Authorities say at least one person is dead after his mobile home was crushed and others are injured after an overnight tornado in the southernmost area of Texas near the U.S.-Mexico border.
The early morning tornado hit in the Lower Rio Grande Valley’s unincorporated Laguna Heights community, part of the Brownsville area of southeast Texas. The tornado struck at about 4 a.m. as most people were in their homes, but there was no advanced warning; the first warning of a tornado “went out at the same time it was touching ground,” said National Weather Service meteorologist Barry Goldsmith.
The National Weather Service is continuing to assess the area, but a preliminary survey shows EF-1 tornado damage, meteorologist Brian Mejia of NWS Brownsville told USA TODAY. The ranking signals maximum winds of 86 to 110 miles per hour.
Cameron County Emergency Management Coordinator Tom Hushen told The Associated Press 10 people were hospitalized, two in critical condition. He also said the tornado caused damage to “40 to 60 homes.”
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The Texas Division of Emergency Management couldn’t be reached immediately by phone but told USA TODAY via email that personnel are on the ground for clean up and recovery after “severe storms impacting South Texas.”
Roberto Flores, 42, died after being “basically crushed as a result of the damage to his mobile home,” Cameron County Judge Eddie Treviño Jr. said.
Photos show devastation in Texas tornado’s wake
Contributing: The Associated Press.
Reach Nada Hassanein at nhassanein@usatoday.com or on Twitter @nhassanein_
