Severe thunderstorms in southeastern Texas have resulted in the deaths of seven people and have left over 500,000 homes and businesses without power.
Officials have stated that residents in the affected area may be without power for weeks following the storm on Thursday, which featured winds up to 110 mph (177 km/h).
The severe thunderstorms knocked down 10 major power transmission towers across the affected region, leading to power outages for over 930,000 customers at the height of the storm on Thursday night. The majority of these widespread blackouts were centered in Harris County.
More than 600,000 customers in the county were still without power as of Friday afternoon.
The majority of the deaths were caused by fallen trees, downed power lines, and lightning strikes.
The severe weather has now moved into neighboring Louisiana, leading to flood warnings being issued for the Gulf Coast region.
“I’ve never seen windows blow out like this, even in a hurricane,” a Houston native out with his rescue dog, Zed, Danny Treviño said.
Officials on Friday night, officials announced the deaths of three more people, taking the toll to seven.
An 85-year-old woman died in a fire sparked by lightning, a 57-year-old man died trying to move a damaged electrical pole and another man who required oxygen was found unresponsive after he lost electricity.
On Friday, officials stated that 2 people died earlier as one died due to falling trees and another person was killed when a crane fell over.
In a Friday news conference, the top government official in Harris County, Texas Judge Lina Hidalgo, stated that at least two tornados struck the region on Thursday night.
The traffic lights were not lit on Friday, office windows were blown through and glass strewn across the city’s streets.
The Houston Independent School District had called for a holiday on Friday.
Houston’s National Weather Service warned for thunderstorms and flash flooding across the country.
President Biden has issued a major disaster declaration for Texas, allowing federal assistance to supplement state and local recovery efforts in the areas impacted by the severe weather, including the recent thunderstorms as well as the ongoing storms and flooding since April 26.
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Deadly storms buffet US, leave hundreds of thousands without power
