Houston, At least four people were killed and nearly three million homes and businesses were left without power when powerful Tropical Storm Beryl, bringing damaging winds and flooding, hit Texas early Monday.
Beryl paralyzed schools, businesses, offices and financial institutions shortly after making landfall near Matagorda as a Category 1 hurricane, the National Hurricane Center said Monday night.
Flooding, rain and tornadoes are possible in parts of east Texas, western Louisiana and Arkansas, the center said.
Two people died after trees fell on homes, and a Houston Police Department civilian employee died when he became trapped in flood waters.
One more person was reported dead in a fire incident.
Authorities asked residents to stay home Monday night as Beryl's waters began to recede and crews began inspecting the damage.
"Don't be fooled by the clear skies," Mayor John Whitmire said at a news conference.
"There were no immediate reports of widespread structural damage," he said. "We still have dangerous circumstances."
Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo offered a similar message: “We're not out of the woods yet... Let's wait until tomorrow. Doing a damage assessment on your own property is one thing, but driving unnecessarily, we really ask that you avoid it.”
Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick, who leads the state while Texas Gov. Greg Abbott is out of the country, said it will be a “multi-day process to restore power” to the approximately 2.7 million customers across Texas. who experience cuts.
Patrick said CenterPoint officials told him they would send 11,500 people to help with restoration efforts.
The workers are coming from both out of state and unaffected counties in Texas, Patrick said during a storm briefing Monday afternoon in Austin.
Flooding, tree damage and other debris are expected to make roads unsafe for the next several days, according to TxDOT Houston district officials.
Several neighborhoods in Fortbend County, the hardest hit, saw debris from huge trees in intersections and roads, in addition to power outages and increased flooding.
Other neighborhoods, including Katy, Cinco Ranch, Cross Creek and Fulshear, were without power early Monday morning.
Traffic is off the roads or very sporadic as very few traffic lights are operational but all others are inactive.
Storm damage has largely been limited to fallen branches, broken fences and uprooted trees.
"There's not a lot of structural damage, just broken branches and stuff," said Texas Highway Patrol Officer Corey Robinson, who has been on duty since 6 a.m. of Monday.
"We have more patrol officers coming from other cities."
School closures will extend through Tuesday in many of the K-12 districts and higher education institutions in Southeast Texas. Although schools reported minimal damage, the lack of electricity after the storm is a cause for concern.
Beryl, after weakening to a tropical storm, was much less powerful than the Category 5 giant that left a deadly path of destruction across parts of Mexico and the Caribbean last weekend.
Beryl paralyzed schools, businesses, offices and financial institutions shortly after making landfall near Matagorda as a Category 1 hurricane, the National Hurricane Center said Monday night.
Flooding, rain and tornadoes are possible in parts of east Texas, western Louisiana and Arkansas, the center said.
Two people died after trees fell on homes, and a Houston Police Department civilian employee died when he became trapped in flood waters.
One more person was reported dead in a fire incident.
Authorities asked residents to stay home Monday night as Beryl's waters began to recede and crews began inspecting the damage.
"Don't be fooled by the clear skies," Mayor John Whitmire said at a news conference.
"There were no immediate reports of widespread structural damage," he said. "We still have dangerous circumstances."
Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo offered a similar message: “We're not out of the woods yet... Let's wait until tomorrow. Doing a damage assessment on your own property is one thing, but driving unnecessarily, we really ask that you avoid it.”
Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick, who leads the state while Texas Gov. Greg Abbott is out of the country, said it will be a “multi-day process to restore power” to the approximately 2.7 million customers across Texas. who experience cuts.
Patrick said CenterPoint officials told him they would send 11,500 people to help with restoration efforts.
The workers are coming from both out of state and unaffected counties in Texas, Patrick said during a storm briefing Monday afternoon in Austin.
Flooding, tree damage and other debris are expected to make roads unsafe for the next several days, according to TxDOT Houston district officials.
Several neighborhoods in Fortbend County, the hardest hit, saw debris from huge trees in intersections and roads, in addition to power outages and increased flooding.
Other neighborhoods, including Katy, Cinco Ranch, Cross Creek and Fulshear, were without power early Monday morning.
Traffic is off the roads or very sporadic as very few traffic lights are operational but all others are inactive.
Storm damage has largely been limited to fallen branches, broken fences and uprooted trees.
"There's not a lot of structural damage, just broken branches and stuff," said Texas Highway Patrol Officer Corey Robinson, who has been on duty since 6 a.m. of Monday.
"We have more patrol officers coming from other cities."
School closures will extend through Tuesday in many of the K-12 districts and higher education institutions in Southeast Texas. Although schools reported minimal damage, the lack of electricity after the storm is a cause for concern.
Beryl, after weakening to a tropical storm, was much less powerful than the Category 5 giant that left a deadly path of destruction across parts of Mexico and the Caribbean last weekend.