Houston and Dallas Face Risk of Floods as Storms Sweep Texas

Houston and Dallas face more flooding rains Friday as storms continue to sweep across the eastern third of Texas, where thousands are without power and hundreds of flights were canceled Thursday.

Dallas Fort Worth International Airport reported 3.47 inches (9 centimeters) of rain Thursday, the National Weather Service said. An additional 2 to 4 inches may fall Friday, mainly along the I-35 corridor. Houston may experience up to 2 to 4 inches per hour as thunderstorms sweep the region, threatening flash flooding.

“Those living in areas prone to flooding should be prepared to take action should flooding develop,” the weather service said.

Across Texas, 14,116 homes and businesses were without power Friday, according to PowerOutage.com. Additionally, Thursday’s storms disrupted air travel across the US, grounding 816 flights. Of those, 497 were from Dallas, while Houston and Austin also reported cancellations.

Austin and San Antonio also face heavy rain Friday with as much as 6 inches falling in isolated areas. “There is a potential for life threatening flooding somewhere in the watch area,” the weather service said.

Austin-Bergstrom International Airport reported 1.46 inches, a record for the date, the weather service said.

The flood threat continues south into Mexico as well.

There are yellow and a few orange rain and thunderstorm warnings up across Nuevo Leon, Coahuila, Durango, Zacatecas, San Luis Potosi, and Tamaulipas, Mexico’s weather service said. As much as 6 to 8 inches of rain could fall in Nuevo Leon and Tamaulipas, the agency added.