News
Houston hit by multiple tornadoes, leaving one dead
Multiple tornadoes struck the Houston area on Saturday, killing one person in Brazoria County and injuring four others according to local reports.
Why It Matters
The severe weather strikes during one of the busiest travel weekends of the year, disrupting thousands of flights across Texas’ major airports.
John Lichter, a meteorologist at the National Weather Service (NWS), said at least six tornadoes hit the area, although they may discover there were more when authorities are able to survey the damage caused by straight-line winds.
The region had already experienced tornado activity on Thursday, with two tornadoes recorded near El Campo in Wharton County and in the Crosby area of Harris County. The timing is particularly concerning as tornadoes can be especially dangerous in Gulf Coast states during winter months.
What To Know
Governor Greg Abbott has activated the Texas Division of Emergency Management (TDEM) in response to the severe weather threat across the eastern half of Texas. In Brazoria County, approximately 10 homes were damaged between Liverpool and Hillcrest Village, with additional destruction reported in Katy and Porter Heights, where mobile homes were damaged, and a fire station’s doors were blown in.
The storms have knocked out power to more than 45,000 customers in Texas and 21,000 in Louisiana. In Franklin County, Mississippi, more than 30 percent of utility customers are without power, and reports indicate at least one person was trapped in a home in Bude when a tree fell during a tornado.
Travel disruptions have intensified across Texas’s major airports. Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport reports disruptions to one thousand and eighty-seven flights, while Houston Bush Intercontinental faces six hundred and four affected flights.
Dallas Love Field has experienced disruptions to two hundred and twenty-two flights as the severe weather impacts holiday travel.
Resources for Residents:
- Monitor road conditions: DriveTexas.org
- Access flood information: TexasFlood.org
- Emergency preparedness guidance: tdem.texas.gov/prepare
- General safety tips: TexasReady.gov
What People Are Saying
Governor Abbott: “Texas is prepared to deploy all necessary resources to help local officials respond to severe weather threats.”
Dan Davis, Manvel Mayor: “I’ve received confirmation that tragically, one life was lost due to the storm coming through Brazoria County.”
Josh Lichter at NWS: “These storms are probably going to get a lot worse this evening and overnight the further east you go.”
What Happens Next
TDEM has activated swiftwater rescue boat squads and placed urban search and rescue teams on standby. The severe weather threat is expected to expand eastward, potentially affecting a dozen states through Sunday.
This article includes reporting from The Associated Press.
A streamer known for hurling racist slurs in public settings under the nickname “Chud the Builder” was charged with attempted murder after a shooting outside a Tennessee courthouse on Wednesday, the authorities said.
The streamer, Dalton Eatherly, 28, was involved in a confrontation with an unidentified man that escalated to gunfire outside the Montgomery County Court in Clarksville, about 50 miles northwest of Nashville, the Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office said in a statement. Both men sustained gunshot wounds and were in stable condition, the office said.
In addition to attempted murder, Mr. Eatherly was charged with employing a firearm during dangerous felony, aggravated assault and reckless endangerment with a deadly weapon, the sheriff’s office said.
Mr. Eatherly, who is white, has accumulated an online audience by livestreaming confrontations in which he uses racist language toward Black people in public.
Law enforcement did not provide any details about the second man involved in Wednesday’s shooting. Mr. Eatherly posted an audio recording online of paramedics treating his wounds in which he claims he shot the man in self-defense.
A video posted by the website Clarksville Now shows Mr. Eatherly on a stretcher with a microphone attached to his lapel.
Mr. Eatherly is being held at the Montgomery County Jail, pending arraignment, the sheriff’s office said.
According to court records, Mr. Eatherly was scheduled to appear for a court hearing on Wednesday morning in an unrelated case brought by Midland Credit Management, a collections agency.
A lawyer listed in court records from a separate harassment case in which Mr. Eatherly was a defendant in November did not respond to a request for comment.
On Sunday, three days before the shooting in Clarksville, Mr. Eatherly was arrested in Nashville. According to a police affidavit, Mr. Eatherly live streamed his meal at a restaurant, Bob’s Steak and Chop House, on Saturday even though the restaurant had asked him ahead of time not to do so.
When he was confronted, Mr. Eatherly “became disruptive and started making racial statements, yelling, screaming and otherwise creating a scene,” according to the affidavit.
He then refused to pay for his $370 meal. Mr. Eatherly was charged with theft of services, disorderly conduct and resisting arrest. He was released on $5,000 bond.
SEATTLE (KOMO) — Seattle police have arrested a suspect in the murder of a University of Washington student.
The student, a 19-year-old transgender woman, was found dead with stab wounds in a laundry room at the Nordheim Court Apartments – off-campus housing for UW students – Sunday night.
The arrest comes a day after the Seattle Police Department (SPD) released photos of a suspect described as armed and dangerous. SPD has not yet confirmed whether the man in the images is the suspect.
According to Seattle police Det. Brian Pritchard, a 31-year-old man turned himself in to Bellevue police before being transferred to SPD detectives.
The Bellevue Police Department said the man was arrested at 10:42 p.m. on Wednesday.
The suspect was booked into the King County jail for investigation of murder.
RELATED | UW students raise security concerns after deadly stabbing, report prior break-in
Anyone with more information is asked to call the SPD violent crimes tip line at 206-233-5000. Anonymous tips are welcome.
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