Videos show significant damage from Texas to Louisiana after tornadoes, flash flooding slam South
The dangerous and destructive severe weather outbreak is likely to continue throughout the day on Wednesday and into the evening and overnight hours as storms race off to the east.
Watch: First responders block roads amid Flash Flood Emergency in New Orleans
First responders are seen blocking roads as water rises amid a Flash Flood Emergency in New Orleans on Wednesday morning.
NEW ORLEANS – A life-threatening situation continues to unfold across the South and along the Gulf Coast Wednesday as powerful thunderstorms blast through the region, which so far have produced at least one confirmed tornado in Texas, a likely tornado in Slidell, Louisiana, and a rare Flash Flood Emergency in New Orleans.
And the dangerous and destructive severe weather outbreak is likely to continue throughout the day on Wednesday and into the evening and overnight hours as storms race off to the east.
NEW ORLEANS UNDER FLASH FLOOD EMERGENCY AFTER TORNADO STRIKES TEXAS IN SEVERE WEATHER OUTBREAK
Likely tornado tears across Slidell, Louisiana
Watch: Likely tornado leaves behind significant damage in Slidell, Louisiana
Police in Slidell, Louisiana, shared this video on Facebook describing the significant damage left behind when a likely tornado ripped through the community on Wednesday morning.
Police in Slidell shared video on Facebook showing the significant damage left behind when a likely tornado ripped through the community northeast of New Orleans late Wednesday morning.
Damage in the video was in the area of Old Spanish Trail near Pine Tree Street and included dramatic images of debris scattered across the roadway, trees snapped in half and the roof of an apartment building that had been torn away during the storm.
Utility poles were also destroyed by the storm, with power lines seen lying on the ground.
First responders were also seen in the area, surveying the damage and helping victims impacted by the storm.
FLASH FLOOD EMERGENCY ISSUED IN EAST TEXAS, NEW ORLEANS AS LIFE-THREATENING FLOODING SWAMPS SOUTH
![Damage from tornado in Slidell, Louisiana]()
Image 1 of 12Damage from an EF-1 tornado that struck Slidell, Louisiana on April 10, 2024. ( )
![Damage from tornado in Slidell, Louisiana]()
Image 2 of 12Damage from an EF-1 tornado that struck Slidell, Louisiana on April 10, 2024. ( )
![Damage from tornado in Slidell, Louisiana]()
Image 3 of 12Damage from an EF-1 tornado that struck Slidell, Louisiana on April 10, 2024. ( )
![Damage from tornado in Slidell, Louisiana]()
Image 4 of 12Damage from an EF-1 tornado that struck Slidell, Louisiana on April 10, 2024. ( )
![Damage from tornado in Slidell, Louisiana]()
Image 5 of 12Damage from an EF-1 tornado that struck Slidell, Louisiana on April 10, 2024. ( )
![Damage from tornado in Slidell, Louisiana]()
Image 6 of 12Damage from an EF-1 tornado that struck Slidell, Louisiana on April 10, 2024. ( )
![Damage from tornado in Slidell, Louisiana]()
Image 7 of 12Damage from an EF-1 tornado that struck Slidell, Louisiana on April 10, 2024. ( )
![Damage from tornado in Slidell, Louisiana]()
Image 8 of 12Damage from an EF-1 tornado that struck Slidell, Louisiana on April 10, 2024. ( )
![Damage from tornado in Slidell, Louisiana]()
Image 9 of 12Damage from an EF-1 tornado that struck Slidell, Louisiana on April 10, 2024. ( )
![Damage from tornado in Slidell, Louisiana]()
Image 10 of 12Damage from an EF-1 tornado that struck Slidell, Louisiana on April 10, 2024. ( )
![]()
Image 11 of 12Tornado damage in Slidell, Louisiana. (Slidell Police Department)
![]()
Image 12 of 12Possible tornado damage in Slidell, Louisiana. (Slidell Police Department)
"Basically, every apartment was full at the time," one first responder said in the video. "I guess at least 50 people were in there. People’s doors were shut because the railings came in. The whole roof came out. So, we had to get women and children out."
At the time the video was recorded, police said in the video that no injuries had been reported.
"This storm was no joke," a first responder said. "It’s something that we haven’t seen here in Slidell in a very long time, or maybe ever with this amount of damage."
Flash Flood Emergency in New Orleans
Flash Flood Emergency issued for New Orleans
A rare Flash Flood Emergency has been issued for New Orleans and surrounding communities as relentless rain continues to fall on Wednesday, adding to the high rain totals that have already been reported. FOX Weather Correspondent has been in New Orleans and has the latest on the life-threatening situation that continues to unfold.
FOX Weather Correspondent Robert Ray was in New Orleans as torrential rain fell across the Big Easy and said gutters have been overflowing and streets were covered with rising water.
Watch: First responders block roads amid Flash Flood Emergency in New Orleans
First responders are seen blocking roads as water rises amid a Flash Flood Emergency in New Orleans on Wednesday morning.
Dramatic videos he sent in showed first responders working to block off flooded roads to prevent vehicles from driving on them and getting submerged.
Watch: Water rises amid Flash Flood Emergency in New Orleans
Water is seen covering roads in New Orleans amid torrential rain that led to a rare Flash Flood Emergency on Wednesday morning.
Other videos showed vehicles driving through floodwaters on roads that had yet to be blocked off by first responders.
New Orleans was under a rare Flash Flood Emergency from late Wednesday morning into the afternoon, and several inches of rain fell both in New Orleans proper and in surrounding communities.
Texas fire truck submerged in floodwaters after high water rescue
Roganville fire truck submerged in floodwater as heavy rain pounds Texas
On Wednesday morning, volunteer firefighters from the Roganville, Texas, Fire Department responded to a high-water rescue. They had to wait for a front loader to pull them out of the floodwaters.
A dramatic video recorded by the Roganville Volunteer Fire Department in Jasper County, Texas, showed the cab of the fire truck filled with water after the first responders said they rescued a man from a submerged vehicle.
"We just did a water rescue," the firefighter said in the video. "You can barely see the taillights of the car that we picked this young man out of. Needless to say, he was a little bit shaken up."
The firefighter then pans the video and shows how high the water was at the time, which was covering the tailpipe of the truck.
"Sad to say, but we’re stuck in the ditch," the firefighter said in the video. "We’re waiting on a front-end loader to push us out so we can continue doing our water rescues."
While the firefighters are waiting for help to get pushed out of the ditch, the firefighter keeps rolling as he gets back into the truck, and the water is seen to be so high that its up to their laps.
HOW FLOODWATERS CAN MAKE YOU VERY SICK
This image shows life-threatening flooding in Roganville, Texas, on Wednesday, April 10, 2024.
(Roganville Volunteer Fire Department/Facebook)
The Jasper County Sheriff’s Office said all major roads heading into Kirbyville were shut down on Wednesday morning due to the immense flooding that occurred when the line of powerful storms raced through.
The sheriff’s office said emergency crews have been deployed across the region to assist with rescue efforts in the Kirbyville area.
"We have major flooding throughout the county at the midline," the sheriff’s office said on Facebook.
Jasper County officials on Wednesday issued a disaster declaration because of the situation.
"The County Judge of Jasper County, Texas, has determined that extraordinary measures must be taken to protect life, as well as to protect the rehabilitate property, and are necessary and hereby ordered," the declaration read.
Building collapses during tornado in Katy, Texas
Tornado causes building collapse in Katy, Texas
Powerful thunderstorms tore across the Houston suburb of Katy, Texas, early Wednesday morning. FOX 26 Reporter Shelby Rose joined FOX Weather from Katy where a building collapsed during the severe weather.
Flooding has been just one of the several threats from the storm that plowed across the region on Wednesday morning.
Photos and videos show a building collapse in the Houston suburb of Katy on Wednesday morning after a tornado tore a path of destruction through parts of the southeastern Texas community.
"If it was a tornado, it dropped down right in the middle of this parking lot of this strip center and went away," FOX 26 Houston Reporter Shelby Rose said. "I mean, there is no damage anywhere surrounding us. Not even to some small trees."
Damage left after a storm came through Katy, Texas, on April 10, 2024
(Harris County (TX) Fire Department / FOX Weather)
According to a preliminary report from a National Weather Service storm survey team, an EF-1 tornado did indeed touch down in the area and had winds of 90 mph. Work to survey the damage continues, and more information will be released once the survey is complete.
Severe damage was reported to the buildings on South Mason Road, including a Firestone tire store that collapsed during the storm.
While there were no people inside that building at the time, there were people inside a sports bar that also received damage.
"There were about five employees that were inside at the time because they were just closing up shop after a night of work," Rose said.
Damage left after a storm came through Katy, Texas on April 10, 2024
(Harris County (TX) Fire Department / FOX Weather)
Those employees told Rose that they heard the torrential rain, and then, as the powerful winds arrived, it got extremely loud.
"They looked up at the windows, and then that’s when the entire front paneling completely blew outward, not inward," Rose said. "They say that they immediately ran to the back into a cooler, so no one was injured."
Damage left after a storm came through Katy, Texas on April 10, 2024
(Harris County (TX) Fire Department / FOX Weather)
The situation could have been much worse if the storm pushed through just 30 minutes prior when the parking lot was filled with 40-50 people.
"We could have had a very tragic situation on our hands if this storm did not come exactly when it did," Rose said.
Watch: Trees snapped after severe weather in Katy, Texas
Powerful storms raced across East Texas on Wednesday morning, and video recorded in the city of Katy shows trees that were snapped after the storms rolled through.
Another video recorded in Katy shows several trees near a home that were snapped during the severe weather earlier in the morning.
Hail falls in Salado, Texas
Hail hammers Salado as severe storm moves across Texas
Hail hammered Salado, Texas, as a severe storm moved across the state on Tuesday. This video of large hailstones and lightning was captured by Chad Casey, who said he filmed it in Salado.
Video recorded in the Texas city of Salado shows hail falling to the ground when powerful storms moved through on Tuesday.
Lightning illuminates the sky, and you can hear the hail hitting the ground and buildings as it falls.
Trees knocked down in Santa Fe, Texas
Watch: Damage reported in Santa Fe, Texas, after severe weather rolls through Wednesday
Video shared by FOX 26 in Houston shows the damage left behind when severe weather rolled through the community of Santa Fe on Wednesday morning.
Santa Fe, which is in Galveston County, Texas, wasn’t immune to the powerful storms when they rolled through earlier in the day.
Video shared by FOX 26 in Houston shows trees that were felled by powerful winds during the severe thunderstorms.
The trees appear to have been snapped like twigs and were scattered across the ground.
Hail slams Madison, Mississippi
Watch: Hail falls in Madison, Mississippi
Severe weather rolled across parts of Mississippi on Tuesday night, and video recorded in the city of Madison shows hail falling during the severe weather.
Severe weather was also reported across the South, including Mississippi, on Tuesday.
Video recorded during the thunderstorms on Tuesday night shows hail falling in the city of Madison.
The hail could be heard slamming onto the roof of structures while torrential rain poured off the roof of the building.