3 dead, more than 200 rescued in South Texas after severe storms cause flooding

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McALLEN — Drenching rain along the Texas-Mexico border let up Friday, but rescues were still ongoing a day after severe storms trapped residents in their homes, forced drivers to abandon their vehicles on flooded roads and shut down an airport.

Local officials also reported at least three people died from the rainstorm.

Hidalgo County officials said there was no immediate information on the three deaths, only that they involved law enforcement. U.S. Customs and Border Protection reported one death involving U.S. Border Patrol agents. Agents approached a vehicle suspected of being involved in human smuggling that was stopped at a flooded road in Edcouch. As the agents approached, the driver attempted to cross the flooded street, plunging the vehicle into a canal.

In Harlingen, officials said their city received a record-breaking 21.5 inches of rain this week, beating its all time two-day total rainfall record set in 1912. The heaviest rainfall arrived on Thursday causing severe flooding that had authorities rescuing more than 200 residents, with another 200 people still waiting to be rescued.

“This of course has been a historic and challenging event for the city. But Harlingen is strong. We have faced adversity before and we will get through this together,” Mayor Norma Sepulveda said at a Friday afternoon news conference.

In Alamo, the police and fire department responded to more than 100 water rescues, including people stranded in their vehicles and trapped in their homes, Fire Department Chief R.C. Flores said at a news conference Friday afternoon.

Officials estimated a couple hundred homes in Alamo were flooded by the heavy rainfall.

Flores said Alamo was one of many cities in the Rio Grande Valley in South Texas that were flooded and had damage from Thursday’s thunderstorms but that all were working to help their residents.

“I assure the public that we are assessing the situation on the hour, every hour. We’re constantly going out, not just in our city,” Flores said. “Just because the storm is over, it doesn’t mean that the emergencies and the disaster is over. We are going to continue to work as long as we need to.”

Weslaco Mayor Adrian Gonzalez said his city was inundated with about 14 inches of rain, prompting 30 to 40 water rescues of stranded motorists and residents trapped in their homes by rising floodwaters.

“It’s a historic rainstorm and it’s affecting all the Valley, not just Weslaco. It’s just so much water in a short period of time,” Gonzalez told reporters at a news conference.

Television news footage from flooded communities in South Texas showed multiple waterlogged cars abandoned on streets on Thursday and drivers waiting on sidewalks for the floodwaters to recede.

Between 6 inches and 12 inches of rain fell in many parts of South Texas in the past 24 hours, according to the National Weather Service.In neighboring Cameron County, officials asked Gov. Greg Abbott to declare a disaster for the county after more than 17 inches of rain caused significant flooding.

“The rainfall amounts we received have been record-setting, and not in a good way. All county resources are being utilized right now, and we are assisting in all ways possible,” Cameron County Judge Eddie Treviño Jr., the county’s top elected official, said in a Facebook post.

Valley International Airport in Harlingen was closed on Friday and all flights were canceled due to area flooding.”We are working tirelessly to reopen and focused on ensuring safety,” airport officials said in a statement.

More than 3,400 in several counties in South Texas remained without power on Friday afternoon, according to AEP Texas. A flood warning was still in effect for portions of South Texas, including Cameron, Hidalgo and Willacy counties, through early Friday afternoon, according to the National Weather Service.

“There’s a break from the rain this morning, which will allow flood waters to gradually recede, but we’ll still need to keep an eye on the development of isolated showers and thunderstorms once again this afternoon,” the National Weather Service said on social media. “Any additional rainfall will be quick to cause flooding issues given the heavy rainfall that has already fallen.”

One middle school in Alamo was scheduled to remain open as a shelter for residents through Friday. One shelter had been opened in Weslaco and officials in Harlingen had opened the city’s convention center as a shelter.

More than 20 South Texas school districts and college campuses canceled classes on Friday due to the severe weather and flooding.

Associated Press writer Juan Lozano in Houston contributed.

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