2 tornadoes touched down in Plum Grove area of Liberty County during severe weather on Tuesday, National Weather Service confirms

LIBERTY COUNTY, Texas (KTRK) — Two tornadoes touched down in Liberty County on Tuesday during severe weather, the National Weather Service confirmed.

On Wednesday, the NWS told ABC13 Chief Meteorologist Travis Herzog that after checking damage in the Plum Grove area, it confirmed two tornadoes had touched down.

Eyewitness News covered the severe weather live as it happened, ABC13’s Liliana Pearson reporting from an intersection where trees and power lines were down.

On Wednesday morning, SkyEye flew over northern Liberty County and captured images of several properties with mangled metal structures among scattered debris and downed trees.

Investigators said the first tornado appeared to have touched down in a wooded area between County Roads 3708 and 3709, then moved east before lifting near River Lane.

Investigators used a drone to locate damage, including broken pine logs and branches in a wooded area, as well as a collapsed fence, the NWS said. They also noted that the power lines were destroyed, but the poles remained standing.

According to the NWS, the second tornado formed shortly after the same storm and touched down about 5,000 feet away, near Farm to Market 1010 and Wooden Lane.

Investigators said the tornado uprooted a tree and broke a wooden sign where it landed, then damaged a metal structure off Farm to Market 1010. They also reported that the Bella Vista subdivision was affected, with damage to trees, fences and another metal structure. No damage was found past the intersection of County Roads 3043 and 3410.

Surveyors estimated that the first tornado lasted less than a minute, with maximum wind speeds of 80 mph. They said the second tornado stayed on the ground for more than 1.5 miles and had winds reaching 85 mph.

The NWS assigned both tornadoes a preliminary rating of EF-0 on the Enhanced Fujita scale, the lowest rating.