In This Month: Fall Tornados
While spring gets most of the attention when it comes to tornadoes, Texas’ historical weather has shown us that fall is known as the “second severe weather season.” In fact, Oct. is the 3rd most tornadic month of the year in Dallas County!
In this Waterways blog, we’re going back to Oct. of 2019 to recall a series of tornados that hit too close to home and highlight how IFCD 3 handled the severe storms.
With at least three confirmed tornados across Dallas county between Oct. 18 and 21 of 2019, tens of thousands of residents were left without power. The National Weather Service reported that one of these tornados was an EF-3 – severe tornado – and had wind speeds of up to 140 mph! Across North Dallas, hundreds of structures were damaged or destroyed, including schools, retailers, homes and infrastructure.
Fortunately, the Valley Ranch community was spared from severe damage, only experiencing heavy wind and rain. Throughout the storm, the IFCD 3 team worked hard to accommodate the downpour of rain by pumping water back into the Trinity River and away from Valley Ranch.
While Texas’ second severe weather season is in full swing, rest assured that IFCD 3 is prepared. We’ve invested in high-quality, durable equipment to ensure our facilities have the best chance possible of remaining operational, even in the event of a tornado. Below are a few strategies and structures IFCD 3 utilizes to remain prepared:
Backup Power Generator – Our backup source of commercial power for the pump station allows us to run the pumps whenever needed, even in the case of a power outage.
Maintenance Checks – Our team of experts conducts routine maintenance checks on all equipment and structures to determine when items will need replacing or updating.
Floodgates – The floodgates at the pump station allow us to control the water levels of the canals throughout Valley Ranch.
As we continue throughout the fall season, IFCD 3’s team remains ready to provide flood control to the Valley Ranch community.
For timely, regional weather updates, we encourage you to follow IFCD 3 on Facebook and X. To learn more about IFCD 3 and our mission to deliver flood control to Valley Ranch, explore our website.