Floods in Texas leave more than 400 people homeless
Flooding caused by heavy rain left more than 400 people stranded and in need of rescue in the Houston region, in the state of Texas.
The area received the equivalent of four months of rain in less than a week, according to local authorities. There is no record of deaths or injuries.
A flood warning is active in the region, due to storms forecast for Saturday night and Sunday morning. The forecast was for 76 mm of rain, with up to 127 mm possible in isolated areas of Harris County, which includes Houston.
As of Saturday night, 178 people and 122 pets had been rescued in Houston alone.
The Houston metropolitan region, with 2 million inhabitants, is one of the most vulnerable to flooding in the United States.
It is an area of 25,900 square kilometers crossed by 2,700 km of rivers, canals and swamps that flow into the Gulf of Mexico (80km from the city center).
Hurricane Harvey, in 2017, left more than 60,000 people homeless due to flooding.
With the rains of recent days, Judge Lina Hidalgo, Harris County’s top elected official, ordered the evacuation of residents from the San Jacinto River area, which was above average.
A rescue operation is taking place in the area from Houston to the interior of Texas, with boats traveling through flooded areas to rescue residents and pets who were unable to leave their homes in time.
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