Texas grandma shares incredible dashcam footage from inside the eye of a TORNADO that struck her SUV

A woman has shared video of how she and her daughter and grandson had to ride out the frightening, tornado that hit Texas Tuesday from inside their car.

Irma Cantu’s dashcam caught the twister as it passed overhead while she and her daughter were on their way home after picking up Cantu’s grandson from school.   

She could only watch as the wind, rain and visible debris hit her SUV. 

‘I just looked around there was nowhere that we could go,’ Cantu said. ‘So I just put the car in park, I put my emergency brake on. I could feel objects hitting my car repeatedly it was terrifying.’

This was the view a Texas woman shared of how she and her daughter and grandson had to ride out the frightening, destructive tornado that hit Texas Tuesday from inside their ca

Luckily, no one in Cantu’s car was hurt, but there was extensive damage done to the vehicle.  

Videos showed extensive damage with downed power lines and debris fields running miles wide throughout the Texas suburbs Tuesday, along with destroyed buildings, including an animal shelter. 

The National Weather Service had issued a tornado emergency for the area, warning that a ‘large, extremely dangerous and potentially deadly tornado’ was on the ground Tuesday afternoon and was headed toward Baytown, about 25 miles east of Houston. The warning expired as the system moved to the east, leaving behind cooler temperatures. 

Strong winds damaged commercial buildings, homes and power lines in nearby Pasadena, a city southeast of Houston. Utility poles and power lines were downed, and several vehicles, including a trailer, were damaged or flipped over in a parking lot. 

There were no reports of serious injuries.

Irma Cantu’s dashcam caught the twister as it passed through while she and her daughter were on their way home after picking up Cantu’s grandson from school that day

She could only watch as the wind and rain and as she put it, visible debris were hitting her SUV

Luckily, no one in Cantu’s car was hurt, but there was extensive damage done to the SUV

Drone footage shows the extent of the damage of a powerful storm system that took aim at the Gulf Coast on Tuesday, spawning a tornado that caused damage east of Houston with wind of up to 100 miles per hours

A drone camera flying over Pasadena showed roofing and siding completely wrecked, allowing cameras to peak into people’s torn up homes. There were also several trees down and some flooding. 

Several businesses suffered major damage, including the city’s animal shelter. Nearby, fences were laid over and shingles and sections of roofs were torn from homes. The American Red Cross said it was opening a shelter in Pasadena.

Shell Chemicals´ site in nearby Deer Park was flaring, or burning off natural gas, after it lost steam because of severe weather, according to Shell spokesperson Curtis Smith.

‘We are taking steps to minimize any noise, light, or smoke associated with this activity, though it’s expected to continue until the units are restarted,’ Smith said via email. 

‘There is no threat to the community, nor are there any indications a nearby tornado touched down within the Chemicals facility.’

An animal shelter in Pasadena announced that it was destroyed by the extreme weather.

A drone camera flying over Pasadena showed roofing and siding completely wrecked, allowing cameras to peak into people’s torn up homes. There were also several trees down and some flooding 

A camping trailer sits in a retention pond where a tornado was reported to pass along Mickey Gilley Blvd., near Fairmont Parkway, Tuesday, January 24, 2023, in Pasadena, Texas

Couple heading to pick up their daughter from school stops to help a driver stuck in an overturned truck at Fairmont and the Beltway

Downed power lines and signs were seen everywhere off of Spencer Highway near Deer Park

Tornado damage along Spencer Highway about a mile east of Beltway 8 near Houston

Videos showed extensive damage with downed power lines and debris fields running miles wide throughout the Texas suburbs and destroyed buildings, including an animal shelter

The National Weather Service had issued a tornado emergency for that area, warning that a ‘large, extremely dangerous and potentially deadly tornado’ was on the ground Tuesday afternoon and was headed toward Baytown, about 25 miles east of Houston. The warning expired as the system moved to the east

There were downed power lines and damage to homes and businesses in Baytown, but no reports of serious injuries, said Baytown spokesperson Jason Calder

Footage from Houston TV station KTRK showed damage to buildings and power lines in Pasadena, a city southeast of Houston, including doors knocked off a Harley-Davidson dealership

Several businesses suffered major damage, including the city’s animal shelter. Nearby, fences were laid over and shingles and sections of roofs were torn from homes, but there were no immediate reports of injuries

Pasadena’s animal shelter wrote a Facebook note confirming the building had been destroyed and asking for help relocating the animals

The shelter wrote on its Facebook page: ‘We have a volunteer heading there now to see how we can help but all of the dogs are going to need a safe place. If you have any room (even in your garage) and have the heart to open your home to any of these poor animals now is the time to step up! This is going to take the rescue village!’

A camping trailer sits in a retention pond where a tornado was reported to pass along Mickey Gilley Blvd., near Fairmont Parkway

A powerful storm system took aim at the Gulf Coast on Tuesday, spawning a tornado that caused damage east of Houston with wind of up to 100 miles per hours

The Pasadena Animal Shelter wrote on Facebook: ‘We have a volunteer heading there now to see how we can help but all of the dogs are going to need a safe place. If you have any room (even in your garage) and have the heart to open your home to any of these poor animals now is the time to step up! This is going to take the rescue village!’

Many schools and businesses were closed Tuesday and Wednesday across Oklahoma. 

Some places saw snowfall totals of between 1 and 6 inches across central and eastern parts of the state. 

Several school districts in southwest Louisiana dismissed students early Tuesday in anticipation of severe weather in the area.

The police chief of Deer Park, Texas said that no one had been hurt.