No fewer than seven people have been confirmed dead as rainstorms affect Houston, Texas, authorities announced Friday.
The three new deaths occurred after Houston, the fourth-largest city in the United States, was slammed Thursday by severe rain and winds gusting up to 100 miles (160 kilometres) per hour, leaving downtown streets coated in glass from broken windows.
Residential areas were littered with downed trees and power wires, and the National Weather Service reported that a tornado had touched down in Cypress.
According to Harris County Sheriff Ed Gonzalez, the new victims included an 85-year-old woman who died after her mobile home was struck by lightning and caught fire.
A 60-year-old man was found unresponsive and pronounced dead after going to his truck to try and power his oxygen tank after electricity was cut across wide swaths of the storm-hit area.
A 57-year-old man collapsed and died while trying to move a downed power pole. Houston Mayor John Whitmire said Thursday
