Houston is in recovery mode after dangerous storms with extremely strong winds hit the area on Thursday, leaving broken glass in the streets, shattered windows, downed power lines, trees on homes, and families mourning the deaths of at least four people.

 

"Houston is in 'recovery mode'," said Mayor John Whitmire on Thursday night during a press conference.

 

"Downtown is a mess. It’s dangerous due to the glass and lack of traffic lights," Whitmire said. "So stay home. I can't stress it enough."

 

Of the four people who died, two were killed by falling trees, and another died in a crane accident, said Houston Fire Chief Samuel Peña during the press conference. It remains unclear how the fourth person died during the storms.

 

Four people died, and hundreds of thousands of homes and businesses were left without power in Texas as severe storms hit the Houston area on Thursday night. Two people died from falling trees, and one in a crane accident, Fire Chief Samuel Peña said during the press conference. Peña noted that these are not official causes of death but are preliminary indications of how three of the four people died. No information was provided about the fourth death.

 

Are you cleaning up storm damage today? Take a look at what happened at HFD Station 39. Then tell us about your damage in the comments. pic.twitter.com/J9JedIFBBW

— Houston Firefighters (@FirefightersHOU) May 17, 2024

 

Heavy rains and powerful storms also flooded streets and shattered windows in downtown buildings. In Harris County, where Houston is located, about 782,000 homes and businesses were without power at 1 a.m. CT, according to poweroutage.us. At one point on Thursday night, around 880,000 were in the dark in the county. Statewide, about 904,000 customers were without power early Friday, down from over 1 million on Thursday night.

 

Mayor John Whitmire said during the press conference that the city had faced "80, 90, 100 mile-per-hour storms" and that "some tornadoes" were mixed with the strong winds. He urged residents to stay home and off the roads. "Stay home. Don't travel on the roads. It's dark; there are trees on the roads. ... So be very patient, cautious, take care of each other, stay home tonight, don't go to work tomorrow unless you are an essential worker," he said.

 

Schools in the Houston Independent School District will be closed on Friday, Whitmire said. The mayor also noted that downtown Houston is a "disaster," firefighters were removing power lines from Route 290, and most of the city’s traffic lights were not functioning.

 

He said city agencies would be working nonstop and overnight to clear debris and make conditions safer. In an earlier statement, Whitmire said that "many roads are impassable due to downed power lines, debris, and fallen trees." He also mentioned the "significant" power outages and reports of damage in the area.

 

The National Weather Service expected 3 to 6 inches of rain, with higher amounts possible in some areas. A flood warning was in effect until Friday morning.