Houston Braces For Stronger Floods In The Wake Of Storms

Miguel Flores Sr. said he spends most weekends mowing his backyard in the northeast Houston neighborhood of Kingwood. But on Saturday, he and his family were loading several vehicles with clothes, small appliances and other items before flood waters inundated his home.

Waters from the nearby San Jacinto River had swallowed his backyard and continued rising, from about 1 foot (0.30 meters) Friday to about 4 feet (1.22 meters) Saturday.

It's sad, but what can I do,” Flores, 54, said. He added that he has flood insurance.

His son, Miguel Flores Jr., 27, said he and his family have lived in the home since 2020, and the flooding has never been this bad.

"It's going to keep rising this way,” Miguel Flores Jr. said. “We don't know how much more. We're just preparing for the worst.”

Miguel Flores Jr. said many neighbors had already left their homes in the rural area near the river that is dotted with trees and lush greenery.

A flood watch remained in effect through Sunday afternoon as forecasters predicted additional rainfall Saturday night, bringing another 1 to 3 inches (2.5 to 7.6 centimeters) of water to the soaked region and the likelihood of major flooding.

Residents In Low-Lying Areas Asked To Evacuate

Friday's fierce storms forced numerous high-water rescues, including some from the rooftops of flooded homes. Officials redoubled urgent instructions for residents in low-lying areas to evacuate, warning the worst was still to come.

"This threat is ongoing and it's going to get worse. It is not your typical river flood,” Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo, the top elected official in the nation's third-largest county, said Friday.

She described the predicted surge of water as “catastrophic." Schools in the path of the flooding canceled classes and roads jammed as authorities closed highways taking on water.

Ongoing Rain Has Left Parts Of Texas Drenched

For weeks, drenching rains in Texas and parts of Louisiana have filled reservoirs and saturated the ground. Floodwaters partially submerged cars and roads this week across parts of southeastern Texas, north of Houston, where high waters reached the roofs of some homes.

More than 21 inches (53.34 centimeters) of rain fell during the five-day period that ended Friday in Liberty County near the city of Splendora, about 30 miles (48 kilometers) northeast of Houston, according to the National Weather Service.

People Trapped By High Water Are Rescued

The Harris County Joint Information Center told KPRC-TV that 196 people and 108 animals have been rescued by emergency response agencies in Harris County.

Elsewhere, in neighboring Montgomery County, Judge Mark Keough said there had been more high-water rescues than he was able to count.

"We estimate we've had a couple hundred rescues from homes, from houses, from vehicles,” Keough said.

In Polk County, located about 100 miles (160 kilometers) northeast of Houston, officials have done over 100 water rescues in the past few days, said Polk County Emergency Management Coordinator Courtney Comstock.

She said homes below Lake Livingston Dam and along the Trinity River have flooded.

"It'll be when things subside before we can do our damage assessment,” Comstock said.

Houston Is One Of The Most Flood-Prone Metro Areas In The US

Authorities in Houston had not reported any deaths or injuries. The city of more than 2 million people is one of the most flood-prone metro areas in the country and has long experience dealing with devastating weather.

Hurricane Harvey in 2017 dumped historic rainfall on the area, flooding thousands of homes and resulting in more than 60,000 rescues by government rescue personnel across Harris County.

Of particular concern was an area along the San Jacinto River in the northeastern part of Harris County, which was expected to continue rising as more rain falls and officials release extra water from an already full reservoir.

Judge Hidalgo on Thursday issued a mandatory evacuation order for those living along portions of the river.

Most of Houston's city limits were not heavily impacted by the weather. Officials said the area had about four months of rain in about a week's time.

Shelters have opened across the region, including nine by the American Red Cross.

The weather service reported the river was nearly 74 feet (22.56 meters) late Saturday morning after reaching nearly 78 feet (23.7 meters). The rapidly changing forecast said the river is expected to fall to near flood stage of 58 feet (17.6 meters) by Thursday.

The greater Houston area covers about 10,000 square miles (about 25,900 square kilometers) — a footprint slightly bigger than New Jersey.

It is crisscrossed by about 1,700 miles (2,736 kilometers) of channels, creeks and bayous that drain into the Gulf of Mexico, about 50 miles (about 80 kilometers) to the southeast from downtown.

The city's system of bayous and reservoirs was built to drain heavy rains. But engineering initially designed nearly 100 years ago has struggled to keep up with the city's growth and bigger storms.