Texas Storms Leave One Dead as Baseball-Sized Hail Ravages the Region
Tragedy struck in Texas as severe storms unleashed baseball-sized hail, resulting in the loss of one life. The destructive weather conditions left a trail of devastation in their wake.
A powerful thunderstorm unleashed hurricane-force winds and destructive hail on the Houston and Dallas-Fort Worth metropolitan areas on Tuesday afternoon. Utility tracker PowerOutage.us reports that over 400,000 customers in Texas remain without power as of Wednesday morning. The storms had previously left over one million people without electricity just a day earlier.
The storm caused travel disruptions, resulting in over 500 flights being delayed and approximately 350 flights being canceled at Dallas-Fort Worth International on Tuesday, as reported by FlightAware.
According to KHOU 11, a tragic incident occurred in Magnolia County where a sixteen-year-old construction worker lost his life when a home collapsed, trapping him under the debris.
According to officials, the home collapsed due to shifting framing during the storm. Tragically, the teen was found lifeless in the wreckage by rescue crews.
Storms persisted until early Wednesday morning, as reported by the National Weather Service (NWS). The Colony, a suburb of Dallas, experienced the highest wind gust, reaching a staggering 95 miles per hour.
Repairing the widespread power outages, especially in hard-hit Dallas County, may take several days, according to officials.
According to Grant Cruise, a spokesperson for the utility company Oncor, there were a substantial number of downed lines due to the recent weather event.
“We’re not just talking about simple repairs here. We’re facing the need for complete reconstruction in certain parts of our area.”
On Tuesday morning, the powerful winds wreaked havoc, causing significant damage to power lines and buildings. In fact, the force was so strong that it managed to blow American Airlines flight 737-800 away from its gate at Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport.
According to a report by WFAA, as the strong winds continued, there were reports of an overturned 18-wheeler truck and multiple car wrecks on Texas highways.
Texas recently held a primary run-off election on Tuesday, where voters had the opportunity to select the final candidates for the upcoming November ballot. However, the Dallas metro area faced power outages that affected the smooth running of the elections. As a result, officials decided to extend the polling hours by two hours in response to numerous polling places losing power.
According to reports from The Texas Tribune, the recent storms have caused power outages in four counties, leaving a total of 76 polling places without electricity.
According to the Tribune, Nicholas Solorzano, the communications manager at the Dallas County Elections Department, stated that the storm unexpectedly affected many individuals who were on their way. He mentioned that several locations, including schools and libraries, are still facing power outages.
Just two days after the area was hit by a powerful weather event called a derecho, the storm arrived. A derecho is a type of windstorm characterized by its widespread and long-lasting nature, often accompanied by fast-moving showers or thunderstorms.
“A significant number of individuals are once again facing power outages. It was only a few weeks ago that we experienced a powerful storm known as a derecho, which caused immense devastation and left many people still struggling to recover,” expressed Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo, the highest-ranking elected official in the Houston-based county, in a video shared on social media late Tuesday.
Multiple tornadoes were reported in the state over the weekend, with one tearing through Cooke County on Saturday night, located about 50 miles north of Dallas. Tragically, these severe storms claimed the lives of seven individuals, just before the Memorial Day holiday.
Severe thunderstorms and tornadoes wreaked havoc in several states over the holiday weekend, resulting in the unfortunate loss of 16 lives across the US.
The storms also caused significant disruptions to Memorial Day travel, resulting in numerous flights being canceled and delayed across the country. Additionally, heavy rainfall impacted Interstate 95, which serves as the primary north-south freeway connecting the East Coast.
