More than one million utility customers in Texas were without power Tuesday after severe storms and the threat of tornadoes hit parts of the state, including Dallas and Houston.
These strong storms come only a few weeks after rain drenched Houston, resulting in dangerous flooding situations throughout the region. Now, this further rain has only exacerbated Houston’s problem.
Dangerous Storms Rock Texas
Various regions of Texas saw incredibly strong storms run through its territory on Tuesday. Some of the worst storms hit the Dallas-Fort Worth area, causing hundreds of thousands of people to be without power.
These storms included rain, but also very powerful wind gusts that were said to be at least as strong as Category 2 hurricane-force winds.
Strong Wind Gusts Cause Damage
These incredibly powerful winds, paired with thunderstorms, resulted in quite a lot of damage. The aftermath of many Dallas regions has seen roofs torn from buildings.
Some vehicles were even flipped because of these winds. Meanwhile, many Texans found trees in their yard easily snapped like small branches or twigs.
Rain and Hail
These thunderstorms also produced hail in some areas. Texans have taken to social media to share the baseball-sized hail that fell from the sky.
Other areas in towns around Dallas reported seeing half-dollar-sized hail, as well as ping-pong ball-sized ones.
1 Million People Without Power
Throughout Tuesday, as the storms and high winds battered much of Dallas and areas of Houston, more and more utility customers began to lose their power.
By the end of the day, more than 1 million people in the state of Texas alone found themselves with no power because of these damaging storms.
Fixing Power and Working on Cleanup
Now, cleanup is underway in many communities throughout the state. While many people have regained power in their homes, as many as 600,000 customers are still without power in Texas on Wednesday.
Dallas County Judge Clay Lewis Jenkins has signed a disaster declaration because of these power outages.
Power Outages Could Be Long Lasting
Unfortunately, many people in Dallas County — where many of these power outages are located — may not see power return to their homes for days to come.
This area was hit incredibly hard, and much damage remains. As a result, many officials have stated that these outages could last for a few days as they work to fix these issues.
Houston Areas Hit Again
Meanwhile, Houston once again faced a powerful thunderstorm with incredibly high winds. The downtown region of the city that previously saw at least 60 mph winds — winds that shattered glass windows in skyscrapers — again saw a severe storm on Tuesday.
Other parts of areas outside of the Houston metro also faced this storm, only a few weeks after many people struggled in a dangerous flooding situation.
One Person Has Died
Unfortunately, one person has passed away because of these storms. In Houston, firefighters found the body of a construction worker after a home under construction collapsed in Magnolia, Texas.
Several other homes being constructed in the area also fell down because of these storms. However, firefighters do not believe that any other worker was trapped in the rubble of these homes.
Valley View’s Tornado
These recent thunderstorms and high winds come only a few days after a deadly tornado traveled through Valley View, Texas, killing seven and injuring more than 100.
This EF-3 on Saturday decimated much of the small town and has left many residents without power. While there’s no indication that any tornadoes appeared in Tuesday’s storm yet, upcoming forecasts warn that tornadoes could occur throughout the rest of the week.
Upcoming Worries
Officials and weather experts have also warned those in the community that these storms aren’t over yet. Forecasts have anticipated that more storms will be seen throughout the rest of the work week, at the very least.
This could further aggravate many of the issues that Texans are going through right now, particularly those who have damaged property because of the storms from Tuesday.
The Threat of Flooding
At the very least, experts warn that flooding could occur in many of these areas of Texas, simply because many storms appear to be on their way this week.
If the same region of the state is hit by severe rain over and over again, then this could quickly lead to an incredibly dangerous flash flooding situation.
