Tropical Depression Imelda Rainfall in Texas Could ‘Rival’ Hurricane Harvey, Forecaster Warns

Parts of southeast Texas are facing “life-threatening flash flooding” after Tropical Depression Imelda dumped close to 36 inches of rain in some areas. Imelda, which is expected to produce 30 to 40 inches of rain as it continues to churn Thursday and Friday, has already stopped all flights at Houston’s George Bush Intercontinental Airport and all METRO bus and rail service, forced the evacuation of a hospital and a TV station and flooded roads and homes.

Forecasters say the rainfall totals caused by Imelda could “rival” the record-breaking amounts from Hurricane Harvey, which hit the Houston area in 2017 and saw totals of around 51 inches in some areas. “In the end, it could rival Harvey as far as rainfall totals are concerned,” Bill Deger, an Accuweather meteorologist tells TIME.

Local officials said residents are fearful that flooding caused by Imelda could be even worse than the slow-moving and more-powerful hurricane from two years ago, which was blamed for the deaths of at least 68 people.

“It is stressful. People are remembering Harvey,” Ryan Holzaepfel, spokesperson for Chambers County’s emergency management agency, tells TIME. “These same people were affected by Harvey so this is fresh on their minds and we’re getting reports from people that it’s worse than Harvey. It’s more water in this area than they received during Harvey.”

While Harvey focused much of its rain on Houston and the surrounding area, Imelda has drenched areas farther east into Beaumont, Texas and southwestern Louisiana, by Wednesday evening. The worst conditions are just west of Beaumont as of Thursday morning, Deger, the Accuweather meteorologist, tells TIME.

About 100 people have called in requesting rescue with some reporting ankle-deep water seeping into their home, Holzaepfel says, noting that 50 have so far been brought to shelter as of late Thursday morning. “Once that water gets in there — even just a couple of inches — it ruins a lot of things in the home,” Holzaepfel says.

He also urges residents to avoid driving to work, explaining that even those in a car trying to leave “end up getting stranded” on roads.

Some of the heaviest rainfall, measuring close to 36 inches, has hit Jefferson County, Deger says. A town there called Hamshire received 25 inches of rainfall over the span of 12 hours overnight into early Thursday. As of about 7:30 a.m. E.T. Hamshire had accumulated more than 33 inches of rain.

Jefferson County officials said on Facebook that they are “seeing unprecedented flooding,” “rain is falling faster than we can drain,” and ordered that residents evacuate Bevil Oaks.

Texas Gov. Greg Abbott tweeted on Thursday afternoon that “a state of disaster had been declared in 13 counties.”

“It does appear the rain is decreasing and heading south and the weather conditions do appear to be improving, although there is still rain in the area,” Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner said at a press conference Thursday afternoon. He urged caution, noting that “Mother Nature has a mind of her own”, but maintained, “we’re not anticipating anything like this tomorrow.”

Turner said he had not been made aware of any reports of injuries or deaths related to Imelda. He also said a number of bayous and creeks had exceeded their banks, and urged drivers to exercise patience and continue to stay off the road.

Houston police chief Art Acevedo started a Facebook live broadcast as he trudged through a flooded neighborhood, and helped shepherd adults and kids to higher ground. More than once, he is asked by residents if they can bring their cats and dogs. He responds “Yes.”

One boy tells Acevedo through tears that his name is Logan and he is nine years old. “You’re OK,” Acevedo says, trying to console him. “It’s OK, mommy and daddy are there,” a woman who appears to be his mother is heard saying in the background. He is later heard screaming for his parents, as Acevedo continues to reassure him.

Videos appear to show water rising to as high as waist-deep in some areas. A man in a yellow poncho is seen wading through the water with a toddler in his arms. As thunder crackles above, Acevedo says, “I don’t want to be in the water with that stuff going on. That makes me nervous.”

Not all residents feel they need the help though: “We’re good, I’m a couple of houses down. We’re good right now,” one man says. Another man responds, “Look, you said ‘right now’ but it’s still raining and more rain is coming so the best thing is to get out of here to high ground.” Acevedo chimes in, saying “I would recommend you go to high ground.”

Several times, Acevedo tries to persuade reluctant residents to leave. Sometimes it seems to work. In one case, Acevedo tells a man, “with little kids, I would really recommend you come with us.” After he appears to agree, Acevedo says, “We just talked a family into going, thank God.”

Imelda is moving “at a snail’s pace” and has “pretty much been parked over the area for the past, almost 48 hours,” Deger says. The tropical depression was moving north at 6 mph, as of a forecast from 10 a.m. Thursday.

It’s not until Thursday evening or Friday morning that rain showers and storms will start to dissipate, Deger says. The heavy rain is “generally moving east” but should likely not be as heavy when it cross the border from Texas into Louisiana, he adds.

The National Hurricane Center has enacted a flash flood emergency for parts of southeastern Texas and warnings for parts of eastern Texas and western Louisiana, where it says rainfall through Friday could cause dangerous flash floods. Portions of southwest Louisiana are expected to receive up to 10 inches of rainfall. The center also notes that isolated tornadoes could occur Thursday over parts of southwest Louisiana and southeast Texas.

“Elevated tide levels and stronger currents are expected through Friday” in parts of Southeast Texas, according to the National Weather Service.

Imelda, which has been downgraded from a tropical storm, has dumped so much rain in the Houston area that some roadways have been flooded, “stranding drivers” and causing “several creeks and bayous to rise to high levels,” according to the Associated Press.

In the last 12 hours, the city of Beaumont averaged more than 12 inches of rainfall, with some areas receiving up to 20 inches, the local police department reported Thursday morning.

Glenn LaMont, deputy emergency management coordinator in Brazoria County, Texas, which is among the areas being hit by heavy rainfall, told the AP he had not seen reports of flooded homes but noted, “It’s too early to breathe a sigh of relief.”

What’s happening at Houston’s George Bush Intercontinental Airport?

Officials at Houston’s George Bush Intercontinental Airport say the facility is “at a full ground stop.” Although the airports are technically open, “roads surrounding the airport are flooding,” they said on Twitter.

There have been more than 320 flight cancellations and more than 310 delays at the airport as of Thursday afternoon, according to FlightAware, a flight tracking website.

The Federal Aviation Authority is allowing flights to arrive and depart from Hobby Airport, the second largest airport in Houston.

Earlier this week, airlines alerted passengers to possible disruptions in areas affected by Imelda, and some issued travel waivers.

Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner tweeted that “if you are in the Greenspoint and airport area, please stay put for the next 3-4 hours.”