Tornado, storms rip through area

Several local families woke up to disaster but are still counting their blessings after a tornado preliminarily rated EF-2 ripped through parts of Stephens County.

The tornado started south of Comanche near the Jefferson County line and went northeast, destroying and damaging homes going as far as Highway 29 and beyond. Stephens County Emergency Management reported 27 buildings damaged in the wake. 

While the tornado did not reach the city limits, there was still significant damage, mostly downed trees and power lines. 

City utility supervisor Lester Lehew said his crew worked 19 hours after the storm, 12 more on Monday and eight more on Tuesday getting everything up and running to full power.

Comanche fire chief Scooter Bivins said the fire department spent 10 hours east of town on Sunday morning helping to clear roadways and clean up.

Stephens County District 3 Commissioner Russell Morgan said the tornado did not stay on the ground the whole time, but would move up and down along the path.

He said there was also storm damage in Duncan, including the election board office, which was just two days away from conducting a presidential election.

“Fortunately, none of the ballots that had already been cast in early voting had been damaged,” Morgan said. 

The commissioners had to get permission from the district attorney’s office to communicate with each other to address the issue. Under normal circumstances, commissioners are not allowed to communicate outside of commissioner meetings. They kept the DA’s office in the loop on their communication.

Stories have emerged of families scrambling for shelter to stay alive. James and Shelbi Morgan, agricultural instructors at Comanche High School and the commissioner’s son and daughter-in-law found themselves having to cover their children with their own bodies because they didn’t have enough time to get to the storm shelter. 

Their house suffered significant damage but was not destroyed by the tornado. 

Vehicles were destroyed, trailers twisted and miles of fence have disappeared on their property.

Nick and Jacy Dobbins, who live near Comanche Lake, had their home struck hard by the tornado. Jacy and a daughter were the only ones home at the time. They escaped to the basement with only about a minute to spare before the tornado ripped the roof off of their house.

“They’ve started the trek of putting their life back together,” said Pam Dobbins, Nick’s mother. 

Russell Morgan said many people were coming to the property and wanting to help.

Nearby, the Combs residence took an even worse hit.

“It’s just a miracle that no one was hurt,” Morgan said of the storm.

Morgan said school officials, coaches and other volunteers are there helping to clean up the property.

“I look and we have 50 cars at the house and then I look and see the Combs’ place and they have 50 cars over there. I’m sure the Dobbins are the same way,” Morgan said.

He said State Senator-Elect Spencer Kern has been by, which Morgan said he appreciated because Kern can be a voice to the governor’s office for those who suffered damage. 

As cleanup continues, no public traffic has been allowed down the road to the golf course area.

Morgan said commissioners have contacted the governor’s office about declaring Stepehens County a disaster area. 

“Once he does that, it will open us up to FEMA or small business loans and stuff like that,” Morgan said.