 80 miles (130 kilometers) west of Dallas.<\/p>\n

Stormy week kills at least 3 people in Texas, Michigan<\/p>\n

Violent weather has been plaguing parts of the South and Midwest. Two people died<\/a> in North Texas last weekend as thunderstorms spawned destructive tornadoes, and a Michigan man was killed on Monday by a tree that toppled<\/a> in a storm.<\/p>\n

A hail storm damaged roofs, skylights and parked vehicles Tuesday at a zoo in Springfield, Missouri, and also killed one of its large birds<\/a>. A female emu named Adam died from head trauma as hail fell at the Dickerson Park Zoo, spokesperson Joey Powell said Wednesday.<\/p>\n

More severe storms were possible Wednesday across the South and parts of the Mid-Atlantic. The weather service said there was a slight chance of damaging winds and large hail across portions of Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama.<\/p>\n

Tornado damage forces manufacturer to shut down<\/p>\n

In Mineral Wells, local officials spoke with reporters Wednesday in a subdivision strewn with splintered lumber, fallen trees and other debris.<\/p>\n

Fire Chief Ryan Dunn said five people injured in the storm went to a hospital for treatment. Others were treated for minor injuries by first responders. <\/p>\n

\u201cAs we arrived on scene, we noticed there was a lot of debris, a lot of roofs off,\u201d Dunn said. “And then we started seeing buildings collapse.\u201d<\/p>\n

Dunn said most of the area struck by the tornado is used for commercial and industrial purposes, though some homes were also damaged. At least two manufacturers suffered heavy damage.<\/p>\n

One was Ventamatic, which makes large fans and other ventilation equipment in Mineral Wells. The company said on its website that employees evacuated ahead of the storm and none were injured. Operations were shut down Wednesday \u201cdue to severe damage and ongoing safety hazards,\u201d the company said.<\/p>\n

More than 9,000 homes and businesses were without electricity across Texas on Wednesday afternoon, according to the tracking site PowerOutage.us. About 230 of those outages were in the Mineral Wells area. <\/p>\n

Mineral Wells officials declared a local state of disaster and imposed an overnight curfew that will remain in place Wednesday, Police Chief Tim Denison said.<\/p>\n

___<\/p>\n

Bynum reported from Savannah, Georgia.<\/p>\n

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A United States flag waves over debris following a storm in Mineral Wells, Texas, Wednesday, April 29, 2026. (AP Photo\/Julio Cortez)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
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A damaged home is surrounded by debris following a storm in Mineral Wells, Texas, Wednesday, April 29, 2026. (AP Photo\/Julio Cortez)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
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A downed street sign is visible following a storm in Mineral Wells, Texas, Wednesday, April 29, 2026. (AP Photo\/Julio Cortez)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
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People clear debris following a storm in Mineral Wells, Texas, Wednesday, April 29, 2026. (AP Photo\/Julio Cortez)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

MINERAL WELLS, Texas (AP) \u2014 Vicious winds burst through the front door of Christopher Hester’s duplex apartment, then started ripping the roof apart. Hester and his wife grabbed their dog and ducked into a hallway to the sound of breaking glass, furniture hitting the walls and a howl like a monstrous vacuum cleaner. \u201cIt was […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":521,"featured_media":5681,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"guid":"9a1a6b6a-a06b-4b4d-9f62-06b6ea3534f3","source":"The Associated Press","byline":"Julio Cortez And Russ Bynum","published":"2026-04-28 20:21:37","updated":"2026-04-29 14:22:49","_infotelid":"","_prepressid":"","_multisite_post_sync":"","_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1303,1304],"tags":[],"region":[],"class_list":["post-5680","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-international","category-world"],"blocksy_meta":[],"parsely":{"version":"1.1.0","canonical_url":"https:\/\/infonews.ca\/inwheels\/news\/5680\/texas-tornado-leaves-5-injured-buildings-collapsed-and-homes-without-roofs\/","smart_links":{"inbound":0,"outbound":0},"traffic_boost_suggestions_count":0,"meta":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","headline":"Texas tornado leaves 5 injured, buildings collapsed and homes without roofs","url":"http:\/\/infonews.ca\/inwheels\/news\/5680\/texas-tornado-leaves-5-injured-buildings-collapsed-and-homes-without-roofs\/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"http:\/\/infonews.ca\/inwheels\/news\/5680\/texas-tornado-leaves-5-injured-buildings-collapsed-and-homes-without-roofs\/"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/infonews.ca\/inwheels\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/inwheels-55da5db8d0981112ac5b22552f95937e4df5c621049d1133e0ca14dbd7e35a2c.jpg?w=150&h=150&crop=1","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https:\/\/infonews.ca\/inwheels\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/inwheels-55da5db8d0981112ac5b22552f95937e4df5c621049d1133e0ca14dbd7e35a2c.jpg"},"articleSection":"International","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"The Associated Press"}],"creator":["The Associated Press"],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"iNwheels","logo":""},"keywords":[],"dateCreated":"2026-04-29T03:21:37Z","datePublished":"2026-04-29T03:21:37Z","dateModified":"2026-04-29T21:30:16Z"},"rendered":"