KATY, Texas – An EF-1 tornado touched down in the early Wednesday morning hours and brought severe damage to businesses and homes in the Katy area, according to the National Weather Service.
Max winds estimated around 90 mph, officials confirmed.
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Firefighters were called to a Firestone Complete Autocare on S Mason Road around 3 a.m. Authorities are not sure what exactly caused the damage but it was later confirmed a tornado touched down. The Firestone lobby completely collapsed, but the building’s garage was OK.
Bar employees escape collapse
The Bourbon Street Sports Bar, right next door, had all of its windows blown out.
Officials said three people were working in the back of the sports bar during the tornado and were all able to safely escape.
Houston Fire Department Assistant Chief Mark Donovan said he was driving around the area due to reports of down trees when he rode up on the damaged businesses.
“Fortunately this business was closed,” he said. “The bar had just closed for the night. Staff was onsite but fortunately, they were at the back of the building. They were not struck by any of the debris.”
“The windows were blown out and they had some roof damage,” Donavan added. “It looks like some debris from outside went into the structure.”
Around 6 a.m., CenterPoint Energy was called to turn off gas and power in the area until debris has been cleared.
During the assessment, a CenterPoint Energy employee suffered a minor electrical shock and was treated and released at the scene.
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Nottingham Country neighborhood impacted
Trees and fences were also blown down in the Nottingham Country neighborhood. The trees had blocked roads, and damaged cars and several homes.
Photos show a tree was uprooted at one home located on Shillington Drive.
KPRC 2 Senior Digital Producer Brittany Taylor spoke with crews on the scene who said most homes in the neighborhood were damaged on Shillington, Crossfield, and Rock Canyon drives.