It was 30 years ago Monday that multiple lives were forever changed as a deadly tornado ripped through Lamar County.
Ten people were killed, roughly 170 injured and 1,000 left homeless in Paris alone. Over 465 homes and apartments were damaged or destroyed as the tornado carved a nearly 300 yard wide path across the northern portion of the city. At its most destructive point, wind speeds were measured in the EF-4 category of up to 260 mph.
The day would eventually produce 17 tornadoes across three states, according to the National Weather Service.
As the twister continued through Lamar County it damaged or destroyed 75 homes and businesses in Reno and at least 17 in Blossom.
The storm had previously traveled through Fannin County, where six homes, two mobile homes, ten barns, and numerous power lines and outbuildings were destroyed. The most significant damage in that county occurred just north of Bonham, in Allen’s Chapel and Allen’s Point. One person was killed and another injured.
The 30th anniversary comes a year after one of the most historic severe weather season’s nationwide. That sparked an influx in local storm spotters training seminars for this season. Collectively, more than 5,000 attended the county-by-county seminars in the 46 county region of the National Weather Service’s Ft. Worth office.