KATY, Texas – Several homes are no longer livable in the North Katy neighborhood of Windward after a tornado tore through the community on Saturday.
Several homes have chucks of their roofs missing entirely, while others have windows blown out and vehicles overturned.
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The newer community is nestled just off FM 529 north of Katy.
On Saturday afternoon, the National Weather Service issued a tornado warning on a storm system moving through the area.
People who live in the neighborhood recall getting the emergency alert on their phones minutes before the storm barreled through their community.
“We just got the tornado alert on my phone five minutes earlier,” said Tipps Rancit.
Cell phone video from the community shows the funnel cloud lowering to the ground with debris starting to be lofted into the air.
“I was just standing there looking at it,” said Teresa Nguyen. “I felt the wind and the rain outside and the power went out a few times.”
The tornado was over just as quickly as it began, lasting less than a minute according to neighbors.
Nguyen’s garage door was blown in. Her home was spared the worst of the damage. As was Rancit’s home.
A few doors down from both of their houses, several homes had their roofs torn off, the walls of the homes peeled away giving you a glimpse into bedrooms and vehicles flipped over.
“I was sleeping,” said Toby Azemohor. “All of a sudden, I was hearing the rain and noticed out in the rain, just, it bamp! Bamp! Bamp! Bamp! Bamp! When I came out, it was flipped over.”
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Despite all of the damage, somehow not a single person was hurt.
The homes receiving the brunt of the storm were empty. Mother Nature picked out these homes, but a higher power seemingly ensured they were empty.
“Thank God. I was a little scared when I saw the fire truck came through,” said Nguyen.
“Everybody’s okay,” Rancit added. “That’s the most important thing.”
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The tornado hasn’t officially been confirmed by the National Weather Service. A survey crew will likely travel to the area to confirm the storm and issue a rating.
