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NEWS

F1 tornado hits Bowie Friday, massive damage to buildings

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By BARBARA GREEN
editor@bowienewsonline.com
An F1 tornado tore through the heart of Bowie on May 22 damaging or destroying more than 106 businesses and 316 residences. Throughout the weekend citizens started picking up the pieces with the help of neighbors and a barrage of state and area resources.
Graduation day
Last Friday was an exciting day in Bowie as the high school senior class was celebrated with a huge down town parade providing a new tradition to what has been a non-traditional graduation season thanks to COVID-19. With everyone looking forward to commencement at 8 p.m. at Jackrabbit Stadium, no one had any idea things were about to change for the community.
Graduation was cancelled about an hour before tornado sirens started going off at 8:28 p.m. as emergency communications teams and the weather service issued the tornado warnings.
One funnel was seen outside Bellevue at the edge of Montague County and other swirling formations were being watched as the system moved closer. The F1 tornado arrived in the midst of heavy rain, straight line winds and hail of varying sizes.
Read the full storm on Friday’s tornado and the resulting damage in your mid-week Bowie News.

Bowie Mayor Gaylynn Burris and Gary Steelman of Samaritan’s Purse at Sunday’s press briefing. (Photo by Barbara Green)
A crane lifts a roof from a building on Smythe Street. (Courtesy photo)
Damaged apartments at Wilbarger and Mill. (Photo by Barbara Green)
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NEWS

Rains bring relief to parched county

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After nearly three months of no rain, Mother Nature brought the showers this past week.
Downtown Bowie rain reports varied from 7 to 8 inches, while the Saint Jo area reported a 10-inch total. The city water plant in Bowie reported 5.55 inches on Sept. 30 with 1.6 Oct. 1-3.
Nocona saw a total of 6.31 inches of rain across Sept. 26 to Oct. 3.
On Oct. 6, Lake Amon G. Carter saw a level of 917.39 mean sea level rising to 81.31% full. Just one week earlier the lake was 73.6% full, while one year ago it was 94.01%. The lake is full at 920msl.
Lake Nocona was 73.7% full at 823.02 on Oct 6. One week earlier it was 70.41% full and one year ago it was 92.41%. The lake is full at 827.5 msl.

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NEWS

Data centers worrying citizens

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By BARBARA GREEN
editor@bowienewsonline.com
One Montague County City has joined the battle against any data centers being built in this county and there is a petition drive underway to urge the commissioner’s court to keep data centers out of Montague County.
At a Sept. 28 called meeting of the Saint Jo City Council, officials unanimously approved a resolution stating its opposition to the “siting, permitting, construction or operation of data centers and similar hyperscale computing facilities within the city limits or the city’s extraterritorial jurisdiction.”
City Secretary Debbie Dennis said several citizens approached Councilor Jack Dunn about their data center concerns and he helped prepare a resolution. The council gave unanimous support.

Read the full story in your Thursday Bowie News.

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NEWS

Montague County lifts burn ban

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Montague County Judge Kevin Benton has signed an order lifting the outdoor burn ban effective Oct. 7.

Persons are still urged to be cautious when they are out working in the countryside to avoid any spark that could cause a wildfire.

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