The National Weather Service confirmed at least two tornadoes touched down in Colorado County and Chambers County on Wednesday as thunderstorms drenched the Houston area, causing high water rescues, power outages and the death of a Waller County sheriff’s deputy.
Weather service meteorologists said one tornado touched down in Eagle Lake on Wednesday evening, while another was reported in the Mont Belvieu area.
Surveyors were still working on Thursday morning to confirm other tornado touchdowns in the area. Rotations were also reported in the Katy area on Wednesday.
Throughout the Houston area, two waves of storms affected more than just trick-or-treaters. An estimated 71,000 CenterPoint customers lost power by 9:30 p.m., according to earlier reports.
Then, around 9:50 p.m., a Waller County deputy crashed into a ditch on FM362 at Hoover. The deputy told dispatchers she couldn’t get the vehicle doors open, but she broke a window before other law enforcement officials arrived.
The deputy was later pronounced dead at Memorial Hermann Cypress, earlier reports said.
In Galveston, some vendors at the city’s Lone Star Rally sustained minor damage from the storm, pushing the festival’s starting time from 10 a.m. Thursday to noon, according to the city’s Facebook page.
by Julian Gill (2018, Nov 1) Houston Chronicle
