Flooding turns deadly in Texas after water submerged Dallas Love Field Airport garage
Vehicles are being directed to the upper levels of a parking garage at the Dallas Love Field Airport in Texas as flooding leaves cars underwater on April 23.
The storm system that resulted in three deaths and one person being injured, plus dozens of damage reports across western and northern Texas on Tuesday, also dumped flooding rain upon the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex into the overnight hours. Over 1.50 inches of rain drenched Fort Worth in just an hour.
Three people were killed after they drove their vehicle through floodwaters and were swept away south of Dublin, Texas.
Late Tuesday night, the Fort Worth Fire Department tweeted that they had responded to more than 20 high-water rescues since the first round of storms began, and also encouraged drivers to remain off the roads.
Early Wednesday morning, a freight train carrying ethanol derailed in a Fort Worth neighborhood and ignited, triggering nearby evacuations and a hazardous materials response, according to KXAS-TV.
It’s not yet clear what caused the trains to leave the tracks, but heavy storms were moving through the area during that time. The cause is currently being investigated.
Unfortunately for air travelers who have parked their cars at Dallas Love Field Airport, at least a dozen vehicles were submerged in floodwaters that inundated the airport’s parking garage.
Some videos and photos show cars only visible above the floodwaters by the very top portion of their roofs. The airport received more than 3 inches of rainfall overnight.
The airport announced via Twitter that lower-level traffic at the airport is closed due to the rising water. An off-site drainage issue is what caused the flooding, according to Dallas Love Field spokesperson Chris Perry.
“We implore customers, if you have had water damage, please file a claim with your insurance company and also file an incident report with the City of Dallas Office of Risk Management,” he said.
Two people also lost their lives in Ruston, Louisiana, after a deadly tornado tore through the town Thursday morning. The twister also hit Louisiana Tech University.
"It's bad, real bad. We took a direct hit," said Ruston Mayor Ronny Walker.
AccuWeather Meteorologist Brett Rossio said that Dallas has likely seen all of its rainfall accumulation. "So far around the city, between 3.25-3.75 inches have been recorded," Rossio said. "These rainfall totals should not go up anymore now that rain and storms have moved east of the area."
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