Offices remained closed across Houston as commercial property managers moved into recovery mode after Hurricane Beryl caused flooding and power outages in a city still scarred by the previous deadly storm less than two months ago.
Beryl has led to the deaths of at least seven people, and more than 1.5 million customers were still without power late Tuesday, according to electricity provider CenterPoint Energy. Companies across Houston asked employees to work from home if they could do their jobs at all because of widespread internet and cell service issues from downed power lines and cell towers, with exact numbers unavailable late Tuesday.
The storm, with multiple tornadoes, caused up to $32 billion in damage and economic loss across multiple states, according to preliminary estimates. It had winds of hurricane force of 74 miles per hour or greater when it hit the nation's fourth-largest city — with a skyline of towers still marked with plywood after a long-lived wind storm, or derecho, punched out windows on May 16.
Some parts of downtown Houston are still closed from the May storm, and matters for commercial real estate owners and tenants were worsened when downtown flood waters from Beryl covered streets Monday before receding by early Tuesday. While many businesses have reopened downtown, unnecessary travel is still discouraged, the Houston Downtown Management District said on its website.