It was his grandmother, who said it wasn\u2019t safe for the family to move to Fort Worth as there \u201cwould be nothing left.\u201d About a week prior on March 28, 2000<\/a>, a tornado ripped through downtown, killing two people and injuring dozens.<\/p>\n The F-2 tornado touched down<\/a> along the West Seventh Street corridor, smashing brick factories and warehouses before hopping the Trinity River and battering downtown skyscrapers. A second tornado hit south Arlington neighborhoods about 30 minutes later, leveling six homes and damaging as many as 100 others.<\/p>\n Only a handful of years old at the time, Smat recalls flipping on his rabbit ear television and seeing exactly what his grandmother meant.<\/p>\n \u201cWatching the images of a tornado strike a major metropolis were just shocking,\u201d Smat told the Star-Telegram in a phone interview. \u201cThey still are to this day.\u201d<\/p>\n \ud83c\udfac In case you missed it: <\/p>\n Smat, 31, and his family eventually moved to Fort Worth.<\/p>\n Growing up in the 2000s as the city rebuilt was an interesting and exciting time for him. He recalls ice skating at the now-defunct Tandy Center and how the In-N-Out Burger opening on West Seventh Street was a sign of regrowth.<\/p>\n Those memories, and testimonies from Fort Worthians who lived the event, inspired Smat\u2019s new book \u2014 \u201cTornado at the Tower\u201d<\/a> \u2014 out May 12.<\/p>\n The book is described as a \u201ccharacter-driven \u2018based on a true story\u2019 novel that turns a regional weather event into an epic tale of determination, resilience, and integrity.\u201d Furthermore, Smat says the book memorializes the tragedy, while also serving as a love letter to the city before and after the event.<\/p>\n \u201cThere\u2019s so much to Fort Worth that, really, I think, still captures the magic of what it means to live on a frontier,\u201d Smat said.<\/p>\n Smat, who now lives in Phoenix and has a degree from the USC School of Cinematic Arts, has written a pair of books over the last few years.<\/p>\n In 2022, he landed a publishing deal for two books, the first about financial collapse titled \u201cPower to the Players\u201d and the other about a wedding planner fighting for her business during Covid called \u201cThe Wedding March.\u201d He also wrote and directed the 2019 film \u201cThe Last Whistle,\u201d which filmed in Fort Worth.<\/p>\n When it came to \u201cTornado at the Tower,\u201d Smat said he was inspired by the 2013 book \u201cFive Days at Memorial: Life and Death in a Storm-Ravaged Hospital\u201d and its 2022 Apple TV adaption \u201cFive Days at Memorial.\u201d Both the book and series revolve around a hospital in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina.<\/p>\n \u201cTornado at the Tower\u201d also came into shape when Smat realized he could craft a narrative out of the event, not just a collection of vignettes from those whose lived it.<\/p>\n \u201cWhether it\u2019s as a filmmaker or an author or screenwriter, anytime you encounter a narrative, you\u2019re always trying to figure out the best medium to convey it,\u201d Smat said.<\/p>\n Smat\u2019s narrative came after an initial conversation with Rusty Reid, CEO of Higginbotham Insurance and Financial Services, who recommended the author speak to Jim Eagle.<\/a><\/p>\n Eagle, a real estate executive, was dining at Reata on the top floor of the 35-story Bank One Tower when the tornado hit. His testimony of the hours leading up to the event, and years after, make up much of the book\u2019s focus.<\/p>\n With just a few credits to his name, Smat said Eagle took a leap of faith with him.<\/p>\n \u201cWe built a bridge through a bunch of half-hour and hour-long phone calls,\u201d Smat said. \u201cIt was all about listening.\u201d<\/p>\n In addition to Reid and Eagle, Smat sought out the Star-Telegram\u2019s prior coverage for \u201cTornado at the Tower.\u201d<\/p>\n He spent months going through archived stories on sites like Newspapers.com and sourced the Star-Telegram\u2019s book about the 2000 tornados \u2014 \u201cShattered.\u201d<\/a> The book is a collection of articles and photos from the event, and is why he got in touch with former staffers like photographer Ron Ennis, photographer Carolyn Bauman Cruz and photo editor David Kent, who all appear in the book.<\/p>\n Another major partner came in UT Arlington\u2019s Special Collections and Archives, which helped him view published images and photo negatives taken during that period.<\/p>\n \u201cSome of the story and some of the detail that I was able to draw are from the photo negatives,\u201d Smat said.<\/p>\n In the preface of \u201cTornado at the Tower,\u201d Smat writes that the book is a \u201cfictionalized take on a true story.\u201d<\/p>\n He found that important to include, since if this was 100% a true story, it would have required a substantial amount of research and funding to find everyone impacted by the tornado. For example, \u201cFive Days at Memorial\u201d author Sheri Fink spoke to hundreds of people, while Smat said he talked to around 20.<\/p>\n Smat continued that it would not have been accurate to say, \u201cThis is how it really happened.\u201d The fiction in the book doesn\u2019t come from him making things up, but simply because there are gaps in information from people passing away or simply forgetting details over the past two decades.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s not about me doing anyone wrong,\u201d Smat said. \u201cIt\u2019s about the circumstances of what it\u2019s like to try to write a book like this. Instead of just throwing my hands up and saying, \u2018Well, I\u2019ll never be able to interview 150 people, so why even try\u2019?\u201d<\/p>\n Like \u201cFive Days at Memorial,\u201d Smat hopes \u201cTornado at the Tower\u201d is adapted into a film or television series.<\/p>\n Cowtown has seen a bump in filming over the past few years due to \u201cYellowstone\u201d creator Taylor Sheridan<\/a> moving a majority of his productions to the area. In addition, Texas lawmakers passed a new bill<\/a> last year opening up the film incentive budget over the next decade.<\/p>\n While the 2000 tornado is still on the minds of many locals, Smat said there\u2019s an even bigger number of folks who don\u2019t know about it. That\u2019s why an adaption feels worth exploring, since this story is not just about Mother Nature but the challenges of the human existence.<\/p>\n \u201cIt feels like \u2018Twisters\u2019 meets \u2018Succession,\u2019\u201d Smat said.<\/p>\n As \u201cTornado at the Tower\u201d hits physical and virtual shelves, Smat is eager to hear from more folks about their experience that day.<\/p>\n Readers will find his email address in the book\u2019s appendix, and Smat encourages people to share their story with him. If he captures enough stories, maybe one day there could be a second edition, or the stories could serve as extra research for an adaptation.<\/p>\n Either way, Smat hopes the book serves as a form of historical preservation for the city that raised him.<\/p>\n \u201cTo be able to provide a venue for people who do find this memory to be important,\u201d Smat said. \u201cTo be able to have a foundation to discuss it.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cTornado at the Tower\u201d is out May 12.<\/p>\n Related Stories from Fort Worth Star-Telegram<\/p>\n![\"The](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/BirdhouseCoverv4Final.png\" "\\"BirdhouseCoverv4Final.png\\"")
The cover of \u201cTornado at the Tower.\u201d Courtesy of Rob Smat\/Smat Films A whirlwind start<\/p>\n![\"Author](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/SmatHeadshotC.jpeg\" "\\"SmatHeadshotC.jpeg\\"")
Author and filmmaker Rob Smat. Courtesy of Rob Smat\/Smat Films <\/p>\n![\"The](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/Hi_j0253.JPG\" "\\"Hi_j0253.JPG\\"")
The Bank One tower shows damage the day after a tornado hit Fort Worth on March 28, 2000. Years later, the restored building would become The Tower condominiums. Carolyn Mary Bauman STAR-TELEGRAM Assembling<\/p>\n![\"Firefighters](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/Hi_j0208.JPG\" "\\"Hi_j0208.JPG\\"")
Firefighters survey destruction of the Color Wheel paint store along West Seventh Street in Fort Worth after a tornado struck on March 28, 2000. Joyce Marshall STAR-TELEGRAM <\/p>\n![\"U.S.](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/Hi_j0108.JPG\" "\\"Hi_j0108.JPG\\"")
U.S. Rep. Kay Granger, with her district director Barbara A. Ragland, makes calls outside the Cash America International building where she had an office. A tornado on March 28, 2000, heavily damaged the building at 1600 W. Seventh St. near the Trinity River bridge. The building was later renovated and today is home to FirstCash. Alison Woodworth Star-Telegram Future plans<\/p>\n![\"A](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/Hi_j0219(2).JPG\" "\\"Hi_j0219(2).JPG\\"")
A tornado on March 28, 2000, overturned car near the heavily damaged Calvary Cathedral International at 1600 W. Fifth St. on the east side of Trinity River. Two women who were in the prayer tower were untouched by the 100-mph winds that ripped away the tower\u2019s walls. Today the site is The Braden on Fifth apartment building. Ron T. Ennis STAR-TELEGRAM <\/p>\n
![\"Profile](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/STAFF_BRAYDEN_GARCIA.JPG\")