Valley View warning siren malfunctioned during tornado, fire department confirms
Valley View tornado sirens malfunctioned during storm
Families in Cooke County continue to mourn the loss of their loved ones after Saturday's tornado outbreak. People who live in Valley View did not receive a warning from an alert siren before the storm hit. FOX 4's Shannon Murray has the city's explanation.
VALLEY VIEW, Texas - The Valley View Volunteer Fire Department confirmed on Wednesday that the storm warning siren was not working Saturday night when an EF-3 tornado hit the area, killing seven people and injuring hundreds of others.
The VFD initially reported the information on Monday but deleted the Facebook post shortly after.
Now, the volunteer fire department says it determined after an investigation that the warning siren malfunctioned when firefighters tried to activate it.
It also says that the siren had not been tested in the two months prior because of bad weather conditions on those testing days.
The city requires a test on the first Thursday of every month.
Wiring was another issue. The fire department says the city recently renovated the building where power is drawn for the siren. A wiring issue discovered on Tuesday has since been fixed.
The fire department also adds that the range of the siren is about a half mile for people outdoors and shorter for people indoors. But, the area hit hardest in Valley View is approximately three miles away from the siren.
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North Texas tornado victims: What we know
While many North Texas are working to clean-up the damage left behind by Saturday night's tornadoes, we are learning more about 7 victims who lost their life.
The EF-3 tornado destroyed hundreds of homes in Cooke County. Seven people were killed.
A family in Valley View said Victor Manuel Ortiz, who was visiting them from Mexico, was one of the victims.
He, his wife, and their son were asleep when the storm hit their mobile home and they did not have time to take shelter.
Victor Ortiz
The couple would have celebrated their 52nd wedding anniversary in October. She was released from the hospital on Wednesday.
"She has the hardest loss of us all. She's probably number one priority for now," said Edgar Ortiz, Victor's grandson. "It was heartbreaking when it happened and I don't think I'll ever recover fully."
The six others who died include 9-year-old Marco Esparza, his 15-year-old sister, Miranda, and their mother, Laura. 57-year-old Loyd Wayne Watson also died. And siblings Tyrique and Essence McCary, who were 5 and 2, died.