Storms cause major Texas outages after deadly weather during weekend

By Necva Tastan

ISTANBUL (AA) - Severe storms with damaging winds and large hail hit Texas on Wednesday, leaving over a million businesses and homes without power, following a Memorial Day weekend of tornadoes and severe weather across the US that killed at least 24 people in seven states.

During the state's runoff elections, voters encountered polling locations without electricity as about 100 voting sites in Dallas County were affected, CBS News reported.

Dallas County Judge Clay Jenkins declared a state of disaster, mentioning that certain nursing homes were relying on generators.

"This ultimately will be a multi-day power outage situation," Jenkins said.

Dallas anticipated more rough weather and heavy rain Wednesday night, while Houston braced for strong thunderstorms with winds up to 70 mph, following recent power outages affecting over 800,000 homes and businesses.

Meanwhile, Federal Emergency Management Agency Administrator Deanne Criswell is set to visit Arkansas on Wednesday as part of the Biden administration's efforts to evaluate the aftermath of the weekend tornadoes.

A tornado in Cooke County, Texas, claimed seven lives, including two children, while Arkansas reported seven deaths while fatalities were reported in Oklahoma, Missouri, Kentucky, North Carolina, Virginia, and Texas due to severe weather over the Memorial Day weekend.