HOUSTON, TEXAS – In the aftermath of severe storms that left behind a trail of destruction, the city of Houston opened new distribution centers on Saturday to provide water to around 500,000 customers still without power. The region is reeling from the impacts of tornadoes and 100 mph straight-line winds that struck with little warning on Thursday. The city was bracing for temperatures to reach a high of 90 degrees on Saturday as recovery efforts continue.
Tragically, the storms have claimed the lives of seven individuals, with four fatalities reported in Houston and three in unincorporated Harris County. The deaths have been attributed to various weather-related incidents, including falling trees and fires ignited by lightning strikes. As the clean-up and restoration efforts press on, more than half a million customers in both Houston and Harris County are still without power as of Saturday morning.
CenterPoint Energy’s senior vice president for electric business, Lynnae Wilson, acknowledged the monumental task ahead for crews conducting visual inspections and damage assessments of the infrastructure. In addition to power outages, three schools in the Houston area sustained damage, with one classroom being struck by a falling tree, another facing shattered windows, and a third experiencing a wall collapse. Houston Independent School District Superintendent Mike Miles expressed gratitude that the extent of the damage was limited to relatively few buildings.
In other parts of the country, over 4 million people were under flood watches stretching from southern Mississippi to the Florida Panhandle. The National Weather Service warned of the potential for flash flooding due to additional rainfall of 1 to 3 inches on already saturated ground. In the Central and Northern Plains, storms were forecast to impact around 2 million people in Kansas, southern Nebraska, and northern Oklahoma, with cities like Wichita and Topeka bracing for severe weather conditions including large hail and damaging winds.
Amidst the widespread devastation caused by the recent storms, communities across the affected regions are banding together to support one another and begin the process of rebuilding and recovery. As officials and residents work tirelessly to address the aftermath of the natural disasters, the resilience and unity of the people shine through in the face of adversity.