Houston storm today: 16-year-old construction worker after house frames collapse during storms in Magnolia, officials say

MAGNOLIA, Texas (KTRK) — A 16-year-old died after being trapped under a collapsed structure during severe storms in Magnolia Tuesday, authorities said.

According to Cpt. Bryan Perry of the Magnolia Fire Department received a call about a collapsing structure around 1 p.m., about the same time the storm arrived with high winds.

Firefighters responded to a new housing development under construction on Willow Heights Lane near FM 1488. Two structures collapsed and a third was damaged. When crews arrived, they said people at the scene told them someone was trapped in the rubble.

“After we arrived, another part of the building started to collapse, so we had to spend time consolidating that part of the structure so that it would not endanger the firefighters who were trying to remove the debris” , Perry said. .

First responders from several agencies, including the Woodlands, Conroe and North Montgomery County fire departments, spent approximately three and a half hours trying to reach the victim, but he did not survive and his body was removed from debris at approximately 4:15 p.m.

Specialist Caleb Cole with the Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office said the victim was a 16-year-old who had a summer job as a construction worker on site.

He said several employees were in the structure and noticed it begin to move before evacuating. The victim did not escape and was ultimately trapped.

Christian Hernandez, one of the other construction workers, said he witnessed the collapse from the outside.

“We saw houses really moving, and then we heard cracking noises. We thought, ‘This house is going to fall,'” Hernández said. “I was scared. I got my tools and called my dad because it was like a tornado.”

An investigation is underway to determine whether the collapse was caused by the severe storm.