On Thursday, May 16, a destructive storm with wind speeds of up to 160 kilometers per hour hit the Houston area of Texas in the United States. As of now, it has resulted in at least 7 fatalities and over 1 million customers without power. Due to the soaring temperatures, the local power outages may continue for several weeks.
According to media reports, the Houston National Weather Service referred to this weather event as a powerful derecho storm, which is a widespread severe convective storm. The extreme weather caused significant damage to critical electrical infrastructure in the area, with most traffic lights malfunctioning. The strong winds shattered windows of buildings in the downtown area, leaving many streets littered with glass shards, fallen trees, and broken branches.
The most severely affected area by the power outages is Harris County in Houston. Data from the U.S. power tracking website, PowerOutage.us, showed that during the peak of the storm, over 900,000 households and businesses in Harris County experienced power cuts, with nearly 600,000 households still in the dark on Friday night.
Houston Mayor John Whitmire declared a state of emergency for the city on Friday, May 17, after touring the downtown area and describing the destruction as “astonishing.”
Later on Friday evening, a stronger storm continued to move eastwards, affecting southern Louisiana, Georgia, and parts of Florida. It is forecasted that most areas from Texas to Georgia will experience heavy rainfall until Saturday morning.