Seven people have died including a truck driver who was crushed to death by a falling crane due to a nightmare storm.
This week Houston has been battered with cyclonic winds and torrential storms “not seen” in the county since Hurricane Alicia in 1983, which has caused a path of destruction.
A 73-year-old cement truck driver died after he was crushed by a falling crane what was toppled by the fierce storms, MailOnline reports.
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Officers said: “They did everything they could. Obviously, a lot of heavy equipment to try to get people out. But prayers for their families. A huge tragic event.”
Houston Mayor John Whitmire confirmed in a news conference on May 16 that four people had died in the Texan capital. Sheriff Ed Gonzalez said a further three more people had been killed in Harris County, which covers the city.
A man also died while trying to move a fallen power pole, and a woman was found dead in a trailer after lighting struck and sparked a fire.
Another man was found dead after he went to his truck to plug in an oxygen tank following a power cut. Two other people were killed by falling trees, and the last person’s cause of death is unknown.
The BBC reports the storms have left more than half a million homes and businesses without power, with residents potentially facing weeks before its restored.
At a press conference, Harris County judge Lina Hidalgo said of the storms: “This kind of wind is something we have not seen in Harris County since Hurricane Alicia in 1983.”
The US National Weather Service said the storm peaked at 100mph winds in Houston and an EF-1 tornado ripped through the city of Cypress with 110-mph winds.
EF-1 tornados are the second lowest class of tornado, and have the power to cause damage to homes, small barns and outbuildings.
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