'The Whole House Was Literally Shaking' As Tornado Hit
HOUSTON (CBSDFW.COM) -- If flooding was not enough of a concern one day after Hurricane Harvey made landfall, the outer bands of the storm pushed strong gusts of wind throughout Houston and in some cases, created tornadoes.
The Harris County Sheriff's Office said it believed a tornado ripped through a neighborhood in the Houston suburb of Cypress.
"I could see it coming right at us," said Dale Folmer. "It sounded like a freight train coming through here."
Folmer said he was convinced it was a tornado circling toward his house on Saturday evening. He said he heard the warning being broadcast over local TV news, walked outside, and saw the circling clouds.
"I'd always said, 'You know what? I don't know if I trust what's being said.' I guarantee you now, I'm a believer," said Folmer
Folmer's truck window was blown out, his fence was leveled and his garage door was punctured by the strong winds.
Folmer and many others in his neighborhood said they felt fortunate.
"It was right there. I started screaming, oh my God, oh my God," said Marilyn Shaughnessy. "The whole house was literally shaking."
While many in the Cypress neighborhood suffered roof damage and watched trees topple in their yards, Shaughnessy said somehow the possible tornado missed her home.
"I just feel like the good Lord was looking out after me," said Shaughnessy.
In Katy, business owners were convinced they too were hit by a tornado.
"You just never know about tornadoes," said Gloria Bryant. "Never in a million years did I think it'd hit here."
Bryant's office on her used car lot was picked up and tossed across the street into a nearby storage facility.
"It's devastating. Very devastating," said Bryant. "But we'll survive. None of us were hurt and that's the main thing."
The outer bands of Harvey were so strong, they bent a steel billboard pillar to the ground.
"This weather is unpredictable and you don't know," said Bryant. "Just because you're not there in Corpus or wherever it hit -- Rockport -- that doesn't mean you're out of the woods…because you're not."
