AUSTIN (Talk1370.com) -- Strong to severe storms brought heavy rains and even a couple of tornadoes to Central Texas Thursday morning.
While most of the tornado warnings issued Thursday morning by the National Weather Service were for radar-indicated rotation, Caldwell County emergency officials confirmed a tornado near the area of Schuelke Road and Rolling Ridge Road in the northern part of the county around 8 a.m.
A building that was formerly an old schoolhouse had its roof lifted off, according to officials. No other significant damage or injuries were reported.
Later warnings were issued for radar-indicated rotation as storms moved through parts of Hays County.
Heavy rains fell in parts of the Hill Country for much of the overnight hours. Many gauges operated by the Lower Colorado River Authority reported totals of 7 inches or more, with one gauge near Cherokee reporting more than 8 inches of rain in the past 24 hours.
LCRA officials said two floodgates were being opened at Starcke Dam, while one floodgate was being partially opened at Wirtz Dam.
As of 1 p.m., the NWS reporting site at Camp Mabry had reported 2.28 inches of rain; the reporting site at Austin-Bergstrom International Airport had picked up slightly over 2 inches.
City of Austin officials said ATXFloods.com was experiencing high traffic with the storm activity, with concerned residents checking the status of low water crossings across the area. The release said closings would also be available on the service's X page.
Scattered showers are expected to continue into Friday and much of the weekend, ahead of a strong cold front Sunday into Monday that will drop temperatures into the 40s on Monday and lower to mid 50s on Tuesday.
