The severe weather that hit the city Wednesday caused five tornadoes to touch down in Houston and surrounding areas, according to the National Weather Service.
Survey teams canvassed areas on Thursday to investigate the damage. A tornado touched down near Bellaire at an apartment complex on Bissonnet near Renwick, Dan Reilly of the National Weather Service said. The EF-1 tornado that ripped through the apartment complex Wednesday was 50 yards wide and had wind speeds between 86 mph to 110 mph.
Surveyors rate tornado damage based on the Enhanced Fujita scale. The scale is broken up into six categories, starting at EF-0 for tornadoes that cause minor damage and end with the most severe tornado, an EF-5.
Additionally, four other tornadoes touched down in the Houston region. One struck at the Barbors Cut Terminal in the Houston Ship Channel, said Melissa Huffman of the National Weather Service.
The EF-1 twister dislodged and overturned multiple shipping containers around 3 p.m., according to Lisa Ashley, spokeswoman for Port Houston.
Two people were injured as a result of the incident and were transported to an area hospital with unknown injuries.
Ashley said it is unclear whether the two people were Port Houston employees or worked with a different company.
One tornado with wind speeds between 65 mph to 85 mph reached Dutton Lake in Chambers County, and additionally a tornado touched down in Pasadena. The fifth tornado, confirmed Friday, touched down in La Porte with peak winds of up to 80 mph.
by Brooke A. Lewis and Margaret Kadifa
Friday, March 31, 2017
