Sixty-two years ago today a major tornado struck Waco – killing 114 people, seriously injuring 145, and causing roughly 50 million dollars in damages. The event would become the deadliest tornado in Texas history.
But many didn’t think a tornado would ever hit the city. That’s because, according to Huaco Indian lore, the area was safe from tornados due to its location along the Brazos and Bosque rivers.
"And nobody worried about the tornado hitting Waco," Davis said. "We knew there were tornados in the area, the newspapers said there were tornados in the area. But nobody worried about it. The Indians said tornados didn’t hit Waco – but that got proved wrong."
That’s Donald Davis. He’s the director of the Historic Waco Foundation. Davis was at St. Paul’s Church on that fated date, only several blocks away from where the tornado hit.
“The tornado changed the whole direction and complexion of the city of Waco," Davis said.
The tornado was classified as an F-5, the deadliest designation in the Fujita scale. According to the National Weather Service, at this level winds are in excess of 260 miles per hour, trees are debarked, and strong-framed houses are leveled off their foundations and swept away.
It was reported that some survivors waited up to 14 hours to be rescued. The city received more than 9 million dollars in aid. The Waco tornado – and the damage left in its path – spurred the creation of the Texas Tornado Warning Conference, which led to the early development of the SKYWARN program – a nationwide severe weather monitor.