Death toll from Houston-area storm rises to eight, 150K still without power

May 21 (UPI) -- An eighth person has died related to last week's fast-moving strong storm system that smashed through Houston and the surrounding area, officials said.

Houston Fire Department spokesperson Martee Black announced the death Monday.

She said the person died as a result of carbon monoxide poisoning.

In a statement online, Houston Fire Chief said they have responded to more than 80 carbon monoxide incidents since the storm struck Thursday, requiring four children to be sent to local hospitals for injuries caused by generators running indoors.

"Carbon monoxide (CO) poisoning is the silent killer that follows a storm," he said.

The storm system with winds up to 100 mph hammered Houston and the surrounding area on Thursday, causing widespread damage. Trees and power lines were felled. Glass and debris littered streets. Nearly a million customers were left without power.

CenterPoint Energy said that an estimated 150,000 were still in the dark on Monday night.

"While the efforts by our crews have resulted in steady progress on our restoration goals, we know there is still a lot of hard work ahead to restore our customers still impacted by last Thursday's storm," Lynnae Wilson, senior vice president of CenterPoint Energy's electric business, said in a statement.

"To this end, we continue to have our significant vegetation management workforce addressing extensive tree damage."

Four deaths were originally announced Thursday, with three more the following day. At least two of the deaths were the result of falling trees.