Official: 'Wall of water destroyed everything in its path'

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[h=4]Official: 'Wall of water destroyed everything in its path'[/h]HOUSTON — At least two people have died and 30 are unaccounted for in severe flooding in Central Texas on Tuesday. High water and flooding made many of Houston's roads impassable, which prompted many officials to urge residents to stay home.

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Texas Governor Greg Abbott says the deadly flooding this week has been the worst the state has ever seen. He advises citizens to "turn around and don't drown" when seeing rising waters. VPC


Vehicles left stranded on a flooded Interstate 45 in Houston on Tuesday.(Photo: Aaron Sprecher, AFP/Getty Images)


WIMBERLEY, Texas -- Residents and officials faced an unprecedented wall of water during flash floods that crushed homes and swept away families over the weekend in Central Texas.
Rescue crews on Tuesday continued searching the length of the Blanco River for 13 people who remained missing, including a family of eight vacationing in a single home washed away, authorities said. There have been two confirmed deaths.
A record surge 44 feet high sped down the Blanco River late Sunday, demolishing homes and businesses, Hays County Commissioner Will Conley said. The previous record on the river was 32 feet, recorded in 1926.
"It was literally a large wall of water that came down the Blanco River and destroyed everything in its path," he said.
San Marcos city spokeswoman Kristi Wyatt said Tuesday afternoon that 30 people who were listed as missing had been accounted for in Hays County, about 35 miles southwest of Austin.
Emergency officials began sending out alerts to residents warning of the rapidly rising river at 6:30 pm Sunday, as the river rose 12 to 14 feet in 30 minutes, said Kharley Smith, the emergency management coordinator.
As the situation worsen, deputies went door to door to warn residents. The river grew at 223 cubic feet per second -- the fastest rate ever recorded, she said.
At some point in the evening, the river gauge washed away.
Around 70 homes in Hays County were completely destroyed and 1,400 had some type of damage, county spokeswoman Laureen Chernow said. Several hundred have been displaced, she said.
The Wimberley area should get a few days of decent weather. But a low pressure system hovering over Texas could bring more torrential downpours to the area by the end of the week, potentially leading to more floods, Hays County Judge Bert Cobb said.
"This is not over," he said.
In Houston, almost another foot of rain fell Tuesday. High water and flooding made many of the region's roads impassable, prompting many officials to urge residents to stay home.

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Aerial footage of flooding in Houston shows completely submerged cars, water filled roads and even a man traveling by kayak. VPC

YOUR TAKE: Are you there? How bad is the flooding near you?
The fourth-largest city in the USA suffered some of its worst flooding in years as much of the city and its freeway system were under water.
Torrential rains sent Houston bayous out of their banks overnight, flooding hundreds of homes and stranding thousands of drivers. Houston firefighters reported they were called to more than 500 water-related rescues.
USA TODAY
Historic floods swamp much of Plains in May




Mayor Annise Parker said as many as 4,000 properties may have suffered "significant damage."
The dead Tuesday were in the Houston area. Two victims were found in cars in Houston, and two more were pulled from Brays Bayou, a watershed in southwest Harris County and portions of Fort Bend County.
In a tweet to USA TODAY, Titus Chow, who lives on Bays Bayou, took a photo of a helicopter circling to pull a body from the bayou. Chow said the photo was taken near the University of Houston.
An elderly couple, ages 85 and 87, were still missing Tuesday.
On Interstate 10, one of Houston's busiest freeways, a trip that is usually a five-minute drive to downtown, was virtually impassable.
The heavy rain caused a traffic nightmare with miles of stuck cars. Some people either slept in their cars or abandoned them. Some drivers also had to contend with water inside their vehicles.
Emergency officials spent the overnight hours rescuing hundreds of stranded drivers.
Harris County Flood District advised residents not to leave their homes Tuesday, while about 20 school districts announced closures or delays because of the severe flooding.
In Devine, southwest of San Antonio, high school homecoming queen Alyssa Ramirez died when her car was swept away after she left her prom. The 18-year-old was a cheerleader who played tennis and volleyball.
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott declared disasters in 37 counties, allowing for further mobilization of state resources to assist.
"It's absolutely massive," Abbott said after touring the destruction.
USA TODAY
Twister kills 13 in Mexico; 12 missing in Central Texas flooding




President Obama told reporters that he spoke with Abbott about the flooding, and pledged federal assistance for rescue and recovery.
On Monday, a tornado tore through a Central Texas town, destroying four homes and leaving at least one person dead. Milam County Judge Dave Barkemeyer said the storm hit a subdivision about 60 miles northeast of Austin.

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Severe storms surged through central Texas, snapping trees, damaging homes and moving cars. VPC

Search-and-rescue teams resumed the hunt for 13 people missing in Wimberley, including eight people in a vacation house torn from its foundation by a wall of water rushing down the Blanco River. Family members said the group had come from Corpus Christi for Memorial Day weekend.
"I think recognizing with what's happening with the weather, we all know and we have accepted that they're gone," said Julie Shields, whose sister is still missing after the flooding.

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A Texas family of four were swept away by severe flood waters with only the father being able to escape. The victim's family has come to accept the likely outcome. VPC

Shields said her sister, Laura McComb, and her two children, 6-year-old Andrew and 4-year-old Leighton, are among those missing.
"My sister and I had been texting and talking throughout the night and she had told me around 11:00 that water had started coming in," Shields said.
But Shields said her sister didn't realize how bad it would get until too late.
"1:00 in the morning she called me she said 'I'm in a house. I'm floating down the river. Tell mom and dad, 'I love you,' and pray,'" Shields said.
Soon after, the house slammed into a bridge abutment.
Crews rescued Laura's husband, Jonathan, from the river bank. He's recovering in a San Antonio hospital with a broken sternum, broken rib and a collapsed lung.
"He is absolutely devastated. He did everything he possibly could to save them," Shields said. "What happened was the house slammed into a bridge and the house broke in two and they had all been in the house together holding hands but when the house hit the bridge and it separated, he got separated from everyone else."
The severe weather is also causing concern in Willis, Texas, where the Lewis Creek Dam is reportedly growing weaker as the flood waters continue to rise. Some residents near the dam just moved back into their homes after a mandatory evacuation was lifted Sunday night. Officials say the Lewis Creek Dam is holding, as it is reinforced with 8,000 tons of limestone and 7,500 sandbags.
USA TODAY
Tuesday forecast: Severe weather in the South




More severe storms are forecast to hit Oklahoma and Texas, bringing with them more rain, hail and tornadoes.
Nine people have now been confirmed killed in the deadly storms in Texas, while two more died in Oklahoma.
A 29-year-old Fort Worth kayaker drowned Saturday when he entered a restricted stretch of the Trinity River as water was being released from the main dam for Eagle Mountain Lake.
Oklahoma Gov. Mary Fallin declared a disaster emergency as a result of tornadoes, severe storms and flooding.

Hudson Doty, 18, left, and Grant Guzal, 17, stand overlooking the Blanco River near the cement stilts of the Carey family home, far left, in Wimberley, Texas. The Careys have been missing since May 24 after their home was swept away by the Blanco River in a flash flood.<span style="color: Red;">*</span>(Photo: Rodolfo Gonzalez, Austin American-Statesman, via AP)




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The Mexican city of Ciudad Acuna was devastated by a twister at daybreak Monday.
Officials in Mexico said 13 people, including three infants, were killed in the tornado, which destroyed 200 homes and damaged 800 others, the Associated Press reported Tuesday night. Officials initially said 800 homes were destroyed and 4,000 others damaged.
The city, population 125,000, is across the border from Del Rio, Texas.
Contributing: William Cummings, David Jackson and Michael Winter, USA TODAY; Shannon Murray, KVUE-TV, Austin; KHOU-TV, Houston; the Associated Press.

WEEKEND STORMS WREAK HAVOC IN TEXAS AND OKLAHOMAAerials show extent of historic Texas floods | 01:23Aerial footage of flooding in Houston shows completely submerged cars, water filled roads and even a man traveling by kayak. VPC

WEEKEND STORMS WREAK HAVOC IN TEXAS AND OKLAHOMADeadly flood sweeps away family: 'We know they're gone' | 01:26A Texas family of four were swept away by severe flood waters with only the father being able to escape. The victim's family has come to accept the likely outcome. VPC

WEEKEND STORMS WREAK HAVOC IN TEXAS AND OKLAHOMAFlood kills homecoming queen driving home from prom | 01:18A Texas community is mourning a high school homecoming queen who was killed when flood waters overtook her car. Alyssa Ramirez was just two miles from her home. VPC

WEEKEND STORMS WREAK HAVOC IN TEXAS AND OKLAHOMAFlooded roads leave Houston at standstill | 02:25Heavy rains have shut down Houston's highways, forcing some drivers to abandon their cars, while others slept inside them. Some people in the worst areas had to actually swim to safety. VPC

WEEKEND STORMS WREAK HAVOC IN TEXAS AND OKLAHOMAFlood splits woman's house in two after neighbors save her | 01:25Flood waters destroyed many homes in Texas, and a woman whose house was split in two says she would have been killed in the flood without the help of her neighbors. VPC

WEEKEND STORMS WREAK HAVOC IN TEXAS AND OKLAHOMATwister Kills 13 in Mexico Border City; 12 Missing In Texas | 00:44A tornado raged through a city on the U.S.-Mexico border Monday, destroying homes, flinging cars like matchsticks, and ripping an infant from its mother's arms. Authorities said that at least 13 people were killed. USA TODAY

WEEKEND STORMS WREAK HAVOC IN TEXAS AND OKLAHOMAResidents Reported Missing in Texas and Oklahoma as New Storms Strike | 01:00At least 12 people were reported missing on Monday after floodwaters swept homes, cars and people away in parts of Oklahoma and Texas over the weekend. USA TODAY

WEEKEND STORMS WREAK HAVOC IN TEXAS AND OKLAHOMABusy Houston roads flood, now look like rivers | 00:54Some secondary highways near Houston are filled with abandoned, flooded vehicles. VPC

WEEKEND STORMS WREAK HAVOC IN TEXAS AND OKLAHOMAFamilies search for missing after deadly Texas storms | 01:15Hays County, Texas suffered extensive damage following torrential rain that destroyed more than 350 homes and displaced 1,000 residents, leaving several missing, including the family of a former Nueces County commissioner. VPC

WEEKEND STORMS WREAK HAVOC IN TEXAS AND OKLAHOMATX Residents Wake Up to Severe Storm Damage | 01:03A line of storms caused major flooding and dangerous tornado winds for Corpus Christi where a preschool center was badly damaged. (May 25) AP

WEEKEND STORMS WREAK HAVOC IN TEXAS AND OKLAHOMAEF-1 tornado rips apart Houston apartment complex | 01:33The National Weather Service confirmed that an EF-1 tornado touched down in Houston on Sunday. The tornado produced 100 mph winds that tore apart the roof of a local apartment building. KHOU

WEEKEND STORMS WREAK HAVOC IN TEXAS AND OKLAHOMAAerial views show massive storm damage in Houston | 02:04Fly over an apartment complex that collapsed from high winds in Houston. The area's been hit by severe weather and heavy rain. VPC

WEEKEND STORMS WREAK HAVOC IN TEXAS AND OKLAHOMAFamily stuck in car in rising flood fight their way out | 01:03A family of four got stuck after driving their car into high floodwaters in San Antonio, Texas. The mom suffers from a brain tumor and they were on the way to the hospital when the car started filling with water. VPC





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