On Wednesday, Oct. 4, the National Weather Service issued a severe thunderstorms watch along with warnings of possible flash floods and half-dollar-sized hail for parts of North Texas.
Around 8:0 p.m. sudden and intense gusts of winds surprised fans ready to cheer at an FC Dallas game against the Colorado Rapids that had to be canceled due to the dangerous weather. At first, organizers delayed the match before deciding to cancel it altogether and called fans to seek shelter.
Our match against the Colorado Rapids tonight has been postponed due to inclement weather.
— FC Dallas (@FCDallas) October 5, 2023
The rescheduled match date will be announced at a later time
Additional information on the 2023 MLS Match Delay, Postponement, Cancellation and Forfeiture Policy is available here:… pic.twitter.com/fcG4E1EZtD
According to CBS News, the Frisco Fire Department reported two fans were injured by debris carried across the field by the powerful wind. Fox 4 reported that one of the injured attendees was hit by a giant letter O detached from the Toyota Stadium lettering on the north concourse.
While the fans suffered non-threatening injuries, one of them, an 8-year-old child needed to be transported to the hospital for treatment, but is expected to be ok.
The storm caused havoc in other parts of the DFW area as well. In west Fort Worth, the roof of In Depth, a tattoo shop was ripped off while an employee was still inside. “Out of nowhere within seconds, snap of a finger, everything, the windows just turned gray, rain was going sideways, and you just feel the impact when it hit on the roof. Water started pouring in," the employee told WFAA.
Near Plano, some trees limbs and fences were knocked over and flash floods and ping-pong-sized hail were reported in parts of Fort Worth and Dallas, according to WFAA.
As for the canceled match between FC Dallas and the Colorado Rapids, fans will need to stay tuned for the new date to be announced later, according to FC Dallas.