Nothing more creepy than flooded streets
Cars pass down a flooded Willowbend Boulevard on Wednesday during the rain showers soaking Houston on Halloween. Rain spoiled many peoples plans for trick-or-treating.
The Houston area on Wednesday struggled to celebrate Halloween amid a series of obstacles, including thunderstorms, traffic jams, power outages, high water rescues and two tornadoes.
After hours of asking candy-searchers to stay inside due to the stormy weather, Houston Police Chief Art Acevedo tweeted around 6:30 p.m. that the rain subsided enough for a safe sugar rush.
But the reprieve was temporary. The rain and gusty winds picked up again after 8 p.m. with the National Weather Service soon firing off another tornado warning in northwest Harris County. By 9:30 p.m., CenterPoint Energy reported that the first of its customers were losing power. More than 71,000 customers were impacted, the company said.
Earlier in the afternoon, at least two separate tornadoes are believed to have touched down in the Houston area, including one near Eagle Lake. At 3:44 p.m., the NWS reported that the “confirmed tornado was located near Sealy, moving northeast at 20 mph.” It was unclear how much damage, if any, resulted from the twister.
The Fort Bend County Sheriff ’s Office tweeted that they received multiple reports of another tornado touchdown on Agnes Road. Deputies have not located any damage or injuries.
The Houston Fire Department tweeted Wednesday evening that they responded to several weatherrelated calls for rising water and flooding.
“FD is responding to several weather related calls,” the fire department tweet- ed. “We are responding to calls for rising water, flooding, and are actively working a swift water rescue call at Milby and Polk.”
A tornado warning remained in effect and all of Southeast Texas was under a tornado watch until 10 p.m. Wednesday. The National Weather Service also issued a flood advisory that ended at 6:30 p.m.
A cold front moved through the area, bringing the strongest storms along and on the south side of the front.
The National Weather Service warned that rain could cause roadways to pond and flood cars in lowlying areas.
Highs Wednesday were around 70. They were forecast to drop a few degrees Thursday, with overnight lows dipping to around 51.