Storm Beryl leaves 8 people dead and millions without power in US

Storm Beryl slammed into southern Texas as a Category 1 hurricane Monday, knocking out power to more than 2.5 million homes and leaving at least 8 people dead in Texas and Louisiana, CNN reports.

Restoring power to millions of Texans could take days or even weeks, posing a dangerous scenario for residents who will not have air conditioning as sweltering heat settles over the state.

The storm – now a tropical depression – unleashed flooding rains and winds that transformed roads into rushing rivers, ripped through power lines and tossed trees onto homes, roads and cars.

According to CNN, at its peak, Beryl was a record-shattering Category 5 storm but has since been reduced to a far less powerful tropical depression with winds of 35 mph. Despite weakening, Beryl will still produce flooding and tornadoes in the US as it moves inland through mid-week․

Beryl became the first storm in the Atlantic hurricane season to make landfall in the US after tearing a devastating path through the Caribbean, where it caused at least 8 other deaths․