UPDATE: Widespread Damage in Brown County
By: News Desk
Updated: May 9, 2009
Saturday 9:00 a.m. UpdateThe Kroger grocery store and adjoining Family Dollar store were hard hit, with major roof damage, and one of the Kroger signs was destroyed reported KTAB-KRBC Chief Videographer Andrew Carlson. All over Brown County trees and limbs were blown over, as were light poles and power lines.
Additionally, a bigcountryhomepage.com reader reported damaged to at least one light pole in the parking lot of the mall. Click here to e-mail us your storm damage reports and scroll down to upload your pictures to bigcountryhomepage.com.
Friday 11:30 p.m.
Heavy rains poured and high winds blew across southern Brown County Friday night causing widespread damage and power outages.
The Brownwood Emergency Management office had the National Weather Service issue a Civil Emergency Message at 10pm to urge city residents to stay off streets and roads because of flash flooding and storm debris on the roads.
Street crews put up barricades in several locations. The Coleman Fire Department was called in to assist the Brownwood Fire department during the emergency.
We talked with the manager of the Kroger Store in Brownwood who said they had roof damage with water pouring into the store, with ceiling tiles falling. Customers and employees were in the store when the storm hit, there were no injuries reported. The Adams Street Community Center in Brownwood was opened in case any residents homes were flooded and they needed shelter.
The National Weather Service in San Angelo reported that 69 mile an hour sustained winds were recorded at the Brownwood Municipal Airport by the Aviation Weather System. Law enforcement reported golf ball sized hail at Lake Brownwood at 7:50pm.
A trained spotter in Early reported a tornado at about 7:57pm, but there was no report of specific damage.
At 8:18 p.m. sixty-nine mile an hour sustained winds were recorded at the Brownwood Municipal Airport by the Aviation Weather System.
A trained spotter in May reported 70 mile an hour winds which resulted in wind damage to roofs and large tree limbs broken. The spotter also reported 1.75 inch diameter hail.
At Bangs sustained winds of 60 mph were reported by the fire department, along with 1.75 inch diameter hail.
A Flash Flood Warning was issued for southern Brown county for several hours as well.
Meteorologists say the high winds, hail and rain was the result of a large supercell storm which built early this evening along a weak cold front that moved east across the Big Country. 
A Tornado Watch was also issued until midnight for Brown, Callahan, Coleman, Mills, Runnels, Shackelford, Stephens, and Taylor Counties.
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