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Severe storms kill at least four in Houston

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Severe storms kill at least four in Houston

Fast-moving thunderstorms hit southeast Texas for the second time this month, killing at least four people, blowing out windows of high-rise buildings, felling trees and knocking out power to more than 900,000 homes and businesses in the Houston area. to stay on the roads after Thursday’s storms, as many were impassable and traffic lights were out. The storm system moved in quickly, but flood watches and warnings remained Friday for Houston and areas to the east. Houston Mayor John Whitmire said four people died during the severe weather. At least two of the deaths were caused by falling trees and another occurred when a crane exploded in high winds, authorities said. Streets in Houston were flooded and trees and power lines fell throughout the area. Whitmire said wind speeds reached 100 mph “with a few tornadoes.” Whitmire said the powerful gusts were reminiscent of 2008’s Hurricane Ike, which hit the city. “Stay home tonight. Do not go to work tomorrow unless you are an essential worker. Stay home, take care of your children,” Whitmire said during a briefing Thursday evening. “Our first responders will be working around the clock.” Gulf Coast states could experience scattered severe thunderstorms with tornadoes, large hail and damaging winds. Heavy to excessive rain is possible Friday from eastern Louisiana to central Alabama, the National Weather Service said. Video above: Texas storm damaged windows of buildings in downtown Houston. In Houston, hundreds of windows were broken in downtown hotels and office buildings, with glass littering the ground. streets below, and the state was sending agents from the Department of Public Safety to secure the area. “Downtown is a mess,” Whitmire said, adding that there was a backlog of 911 calls that first responders were working on. Louisiana and left more than 215,000 customers without power. More than 100,000 Entergy Louisiana customers in the New Orleans area lost power, NOLA.com reported. The Storm Prediction Center website posted a report of a tornado in Convent, Louisiana, about 55 miles from New Orleans, with several reports of trees and utility poles. There were wind gusts of 84 mph at Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport and 82 mph at New Orleans Lakefront Airport, according to Tim Erickson, a meteorologist with the Weather Services Office of the New Orleans and Baton Rouge. Video above: Massive trees fall on vehicle during Houston storm The New Orleans and Baton Rouge office has issued a flash flood warning through Saturday. At Minute Maid Park, home of the Houston Astros, the retractable roof was closed due to the storm. But the wind was so strong that it still pushed rain into the stadium. Puddles formed on the outfield warning track, but the game against the Oakland Athletics was still played. Houston-area school districts canceled classes Friday for more than 400,000 students. Flights were briefly grounded at Houston’s two main airports. Sustained winds exceeding 60 mph were recorded at Bush Intercontinental Airport. About 900,000 customers were without power in and around Harris County, which includes Houston, according to poweroutage.us. The county is home to more than 4.7 million residents. CenterPoint Energy warned customers to “prepare for extended weather-related power outages.” The problems spread to the city’s suburbs, with emergency officials in neighboring Montgomery County describing damage to transmission lines as “catastrophic” and warning that power could be affected for several days. Strong storms hit the Houston area during the first week of May, leading to many open-water rescues, including some from the roofs of flooded homes.

HOUSTON–

Fast-moving thunderstorms hit southeast Texas for the second time this month, killing at least four people, blowing out windows of high-rise buildings, felling trees and knocking out power to more than 900,000 homes and businesses in the Houston area.

Authorities urged residents to stay off the roads after Thursday’s storms, as many roads were impassable and traffic lights were out. The storm system moved in quickly, but flood watches and warnings remained Friday for Houston and areas to the east.

Houston Mayor John Whitmire said four people died due to the severe weather. At least two of the deaths were caused by falling trees and another occurred when a crane toppled over in high winds, authorities said.

Streets in Houston were flooded and trees and power lines were down throughout the area. Whitmire said wind speeds reached 100 mph “with a few tornadoes.” Whitmire said the powerful gusts were reminiscent of 2008’s Hurricane Ike, which hit the city.

“Stay home tonight. Do not go to work tomorrow unless you are an essential worker. Stay home, take care of your children,” Whitmire said during a briefing Thursday evening. “Our first responders will be working 24 hours a day.”

Gulf Coast states could experience scattered, severe thunderstorms with tornadoes, large hail and damaging winds. Heavy to excessive rain is possible Friday from eastern Louisiana to central Alabama, the National Weather Service said.

Video above: Texas storm damages windows of downtown Houston building

In Houston, hundreds of windows were broken in downtown hotels and office buildings, with glass littering the streets below, and the state sent Department of Public Safety agents to secure the area.

“Downtown is a mess,” Whitmire said, adding that there was a backlog of 911 calls that first responders were working on.

The severe storms also spread to neighboring Louisiana and left more than 215,000 customers without power. More than 100,000 Entergy Louisiana customers in the New Orleans area lost power, NOLA.com reported.

The Storm Prediction Center website posted a report of a tornado in Convent, Louisiana, about 55 miles from New Orleans, with several reports of downed trees and utility poles.

There were wind gusts of 84 mph at Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport and 82 mph at New Orleans Lakefront Airport, according to Tim Erickson, a meteorologist with the Weather Services Office of the New Orleans and Baton Rouge.

Video above: Massive tree falls on vehicle during Houston storm

The New Orleans and Baton Rouge office issued a flash flood warning through Saturday.

At Minute Maid Park, home of the Houston Astros, the retractable roof was closed due to the storm. But the wind was so strong that it still pushed rain into the stadium. Puddles formed on the outfield warning track, but the game against the Oakland Athletics was still played.

Houston-area school districts canceled classes Friday for more than 400,000 students.

Flights were briefly grounded at Houston’s two main airports. Sustained winds exceeding 60 mph were recorded at Bush Intercontinental Airport.

According to poweroutage.us, about 900,000 customers were without power in and around Harris County, which includes Houston. The county is home to more than 4.7 million residents.

CenterPoint Energy warned customers to “prepare for extended weather-related power outages.”

The problems spread to the city’s suburbs, with emergency officials in neighboring Montgomery County calling damage to transmission lines “catastrophic” and warning that power could be affected for several days.

Severe storms hit the Houston area during the first week of May, leading to many water rescues, including some from the roofs of flooded homes.

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