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Aug 19, 2008 4:50 pm US/Central
Heavy Rain Flooding Parts Of North Texas
Overnight/Morning Rains Leave Some Roads Impassable
(CBS 11 News/AP)
Heavy downpours are still soaking parts of North Texas and will continue throughout the afternoon.
Parts of Denton County remained under a Flash Flood Warning for most of the afternoon.
The showers are slow moving and could easily dump 1 to 2" in an hour. More heavy rain is setting up over Erath and Somervell County.
At noontime a broad area of low pressure was moving near Dallas, Fort Worth, Waco, and Brownwood, moving to the north-northeast. This is a reflection of an upper level low near the Wichita Falls area.
Emergency crews had to do at least 40 vehicle rescues and plucked 17 people by boat from their Wichita Falls homes. Officials said some people have been reported missing. A Wichita Falls television station reports a Red Cross shelter has been set up and about 8-15 inches of rain fell in the region.
Standing water left some stretches of roads and highways impassable from Decatur to Wichita Falls. Among those were parts of Interstate 44 between Wichita Falls and Burkburnett.
Radar rainfall estimates in the Denton area indicate up to 5 inches have fallen. At this time a flash flood warning has been issued for Western Denton County.
There will be more heavy downpours developing this evening and overnight as the upper level low moves over North Texas. This is the same system that brought the significant flooding to Wichita Falls last evening. If slow moving organized cells form they could produce significant rainfall.
The Rio Grande Valley's main highway was reopened and flood waters receded Tuesday after up to 13 inches of rain swamped southern Texas.
"The water's going down; the main highways are open," Natividad Gonzalez, with the Starr County Sheriff's Department, said early Tuesday.
Emergency officials on Monday had to use boats to pluck people from their flooded houses. An estimated 750 homes in Starr County were flooded.
Earlier Monday, the water was as much as 3 or 4 feet deep in neighborhoods east of Roma and north of U.S. Highway 83, the Rio Grande Valley's main artery, at dusk. As families emerged from salvage missions to their homes, it became quickly apparent that the disaster's reach came down to a just a few inches.
In the south, U.S. Highway 83 reopened earlier Monday night after being closed all afternoon when Arroyo Quiote flooded its banks, running as much as a foot and a half above the guardrails. Motorists trying to reach Roma from the east were sent on a long traffic-clogged detour to the north.
Jose Garcia, fire and police chief in Roma, said floodwaters had started to recede in the city Monday afternoon, but he was not sure they had seen the last of the rain. Roma received about 8 inches of rain in three hours early Monday and water pooled at depths of 6 inches to 4 feet, he said.
About 60 people were plucked from flooded homes and taken to a local community center. About 10,000 people live in Roma, about 210 miles south of San Antonio.
The impact of so much rain was compounded because the ground was still saturated from Hurricane Dolly, Starr County Emergency Management Coordinator Gene Falcon said. Dolly came ashore in late July.
The worst of the flooding was north of U.S. Highway 83 where a continuous "lake" three miles long and a mile wide ran through neighborhoods in Escobares and Los Saenz, small communities east of Roma.
The Rio Grande Valley's main highway was reopened and flood waters receded Tuesday after up to 13 inches of rain swamped southern Texas. "The water's going down; the main highways are open," Natividad Gonzalez, with the Starr County Sheriff's Department, said early Tuesday. Emergency officials on Monday had to use boats to pluck people from their flooded houses. An estimated 750 homes in Starr County were flooded. Earlier Monday, the water was as much as 3 or 4 feet deep in neighborhoods east of Roma and north of U.S. Highway 83, the Rio Grande Valley's main artery, at dusk. As families emerged from salvage missions to their homes, it became quickly apparent that the disaster's reach came down to a just a few inches. In the south, U.S. Highway 83 reopened earlier Monday night after being closed all afternoon when Arroyo Quiote flooded its banks, running as much as a foot and a half above the guardrails. Motorists trying to reach Roma from the east were sent on a long traffic-clogged detour to the north. Jose Garcia, fire and police chief in Roma, said floodwaters had started to recede in the city Monday afternoon, but he was not sure they had seen the last of the rain. Roma received about 8 inches of rain in three hours early Monday and water pooled at depths of 6 inches to 4 feet, he said. About 60 people were plucked from flooded homes and taken to a local community center. About 10,000 people live in Roma, about 210 miles south of San Antonio. The impact of so much rain was compounded because the ground was still saturated from Hurricane Dolly, Starr County Emergency Management Coordinator Gene Falcon said. Dolly came ashore in late July. The worst of the flooding was north of U.S. Highway 83 where a continuous "lake" three miles long and a mile wide ran through neighborhoods in Escobares and Los Saenz, small communities east of Roma.
The Rio Grande Valley's main highway was reopened and flood waters receded Tuesday after up to 13 inches of rain swamped southern Texas. "The water's going down; the main highways are open," Natividad Gonzalez, with the Starr County Sheriff's Department, said early Tuesday. Emergency officials on Monday had to use boats to pluck people from their flooded houses. An estimated 750 homes in Starr County were flooded. Earlier Monday, the water was as much as 3 or 4 feet deep in neighborhoods east of Roma and north of U.S. Highway 83, the Rio Grande Valley's main artery, at dusk. As families emerged from salvage missions to their homes, it became quickly apparent that the disaster's reach came down to a just a few inches. In the south, U.S. Highway 83 reopened earlier Monday night after being closed all afternoon when Arroyo Quiote flooded its banks, running as much as a foot and a half above the guardrails. Motorists trying to reach Roma from the east were sent on a long traffic-clogged detour to the north. Jose Garcia, fire and police chief in Roma, said floodwaters had started to recede in the city Monday afternoon, but he was not sure they had seen the last of the rain. Roma received about 8 inches of rain in three hours early Monday and water pooled at depths of 6 inches to 4 feet, he said. About 60 people were plucked from flooded homes and taken to a local community center. About 10,000 people live in Roma, about 210 miles south of San Antonio. The impact of so much rain was compounded because the ground was still saturated from Hurricane Dolly, Starr County Emergency Management Coordinator Gene Falcon said. Dolly came ashore in late July. The worst of the flooding was north of U.S. Highway 83 where a continuous "lake" three miles long and a mile wide ran through neighborhoods in Escobares and Los Saenz, small communities east of Roma.
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