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Jarrell
Tornado Class
X - Natural Condition, Tornado
The Jarrell Tornado, in
Williamson County; Texas was considered one of history's worst.
Following a warning at 3:30 PM on May 27, 1997 at 3:42 PM, a tornado hit
Jarrell with winds of 261 mph. This was an extremely rare event,
as the F5 ranking it received is the highest for tornadoes. (F0 is
"light" and F5 is "incredible"). Virtually
everything in the path of the tornado was destroyed. Trees were
debarked and uprooted, grass was pulled from the ground, 300 head of
cattle were lost and dozens of cars were thrown over one-half mile.
The Jarrell tornado passed just west of downtown and struck the Double Creek residential subdivision. Entire homes, including the foundations, were literally plucked out off the ground and thrown for miles. Where some foundations remained, many had the carpet and linoleum floors stripped clear to the concrete. Mature trees were plucked out of the ground like weeds. The disaster caused 27 deaths. Most of the Double Creek subdivision was destroyed, and later rebuilt largely with insurance proceeds and community volunteers.
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