At least one person was killed and 11 others were hospitalized with injuries Saturday morning after a tornado touched down near Laguna Heights, Texas, in the Rio Grande Valley, according to officials.
"The Laguna Madre area was hit by its fourth weather event in as many weeks. Overnight, a tornado caused extensive damage to Laguna Heights, the community between Port Isabel and Laguna Vista on Highway 100," the City of Port Isabel said in a statement.
A preliminary damage assessment indicates that an EF1 tornado damage with wind speeds around 86 to 105 miles per hour, possibly up to 110 miles per hour, occurred Saturday morning just after 4 a.m. in Laguna Heights, according to the National Weather Service.
A disaster declaration has been issued. A gas leak has been repaired and some power has been restored in the area, but not all, according to Cameron County officials.
Violeta Flores-Tovar confirmed to ABC News that her brother, Roberto Flores, died as a result of the EF1 tornado event in Laguna Heights, Texas. She also confirmed a nearby trailer was lifted during the storm and landed on his home.
"He was a loved brother, a recent father to his son Christopher Flores. He will be missed by many family, and friends," she said in a statement.
Here in the park we had no damage from that storm. Very unusual to have a tornado. We have had scattered showers every day it seems. We escaped a lot of the showers. So many families lost their homes and everything they owned, in Laguna Heights.
The latest news here in the park is that we are needing new Asst. Mgrs. they were let go or quit, dont know which.
More news later
Terrible news
The crash occurred at 8:30 a.m. near the Ozanam Center in Brownsville when a gray Range Rover slammed into the bus stop, a representative from the Brownsville Police Department told ABC News.
Police have a male suspect, who is a resident of Brownsville, in custody and receiving medical care, authorities said.
The suspect is being held in city jail and refusing to talk, police said.
The FBI is working to determine if the crash was an intentional act and, if so, whether there was a domestic violent extremist motive behind it, law enforcement sources told ABC News on Sunday. The FBI is supporting local and state investigators, and is not the lead agency in the investigation.
At this point, investigators have not reached any conclusion about whether the crash was a deliberate act targeting the victims because of their perceived immigration status or an accident, the sources said.
