Governor Rick Perry is scheduled to arrive in Eagle Pass this afternoon to survey the damage of a deadly overnight tornado.
Officials say the twister killed at least seven people in the
Eagle Pass area and at least another three across the Rio Grande in
Piedras Negras, Mexico. The dead include a family of five killed
when their mobile home was slammed against a neighboring school
building.
Officials say at least 76 other were hurt in the Eagle Pass area
and at least 87 others in Piedras Negras.
Maverick County Judge Jose Arandas says the county will ask the
state to declare the county a disaster area. He says the tornado
ripped up a four-square-mile area just south of Eagle Pass.
Besides destroying the Rosita Valley school, the storm ripped
apart a nearby preschool and more than 20 nearby homes. The Eagle
Pass municipal sewer treatment plant also suffered severe damage.
The Eagle Pass school district canceled today's classes.
National Guard units and the Border Patrol are among 150 workers
participating in search, rescue and recovery efforts.