Microburst causes damage throughout county

A severe storm hit Cass County on Friday at approximately 9:40 p.m. with multiple locations reporting fallen trees, downed powerlines, hail, and general wind damage.

The Linden area appeared to have sustained the worst damages because of a 90-mile-per-hour microburst. Many houses were damaged by large trees falling on roofs, but according to Cass County Sheriff Larry Rowe, no serious injuries were reported.

Rowe said that several roads were blocked by downed trees and powerlines. FM 1399, FM 250, FM 130, FM 125, Hwy 11, and Hwy 155 were closed. Hwy 11 going from Linden to Hughes Springs was closed until about 3 a.m. Rowe went on to thank TxDOT and area first responders for the amazing work they did to help keep the Cass County residents safe, and clear away downed trees.

According to Rowe, many cars were stuck on those highways for hours.

“In the time that I have been sheriff, I have not seen so many roads in our county closed,” said Rowe.

Bowie-Cass and SWEPCO were among the utility companies trying to restore power to the Cass County area residents Friday night and Saturday. Many still reported outages through Monday.

According to a SWEPCO press release, “Another round of severe storms including straight-line winds and possible tornados Friday night left approximately 11,600 customers without power.”

“Many poles, wires, and trees are down across the Ark-La-Tex. The hardest-hit areas include Linden and Haughton, Louisiana. Approximately 6,400 customers were without power as of 2:15 p.m. Saturday.”

“SWEPCO crews are working as safely and as quickly as possible to restore power while practicing physical distancing and other measures to stay healthy and prevent the spread of COVID-19.”

The same release estimated that Linden’s power would have fully been restored by 11:59 p.m.

Linden City Manager, Bob Swisher, and his crew were among those out trying to clear streets and other affected properties.

“The Storm was so intense and short. We had 90 miles an hour straightline winds that blew over our tall mature trees in neighborhoods. Over 500 large old trees down and 30% of roads were closed at 10 p.m. last night. All roads are clear now and half of the homes have power again (as of Saturday at 8:31 p.m.) in Linden. We had no major injuries and for the number of trees that are down very little damage to the majority of homes. Linden will bounce back fast,” Swisher said.

As of Saturday, Linden residents were clearing out trees, repairing homes, and getting ready for the next storm to be coming through Tuesday evening.

Most of the afternoon local and national weather watchers had the county under a tornado watch.

Cass County Judge Becky Wilbanks has issued a Declaration of Disaster for Cass County beginning April 24 because of widespread and severe damages to property due to these excessive winds.

A special ThankYou to Bowie-Cass Electric Co-op, SWEPCO, the linemen, and others who helped with the cleanup.