Rowlett's police chief gives update after December tornadoes

ROWLETT, Texas - Tomorrow will mark one month since a deadly tornado outbreak in North Texas. But there’s still a lot to clean up.

Rowlett’s police chief gave a tour of the affected areas. Almost 1,000 of homes were damaged and nearly 150 were destroyed.

Chief Mike Brodnax said early warning systems may have saved lives.

“When we came through here after the storm we could see that was standing, but this house was just demolished. It was just rubble. But that room right there definitely saved this family’s life and probably a couple of neighbors,” he said.

Only one person in Rowlett died because of the tornadoes. Twelve others in Garland, Copeville and Blue Ridge were killed.

The chief said the city's next step is to find a low bidder to start moving debris out of the neighborhoods.

Due to congestion in some areas, some streets remain temporarily marked as one-way.

The city of Garland is expected to complete its second phase of debris removal tomorrow in the affected areas.

The third phase starts Wednesday and will last through Feb. 13. Debris must be separated from trash, or it will not be picked up.

More than 800 homes in Garland were damaged or destroyed.