1970 — Apr 17-18, tornadoes, TX Panhandle, esp. Sherwood Shores resort, Donley Co., TX–22-23

— 23 Grazulis. Significant Tornadoes 1680-1991. 1993, p. 1111.
— 5 22:00 Apr 17, Hale/Floyd/Swisher/Briscoe counties tornado.
— 1 22:30 Apr 17, Parmer/Castro counties tornado.
–17 01:00 Apr 18, Swisher/Briscoe/Armstrong/Donley/Gray counties tornado.
— 22 Amarillo Sunday News-Globe, TX. “22 Die in Twisters; Damage in Millions.” 4-19-1970, 1.
–15 Sherwood Shores. ” “15 Die at Sherwood Shores.” 4-19-1970, p. 1.
— 22 Environmental Data Service/NOAA. Storm Data, Vol. 12, No. 4, April 1970, p. 40.
— 5 8:50 pm (17th) – 12:40 am (18th). Hale/Swisher/Briscoe counties tornado.
— 1 10:30 pm (17th) – 1:15 am (18th). Parmer County tornado. Lazbuddie community.
–16 1:00 am-3:15 am (18th). Donley County tornado.
— 1 Man in home along U.S. Route 287.
–13 Sherwood Shores community on the Greenbelt Reservoir
— 2 Mobile home near Sherwood Shores community.
— 22 NOAA. Storm Events Database. All Counties, TX, Tornado.
— 2 Hale County, Apr 17, 22:00.
— 1 Parmer County, Apr 17, 22:30.
— 2 Swisher County, Apr 17, 23:00.
— 1 Briscoe County, Apr 17, 23:10.
–16 Donley County, Apr 18, 01:49
— 17 Donley Co. Cox. Texas Disasters: True Stories of Tragedy and Survival. 2006, p. 225.

Narrative Information

Cox: “April 18, 1970. A tornado in Donley County (in the Texas Panhandle) kills seventeen people and injures forty-two. Property damage amounts to $2.1 million.” (Cox, Mike. Texas Disasters: True Stories of Tragedy and Survival. Guilford, CT: Globe Pequot Press, 2006, p. 225.)

EDS/NOAA Storm Data:
“Cochran, Hockley, Lamb, Hale, Swisher, Briscoe, Hall and Donley Counties…[Apr] 17, 8:50 p.m.-18th, 12:40 a.m. …140 [length of path, (miles)]…5 [killed]…2 tornadoes, hail and windstorms, several funnels aloft.

“A storm system moving northeastward across portions of the South Plains and Panhandle regions spawned a ‘family’ of tornadoes and funnel clouds aloft that left an intermittent track some 140 miles long through eight counties. Tornadoes resulted in 5 deaths, 77 injuries, and a total loss to property estimated at $9.9 million. The exact number of tornadoes is not known. In some localities, four to five funnels were reported, but it is nowt known how many of these actually touched ground. Two tornadoes are known to have touched ground simultaneously, one to two miles apart. A tornado was observed first in southeastern New Mexico, near Lovington, about 8:00 p.m. on the 17th, and appeared to be associated with the same storm system that struck later in Texas. In this case, the track of the family of tornadoes would be close to 200 miles in length. Measurements on maximum radar echo tops showed the storm system to have a speed of 25 to 35 knots (29 to 40 miles per hour). The paths of the tornadoes varied considerably along the 140-mile intermittent track, from about 100 yards to one-half mile.

“A tornado struck Whiteface in Cochran County at 8:50 p.m. Twenty persons were injured, but there were no deaths. Almost every building in the town was damaged; some were a total loss. Damage was estimated at $2 million. Hailstones four inches in diameter fell during the storm….

“Tornadoes ripped through the Cotton Center-Hale Center rural area beginning about 10:00 p.m. and ending around 10:30 or 10:45 p.m. Four of five funnels were reported; two tornadoes one to two miles apart were on the ground at the same time. The path of damage was 20 miles long. Two persons were killed when one of the tornadoes slammed into a pickup truck in which a family was riding. Mrs. Mary Sauceda and her son Tommy were killed. The pickup was ‘smashed flat as a pancake’ but several members of the family escaped with their lives….

EDS/NOAA Storm Data:
“Bailey, Parmer, Castro, Randall, Armstrong, Carson and Gray counties…10:30 pm 17th – 1:15 am 18th…1 [life lost]…Tornado, wind, hailstorm.

“A tornado, accompanied by other damaging winds and hail, cut an intermittent path approximately 120 miles long and up to one-half mile wide, from the Lazbuddie Community in southeastern Parmer County to Pampa in northwestern Gray County. One person was killed and 13 injured in the tornado….

EDS/NOAA Storm Data:
“Donley, Gray, Armstrong, Swisher and Briscoe Counties. [Apr] 18…1:00 am – 3:15 am…16 [lives lost]…Tornado.

“Sixteen persons died and 42 others were injured as a result of a tornado which swept across the northwestern portion of Donley County, near Clarendon….”

Grazulis: “TX APR 18, 1970 0100 17k 41inj…170m F4. SWISHER/BRISCOE/ ARMSTRONG/DONLEY/GRAY– Moved NE from 15m NE of Tulia to 5m N of McLean. In Swisher County, it cut across farm and ranch land, causing $100,000 damage to property, and killed or injured 85 head of cattle. Near Clarendon, the tornado struck first in the Martin community on US-287, about 7m WNW of the city. One home was completely leveled on one side of the highway. The tornado then crossed the highway and leveled another home, killing a man and injuring his wife. The tornado continued to the NE, striking the Sherwood Shores resort community at Green Belt Reservoir, about 8m NW of Clarendon. This community was made up almost entirely of mobile homes in a 1000-acre resort setting. About 172 of them were destroyed, and only one remained intact. Of the 150 people who were in the park that night, 13 were killed and 35 others were injured. Damage was estimated at $1,300,000. The tornado next struck a mobile home on Hwy-70, killing a couple and blowing the trailer and its contents completely away. The tornado continued to the NE through northern Donley County, damaged several farm homes, and crossed 1-40, 4m W of McLean in SE Gray County. Here, it blew several tank cars off the railway tracks, and one landed on the highway. Near McLean, three farm homes were destroyed. North of McLean, a cottage at Sand Spur Lake was destroyed and five others were damaged. Property loss in Gray County was estimated at $400,000. Debris “rained” across Wheeler County during the early morning hours.” (Grazulis. Significant Tornadoes 1680-1991. 1993, p. 1111.)

Sources

Amarillo Sunday News-Globe, TX. “22 Die in Twisters; Damage in Millions.” 4-19-1970, p. 1. Accessed 3-14-2022 at: https://newspaperarchive.com/amarillo-sunday-news-globe-apr-19-1970-p-1/

Amarillo Sunday News-Globe, TX. “15 Die at Sherwood Shores.” 4-19-1970, p. 1. Accessed 3-14-2022 at: https://newspaperarchive.com/amarillo-sunday-news-globe-apr-19-1970-p-1/

Cox, Mike. Texas Disasters: True Stories of Tragedy and Survival. Guilford, CT: Globe Pequot Press, 2006.

Environmental Data Service/NOAA. Storm Data, Vol. 12, No. 4, April 1970. Asheville, NC: EDS/NOAA, U. S. Department of Commerce. Accessed 3-13-2022 at: https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/pub/orders/IPS/IPS-680FB492-282E-43E4-84F5-10CA97363A84.pdf

Grazulis, Thomas P. Significant Tornadoes 1680-1991: A Chronology and Analysis of Events. St. Johnsbury, VE: Environmental Films, 1993, 1,326 pages.

NOAA, National Centers for Environmental Information. Storm Events Database. Search Results for All Counties in Texas. Event Types: Tornado. Accessed 3-13-2022 at: https://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/stormevents/listevents.jsp?eventType=%28C%29+Tornado&beginDate_mm=04&beginDate_dd=17&beginDate_yyyy=1970&endDate_mm=04&endDate_dd=18&endDate_yyyy=1970&county=ALL&hailfilter=0.00&tornfilter=0&windfilter=000&sort=DT&submitbutton=Search&statefips=48%2CTEXAS