Mayor urges caution after Hurricane Burrell; city reports three storm-related deaths as crews begin recovery

Mayor opened a Tuesday emergency briefing saying the city had been hit hard by Hurricane Burrell and urging residents not to underestimate ongoing dangers even after the rain stopped. “We’ve experienced over 90 miles per hour wind, upwards of 10 to 15 inches of rain,” the mayor said, and warned that flooded freeways, downed traffic signals and out-of-service intersections made travel hazardous.

The mayor said three people had died in storm-related incidents, including a civilian Houston Police Department employee who drowned after calling for help at the Houston Avenue underpass. “We suffered and experienced 3 deaths. Every life is precious,” he said, and asked Houstonians to keep the families in their prayers.

Why it matters: city officials said the event strained emergency services and infrastructure and will require multiagency recovery work and federal aid. The mayor said about 910,000 Houston customers were without power and about 2.2 million people in the broader region were affected; he urged residents to use 911 for life-threatening emergencies and 311 for non-emergency reports.

Operational response and safety guidance Emergency center director Tom said the city was at a Level 1 emergency posture and coordinating life‑safety and mass‑care efforts with local, state and federal partners as well as nongovernmental organizations and faith groups. “We’re sending out our safety messages,” he said, and officials are prioritizing assisted‑living and nursing facilities and other vulnerable populations.

Houston Fire Chief Wells thanked firefighters and warned about secondary hazards as the weather clears, including falling trees and carbon monoxide from generators. “Please keep your generators away from your house,” Chief Wells said, adding that crews were reminding residents not to let children play in floodwater.

Houston Police Chief Martin said HPD remained staffed and operational despite facility and power challenges and reminded residents to call 911 in an emergency and 311 for non‑urgent service requests. He referenced very high call volumes through the noon hour.

Utilities and infrastructure A CenterPoint Energy representative said the outage affected the greater Houston metro and that the company had brought in roughly 10,000 additional linemen to help restore service. The representative said crews must walk about 1,300 circuits to determine whether equipment can be repaired or must be rebuilt, and that full restoration will take time.

Randy, the city’s Public Works director, said crews found significant damage to intersections and many downed or missing signal heads across a network of some 2,500 signalized intersections, and that it could take days or weeks to fully assess and repair the damage. He reiterated that drinking‑water pressures remained within regulatory limits while wastewater systems faced strain from heavy rain and sanitary sewer overflows during high‑rain events.

Federal support and next steps U.S. Sen. Cruz praised the city response and said federal lawmakers would support a governor’s request for a federal emergency declaration to unlock federal resources for recovery. “We will support that federal declaration,” Sen. Cruz said.

Congressman Al Green described submerged vehicles and non‑flashing traffic signals he encountered and said he would work with federal partners to secure funding and consider physical measures to keep drivers out of inundated areas.

What officials will do next Officials said the city was moving from rescue to assessment and recovery: debris pickup plans and solid‑waste schedules were announced (regular service expected to resume Wednesday with heavy pickups to follow), Metro would provide limited service the next day and multi‑service centers would serve as cooling centers as power returns. Officials asked residents to report outages and blocked drains via 311 and to avoid travel if possible while crews complete field assessments.

The mayor said field teams were already working and that a full assessment would take hours or days; he pledged to share findings as soon as possible and to continue coordination with county, state and federal partners.