At least four people are dead following this week’s massive flooding in the Houston area, where some neighborhoods were deluged with almost 16 feet of water after Tropical Storm Imelda dumped up to 40 inches of rain on the region.
A bayou overflowed in Huffman, Texas, inundating the neighborhood and forcing the evacuation of about 60 people, The Associated Press reported. Officials warned residents it might take all weekend for the water to recede.
Many of the flooded neighborhoods in the Houston area were still recovering from Hurricane Harvey, which swamped the region two years ago. Imelda filled the streets of the nation’s fourth-largest city, forcing thousands to abandon their cars on downtown streets.
At least two men died in their vehicles. Another was found in a ditch, and is believed to have drowned. A 19-year-old man also drowned and was electrocuted while trying to move his horse to safety.
Officials in communities throughout the region are still assessing the damage. Texas Gov. Greg Abbott declared a state of disaster, but no federal emergency declaration was issued yet. That means that there is no response yet from the Federal Emergency Management Agency, nor are homeowners eligible for federal disaster relief, as they were after Harvey, the Houston Chronicle reported.