No funnel cloud after Wednesday night tornado warning

In the wake of storms that rumbled through the area Wednesday night into Thursday morning, much of Clovis woke up to find they had slept through a tornado warning.

City officials confirmed a tornado warning was posted for a portion of the county, but it never reached the stage of using the city’s emergency sirens.

“There was a tornado warning issued by the National Weather Service for the extreme southwest corner of Curry County, which included Melrose,” Clovis Emergency Management Director Dan Heerding said. “A hook pattern on the radar indicated rotating weather. The tornado warning expired at 1 a.m. (Thursday) and continued as a severe thunderstorm warning.

“There was no tornado or funnel cloud and no damage in that area. The consensus is nothing hit the ground.”

Heerding said no warnings were needed within the Clovis city limits.

“It wasn’t prudent to set off the Clovis sirens,” he said. “There was no threat to the area. The sirens would have sounded only if the threat was imminently geared toward us in the city.”

National Weather Service Meteorologist Randall Hergert said Curry County has received 1.5 inches to 2.10 inches of rainfall between Sunday and 7 a.m. Thursday.