HOUSTON -- Two people died Monday when their sport utility vehicle became submerged on a southeast Houston feeder road during severe weather, KPRC Local 2 reported.
Severe weather pounded the Houston area early Monday, flooding streets, closing schools and sending bayous over their banks
An SUV became submerged under 10 to 15 feet of water in the northbound lanes of the Interstate 45 feeder road at Tellepsen, according to authorities.
When emergency officials pulled it out after the water receded, they found the bodies of two females inside.
The victims have not been identified. Police do not know how the women became trapped and drowned.
Officials said they believed it was dark when the women approached the area, not realizing the water was so deep, and became trapped.
A third death was also blamed on the storm. A 56-year-old man died in a traffic accident on a rural road in Fort Bend County. Officials said that the Needville man's car apparently hydroplaned on Farm Road 1462. The car veered off the road and landed upside-down in a flooded ditch.
As much as 10 inches of rain were reported in the Houston-Galveston area overnight, closing numerous roads in some public school systems.
"A warm front is responsible for bringing in all this moisture. We have Tropical Depression Norman out here and it brought us a lot of moisture on top of the moisture in the Gulf of Mexico. That’s why we’re seeing incredible downpours," KPRC meteorologist Anthony Yanez said.
Yanez said the Houston area would have dangerous weather throughout this evening.
"We’ll see an additional 3 to 5 inches. Overnight, we saw 6 to 8 inches," he said. "With a new line moving in, we have the potential to see more flooding, especially in the Houston area."
Allen's Landing near downtown Houston, where Buffalo Bayou and White Oak Bayou meet, was underwater by 9 a.m.
Traffic was closed to Travis Street in downtown because of flooding from the runoff of the bayous. At least six vehicles were underwater on Travis because they could not get out in time.
Highway 288 was one of numerous roadways shut down for a while early Monday morning because high water made it impassable.
Twenty feet of water collected below the underpass of Beltway 8 at Interstate 10.
All schools in the Galveston, North Forest Anahuac Independent school districts were closed Monday because of the severe weather. Shepherd Independent School District schools will be dismissed at noon. The Cleveland school district will be dismissed at 2:30 p.m.
Classes at the University of Houston downtown campus were also canceled. The UH main campus opened at noon.
The following Houston Independent School District schools were closed.
Berry Elementary
Bowie Elementary
Concord Early Childhood Center
Cook Elementary
Fleming Middle
Fonville Middle
Houston Gardens Elementary
Isaacs Elementary
Kashmere High
Kashmere Gardens Elementary
Key Middle
McDade Elementary
Northline Elementary
Peterson Elementary
Wheatley Child Development Center
The Harris County Office of Emergency Management said the following bayous were near or over their banks at 9:30 a.m., creating localized street flooding.
Hunting Bayou at Lockwood Drive and Loop 610
White Oak Bayou south of Jersey Village to Heights Boulevard
Buffalo Bayou where it meets White Oak Bayou
“There are no reports of home flooding in Harris County,” said Keith LeJune with the Harris County Office of Emergency Management.
Officials said there have not been any reports of injuries.
Authorities were investigating reports that high winds destroyed two mobile homes and severely damaged another structure in the town of China, a Jefferson County official said.
No injuries were reported in the storm about 65 miles northeast of Houston, said Calvin Irvin, Jefferson County emergency management spokesman. Public reports that the damaging wind was a tornado were still unconfirmed, he said.
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my boss sent me home early and I am JUST now getting online. The lighting has been unbeleiveable......and dangerous.
we have another round coming tonight, then more thursday...
OK I give up How is doing as the police say stupid .....
They were turning north bound cars around and sending them south in the north bound right hand lane ....
Directing north bound trucks through the water .....
Disobey orders giving by the police is ..... stupid....
Taking a car through that much water is stupid....
Following a convoy of trucks directed by the police through the water is not because of my size and wieght....
Now ..... twenty minutes after I passed through .... they routed even the trucks through town ..... after they found a route that was not swamped that a truck could travel...
Now .... had the police not been there ..... no way ..... I like my truck too much for that... And besides ... been thru worse working with FEMA...
So ....if some one is stupid here ..... it's the police ...... They are the ones that decided to send the trucks through ...... I had no choice ....
OK I give up How is doing as the police say stupid .....
They were turning north bound cars around and sending them south in the north bound right hand lane ....
Directing north bound trucks through the water .....
Disobey orders giving by the police is ..... stupid....
Taking a car through that much water is stupid....
Following a convoy of trucks directed by the police through the water is not because of my size and wieght....
Now ..... twenty minutes after I passed through .... they routed even the trucks through town ..... after they found a route that was not swamped that a truck could travel...
Now .... had the police not been there ..... no way ..... I like my truck too much for that... And besides ... been thru worse working with FEMA...
So ....if some one is stupid here ..... it's the police ...... They are the ones that decided to send the trucks through ...... I had no choice ....
Well thats what you get for not telling the whole story stupid!