By Nathan Straus
nstraus@jacksonvilleprogress.com
Conditions were ripe Wednesday for a twister as rain and even hail poured down on East Texas.
Jacksonville and northern Cherokee County caught the brunt of the storm and a tornado warning went into effect at about 1:57 p.m.
Aaron Stevens, meteorologist at the National Weather Service in Shreveport, said big chunks of ice fell from the sky alongside fairly hard rain.
“There’s a big red blob sitting over Jacksonville,” Stevens said during the storm. “Inbound and outbound radar signatures are indicative of a tornado.”
At first, the tornado warning was issued until 2:45 p.m., but the NWS extended it to 3:30 p.m.
The warning was first issued, National Weather Service officials reported, when meteorologists detected a severe thunderstorm capable of producing a tornado 11 miles southwest of Jacksonville and moving northeast at 30 mph.
Other locations in the warning included Reese, Mount Selman, Mixon, Bullard, Troup and more.
“A tornado warning means that strong rotation has been detected in the storm,” officials said. “A tornado may already be on the ground or is expected to develop shortly.”
According to meteorologists, no tornado was confirmed.
Authorities from the Cherokee County Sheriff’s Department reported no serious damage to property and no injuries due to golf ball-sized hail that fell during a brief period that afternoon.
The tornado watch in effect in Cherokee County was ended during the evening.
