ALTO, TX (KLTV) - The job of trying to figure out exact details, wind speed, 'F' levels and damage assessment in destruction like what happened in Alto, falls upon investigators from the National Weather Service. Two teams from Shreveports’ National Weather Service canvassed all of Alto in an assessment of not only damage, but exactly what caused it. “Springtime in Texas, we have severe weather frequently. We’re out trying to track these storms to find how intense they were. It’s probably one of the most destructive storms that we’ve had. We’ve seen EF-0 damage, but 100 yards down the road we might see EF-2 damage,” says NWS meteorologist Mario Valverde. "We need to determine is it a tornado, or other kind of wind like squall line, straight line wind or micro-burst. We have to look at different types of damage top determine wind speed," says NWS meteorologist Charlie Woodrum. Their mission is to find out how every tree came down and how every home was damaged. Indicators like tree-debarking is what they're looking for. “EF-2 to EF-3 tornadoes can actually rip the bark off the trunks of trees, that’s called de-barking. We had about F-2 damage 120 miles per hour, just from that damage indicator. We’re looking at the trees, radar imagery to establish a timeline,” Woodrum says. A difficult job, knowing that they are assessing the suffering of people effected by the damage. "People have gone through this tragedy less than 24 hours ago and we're knocking on their door asking if they can help us. We need to be helping them," Valverde says. "Help people by helping them understand what happened and why it happened," says Woodrum. The National Weather Service will compile data from the storm damage and release an official report at a later date. To help the victims of these storms, click here to donate to either the American Red Cross or the East Texas Food Bank. Both agencies are working daily in these storm-impacted areas of East Texas. Copyright 2019 KLTV. All rights reserved.<doc-sep>A Virginia woman was killed after a tree fell on her home. At least nine people have died, including two children who were crushed inside a car in Angelina County, Texas, as a result of severe storms that ripped through the South over the weekend, according to The Associated Press. The latest death occurred early Monday morning in Stafford, Virginia, where a 78-year-old woman became pinned underneath a tree that fell on her home, ABC affiliate WJLA reported. The woman and an 82-year-old man were sleeping when the tree fell. The man was transported to a local hospital with non-life threatening injuries. Two people, including a 13-year-old, died in floodwaters Saturday near Ouachita Parish, Louisiana, the AP reported. The teen died during flash flooding in the community of Bawcomville, near Monroe, and was pulled from a drainage canal, according to reports. In Alabama, a county employee was struck by a vehicle early Sunday as he was helping to clear downed trees near Birmingham, according to the AP. One person died overnight in Monroe County, Mississippi, as a reported tornado ripped through Hamilton, about 45 miles northeast of the campus of Mississippi State University. In Alto, Texas, 25 people attending a field day were transported to a local hospital with injuries. In nearby Caddo Mound, one woman died when a tornado ripped through a Native American cultural festival. In Houston County, the sheriff's office told the AP another person was killed in a nearby town. Around 2:15 p.m. Saturday, the Angelina County Sheriff's Department in east Texas received a call about a tree that fell on a car where two children, ages 3 and 8, were trapped in the back seat. A rescue team with the local fire department was able to remove the kids but they were pronounced dead on the scene, police said. A strong line of thunderstorms brought damaging wind gusts for much of the east Sunday night into Monday morning, with tornado watches in effect from the Florida Panhandle to southern Ohio. Gusty thunderstorms impacted residents from Washington, D.C., to New York City between 2 a.m. and 6 a.m., bringing flash flooding to some urban areas. Wind gusts topped 72 mph in Outer Banks, North Carolina, 71 mph near Norfolk, Virginia, and 63 mph in Provincetown, Massachusetts. The storm left 15,000 without power in Massachusetts and delayed the start of the Boston marathon. The Midwest experienced some extreme weather as well, with a blast of spring snow -- 5 to 9 inches in some areas -- impacting locations from Montana to Illinois and Michigan. The severe weather outbreak began Saturday morning in parts of the South with reports of large hail in Texas, Louisiana and Mississippi. Twenty-one tornadoes were reported across Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama and Ohio. Overall, 428 instances of damaging weather, which also included damaging wind gusts and large hail, were reported from Texas to Connecticut. An EF-3 tornado with winds up to 140 mph was confirmed in Robertson County, Texas, over the weekend. Two more tornadoes -- one an EF-2 and another an EF-3 -- were confirmed in Cherokee County, Texas. More than 150,000 customers were without power across five states -- Texas, Missouri, Mississippi, Alabama and Louisiana -- on Sunday morning. ABC News' Max Golembo, Daniel Manzo and Daniel Peck contributed to this report.<doc-sep>
Weather Texas Tornadoes: Dozens Hurt, 2 Kids Killed Amid Powerful Storms Up to 40 people injured in at Caddo Mounds Historic Site, more than a dozen hurt in Franklin and two children killed in Pollok amid storms. Reply Tornadoes touching down throughout Texas on Saturday left a trail of death and destruction. (Patch Graphic ) FRANKLIN, TX — Multiple tornadoes hit Texas Saturday afternoon as a wave of extreme weather moved through the southern United States. Accuweather reported two children were killed after a tree fell on a vehicle in which they were traveling during a severe storm, according to the Angelina County Sheriff's Office. According to Angelina County Sheriff's Captain Alton Lendermen, the 3-year old and 8-year old children were in a car with their parents on DeWitt Hinson Road in Pollok, Texas. On Saturday evening, 25 people were reportedly injured at Caddo Mounds State Historic Site, CBS 19 reported. Concert-goers at the site in in Alto, Texas, were attending the Caddo Culture Day, an annual Native American heritage festival at Caddo Mounds, when two separate storms hit at around 11:45 a.m. and again at 1:20 p.m., according to the news report. The historic site is closed until further notice after being impacted by severe weather. Just got to Alto, Texas. Please pray for these people. @KLTV7 @KTREnews pic.twitter.com/6xK95m8p4R — Blake Holland (@tblakeholland) April 13, 2019 Located in Cherokee County with a population of just over 1,200 residents, Alto is the closest municipality to the Caddo Mounds State Historic Site, an archaeological site dating back to 800 CE that features a prehistoric village and ceremonial center. A KLTV crew surveyed the damage, videotaping the destruction left in the wake of the powerful storms there: VIDEO: Damage in #Alto, Texas. Credit: Jessica Bricarell @KLTV7 pic.twitter.com/Pv43TM4hhF — Blake Holland (@tblakeholland) April 13, 2019 Reports of tornadoes also emerged from Robertson County, Houston County and another in Leon County and Cherokee County. Significant damage in Franklin, Texas, was reported along with more than a dozen injuries but no fatalities. According to the NWS office in Dallas, the total number of tornadoes and their intensity remains unknown. Weather officials will be conducting storm surveys to determine the impact. Structural damage was reported in Franklin and there are reports of trees down on U.S. 79 from Franklin to Marquez, the NWS says. The agency also said there are reports of damage in Marquez, Jewett and Buffalo.