Major flooding strikes Houston amid round of southern US severe weather
Rain and locally severe thunderstorms created a dangerous flood situation around Houston during the middle of this week.
Several inches of standing water on highways left drivers stranded on roadways. Flood warnings were active for Harris County on Wednesday.
The most soaking rain and thunderstorms targeted eastern Texas and Louisiana on Wednesday and Wednesday night.
<center><blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Here's a map of the 24-hour rainfall totals as of 3 PM CST today. The heaviest rain generally fell along the Hwy 59 corridor. <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/houwx?src=hash">#houwx</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/txwx?src=hash">#txwx</a> <a href="https://t.co/0cKkZ6EGKh">pic.twitter.com/0cKkZ6EGKh</a></p>— NWS Houston (@NWSHouston) <a href="https://twitter.com/NWSHouston/status/821864428090064896">January 18, 2017</a></blockquote>
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Tornado warnings dotted counties along the Gulf Coast beginning late Tuesday night, reaching and including the metro Houston area during the pre-dawn hours of Wednesday.
Around 2:30 p.m. CST in Newton County, Texas, strong winds within a thunderstorm downed trees.
Rain will make significant eastward and northward progress across the South.
Areas from New Orleans to Nashville and Atlanta can expect to receive a thorough soaking through Friday.
The downpours are good news for locations across the interior Southeast dealing with severe to extreme drought. However, the risk for flash flooding and travel delays will be high in the stormy pattern.
“Widespread heavy rain will put a dent in the ongoing drought for parts of the Southeast with upwards of 1 to 2 inches of rain possible," AccuWeather Meteorologist Kevin Gilmore said.
“However, torrential downpours could lead to localized flash flooding for several drought-stricken locations in Mississippi, Alabama and Georgia,” he added.
The threat for flash flooding will extend northward into the southern Appalachians.
The extremely dry ground will struggle to absorb the rainfall, leading to increased runoff into streams and rivers. Burn-scarred areas will be most susceptible to runoff.
Motorists should use caution as water can pool in low-lying and poor-drainage areas and elevate the risk of street flooding. Delays are possible at major airport hubs, including in Atlanta.
Locally severe thunderstorms will target part of the lower Mississippi Valley into Thursday evening.
Thunderstorms from parts of Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama will carry the potential of damaging wind gusts, in addition to flash flooding. A couple of the strongest storms could also produce a brief tornado.
Severe weather that could threaten lives and property will escalate over a large part of the South this weekend.
People in the area should stay up up-to-date on local watches and warnings and have a plan should local severe weather strike.
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