As residents of the Texas Gulf Coast braced for days of "catastrophic" flooding from a weakened tropical storm Harvey, the mayor of the small town of Rockport reported the state's first fatality, a man trapped in his burning house during the height of the hurricane.
Mayor C. J. Wax, who earlier said the town took the hurricane "right on the nose," said authorities did not discover the body of the victim until Saturday morning.
Rockport, with a population of 10,000, and nearby Port Aransas, took the brunt of the Category 4 storm as it slammed into the coast late Friday.
Parts of Rockport Fulton High School campus devastated by Harvey #HurricaneHarvey #Khou11 pic.twitter.com/VehKTLvbqE
— Noel Brennan (@Noeltbrennan) August 26, 2017
At least 10 injuries were reported from collapsed roofs in Rockport which is 25 miles northeast of Corpus Christi.
Reports of damage have been trickling in and assessments are expected to ramp up throughout the day.
A group of storm chasers who took shelter in Rockport reported one of the walls collapsing at their hotel.
Rockport City Manager Kevin Carruth told KIII 3 News that the roof at a single story senior housing complex collapsed and a number of those people were taken to a makeshift hospital set up at the jail for assessment and treatment.
Reported from Brandan Cortez: High wind speed has caused King square apartments' wall to collapse. pic.twitter.com/oRkOzaCirT
— KIII 3 News (@kiii3news) August 26, 2017
Carruth said the courthouse had been hard hit, with a cargo trailer ending up halfway in the building. He said several people were taken to a makeshift hospital at the county jail for treatment after the roof of a senior housing complex collapsed.
The Austin American-Statesman reported from Rockport that the smell of gas filled the air at the Rockport-Fulton High School where the gymnasium was destroyed; the auditorium’s doors were caved in, and windows were shattered.
Rockport found itself on the deadly right-hand side of the eye of the storm as Harvey came ashore packing 130-mph winds.That location left it vulnerable to the dangerous storm surges as the winds piled up the Gulf waters and drove it ashore.
Just back from Rockport, TX. Terrible #hurricaneharvey damage. No cell/phone for miles around. More to come. @wbir @kiii3news pic.twitter.com/0xgT10qyXx
— Michael Crowe (@MichaelReports) August 26, 2017
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