HOUSTON (AP) – Heavy rains flooded areas around Houston on Saturday, prompting crews to rescue more than 400 people from homes, rooftops and murky roads. Others prepared Empty their property.
A vast area from Houston to rural East Texas was swamped, where game wardens piloted airboats through waist-deep water to rescue people and pets who didn’t get out in time. One crew took a family and three dogs on board.
A flood watch remained in effect until Sunday afternoon, with forecasters predicting additional rain and the possibility of major flooding Saturday night.
“It will continue to rise,” said Miguel Flores Jr. of the northeast Houston neighborhood of Kingwood. “We don’t know how much more. We are preparing for the worst.
Husband and wife Aaron Brown, 45, and Jamie Brown, 41, were two of several residents who drove or walked near a flooded intersection near the San Jacinto River to watch the rising water. Nearby restaurants and gas stations began to flood.
Water could be seen in parts of the couple’s subdivision, but Aaron Brown said he wasn’t concerned because their home is higher than others in the neighborhood.
Brown, who drove from his home in a golf cart, said the flooding wasn’t that bad. Hurricane Harvey in 2017. He pointed to nearby power lines and said flooding during Harvey reached the top of the lines.
Residents in low-lying areas are asked to evacuate
Friday’s heavy storms forced several high-water rescues, including some from the roofs of flooded homes. Officials doubled down on emergency instructions to evacuate residents of low-lying areas and warned that the worst was yet to come.
According to the National Weather Service, “Heavy rain is expected through (Saturday) evening. “The next round of heavy rain is expected late (Saturday) into Sunday.”
An additional 3 inches (7.6 centimeters) of rain is expected, with up to 5 inches (12.7 centimeters) possible in isolated areas.
Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo said more rain is expected Sunday, and if it gets too much, it could be problematic. Hidalgo is the top elected official in the nation’s third-largest county.
Continued rains have drenched parts of Texas, stranding residents
Most weekends, Miguel Flores Sr. mows his large 2.5-acre (1 hectare) backyard behind his home in Kingwood. But on Saturday, he and his family were loading several vehicles with clothes, small appliances and other items.
Water from the San Jacinto River had already engulfed his backyard and was continuing to rise — about 1 foot (30 centimeters) in the yard on Friday and 4 feet (1.2 meters) the next day.
“It’s sad, but what can I do,” Flores said. He also said that he has flood insurance.
For weeks, heavy rains have filled reservoirs and flooded the ground in parts of Texas and Louisiana. Floodwaters in parts of southeast Texas north of Houston partially submerged cars and roads this week and reached the roofs of some homes.
More than 21 inches (53 centimeters) fell over five days through Friday in Liberty County, near the town of Splendora, about 30 miles (50 kilometers) northeast of Houston, according to the National Weather Service.
So far, 178 people and 122 pets have been rescued in the district, Hidalgo said on Saturday. Many rescue efforts took place in neighboring Montgomery County. In Polk County, about 100 miles (160 kilometers) northeast of Houston, officials said they had done more than 100 water rescues in the past few days.
Houston is one of the most flood-prone metro areas in the United States
Officials in Houston reported no casualties or injuries. The city of more than 2 million people is one of the nation’s most flood-prone metro areas and has long experience dealing with devastating weather.
Hurricane Harvey Dumped in 2017 Historic rain As a result, thousands of houses were flooded More than 60,000 people were rescued by government rescue workers throughout Harris County.
Of particular concern was an area along the San Jacinto River that was expected to continue to rise as more rain fell and officials released water from the full reservoir. Hidalgo on Thursday issued a mandatory evacuation order for people living in riverside areas.
The river was at nearly 74 feet (22.6 meters) Saturday morning, after cresting at nearly 78 feet (23.7 meters), the weather service said. A rapidly changing forecast called for the river to drop to a flood stage of 58 feet (17.6 meters) by Thursday.
Most of Houston’s city limits are largely unaffected by the weather. Officials said that about 4 months of rain has fallen in a period of about a week.
The greater Houston area is about 10,000 square miles (25,900 square kilometers)—a footprint slightly larger than New Jersey. It is intersected by about 1,700 miles (2,700 kilometers) of canals, creeks, and bays that drain into the Gulf of Mexico, about 50 miles (80 kilometers) southeast of downtown.
A system of bays and reservoirs was built to drain heavy rain, but the engineering initially designed nearly 100 years ago has struggled to withstand the city’s growth and large storms.
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Associated Press reporters Ken Miller in Edmond, Oklahoma, Jim Verduno in Austin and Valerie Gonzalez in McAllen, Texas contributed to this report.
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Juan A. Follow Lozano: https://twitter.com/juanlozano70
