Unusual Houston-area tornadoes not part of larger trend, meteorologist says

MONTGOMERY, Texas (KTRK) -- Many people across the Houston area are working to repair their homes and businesses after six tornadoes swept through over the weekend.

Hilliary Dumas, the owner of Ransom's Steakhouse and Saloon in Montgomery, got a call from an employee Saturday at about 9:25 p.m., as one of the six confirmed tornadoes wreaked havoc on her restaurant.

"They called and said, 'The south side patio is gone. There is a hole in the roof' and they were all in the office. So I got here 10 minutes later," Dumas explained.

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The front facade blew off, the side patio was destroyed, and a beam came through the restaurant during the storm.

"We had several inches of water in various areas of the restaurant," said Dumas.

Airing out and repairs continued on Monday, with hopes of reopening the restaurant Tuesday or Wednesday. ABC13 also asked a weather expert, just how out of the ordinary is it for our area to get so many confirmed tornadoes this time of year?

"It is a bit unusual. These cool-season tornadoes do happen in Texas, but to get six all at once like that is a little bit unusual," explained Dan Reilly, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service.

Reilly said he remembers other instances in the Houston area where multiple tornadoes were confirmed in a short amount of time.

"I remember one where there was 12 or 13 in Brazoria and Galveston, and up into southeast Harris (County). That was Halloween 2015," recalled Reilly.

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However, when we asked about this type of severe weather being part of a larger weather trend, he said he does not think so.

"It just so happens that everything comes together and we can get kind of a rash of tornadoes like we had but it's a little premature to say it's part of any sort of trend," said Reilly.

That comes as a welcome word for those working to fix things up.

"You can build it back, but you can't change lives and all of that. So we are just really fortunate that everyone is safe," said Dumas.

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