Flooding Continues in Texas; 6 Dead, at Least 2 Missing

According to the Associated Press, six people have been killed in connection with the flooding in Texas and at least two are missing as severe weather swept across the Gulf Coast.

In the Houston area, some areas received nearly 12 inches of rain since Friday though it had mostly stopped by Saturday afternoon, and starting around 5 a.m. CT Saturday six tornadoes touched down south and east of Houston.

The storms and suspected tornadoes, which forecasters say were caused by an upper-level disturbance from Mexico, socked an already-sodden swath of Texas that was still drying out from the remnants of Hurricane Patricia.

Homes were underwater and power was out on Saturday to over 12,000 people. Several roads have been closed due to floods and damage.

The weather patterns are showing no signs of letting up as a new system is developing today that will be trouble for areas in Texas already saturated by rain.

“Rain and thunderstorms, heavy enough to prompt new flood concerns, will develop across the Plains Thursday and linger into Saturday for parts of the region,” said AccuWeather.com Meteorologist Andy Mussoline.

Kansas, Oklahoma, and Texas will experience rain and thunderstorms Thursday, but concern is growing that a front associated with the system may stall out over eastern Texas heading into the weekend.

Tropical Storm Patricia Strengthens to Hurricane; Hurricane Warning Issued for Mexican Coast

U.S. forecasters reported to the AFP on Thursday that Tropical Storm Patricia was upgraded to a hurricane. The National Hurricane Center located in Miami is warning residents in the area to prepare.

Hurricane Patricia is expected to make landfall on Friday, bringing damaging winds around 100 miles per hour and flash flooding to the area.

The Weather Channel reports, as of 10:00 a.m. CDT, Hurricane Patricia was 240 miles south-southwest of Lazaro Cardenas, Mexico and 285 miles south of Manzanillo, Mexico. The storm is moving at a speed of 26 kilometers per hour and is heading west-northwest according to the National Hurricane Center.

The Mexican coastal area between Cabo Corrientes and Punta San Telmo has been issued a hurricane warning, and surrounding areas have been issued a hurricane watch, tropical storm watch, and tropical storm warning.

Forecasters told AFP that Hurricane Patricia is expected to accumulate 6 to 12 inches of rain and some isolated incidents may see up to 20 inches of rain.