Imelda brings over 30 inches of rain in southeast Texas
The tropical depression takes a toll on Texas causing flash flooding near Houston; Casey Stegall reports from Dallas.
A 19-year-old Texas man drowned after he was electrocuted Thursday while attempting to move his horse during Tropical Storm Imelda, his family said, in one of two deaths reported from the storm.
Hunter Morrison's death was the first to result from torrential rains and severe flooding that has swept across parts of east Texas after Imelda made landfall Tuesday with maximum sustained winds of 40 mph.
The Jefferson County Sheriff's Office shared a message from an unidentified Morrison family member to clarify the circumstances of Hunter's death 11 miles southwest of Beaumont, where authorities were warning that a levee could possibly burst.
"Right now my family and I are going through one of the most horrific times in our lives with losing Hunter," the statement read. "Thank you for all the kind words and phone calls I have received over the past 8 [hours] but I do want to clarify something....he wasn't "saving" people. He was trying to move his horse, got electrocuted, and drowned."
"I just want the facts to be straight and not give him a sense of false heroism," the statement continued.
The family reported Morrison's death to authorities at about 12:30 p.m. Sheriff's office spokeswoman Crystal Holmes said an autopsy won't be performed to establish the cause of death for several days because of the storm, The Associated Press reported.
Meantime, a man in his 40s or 50s drowned when he tried to drive a van through 8-foot-deep floodwaters near Bush Intercontinental Airport in Houston during the Thursday afternoon rush hour, Harris County Judge Ed Gonzalez said.
The National Weather Service issued a flash flood emergency warning for several counties, saying "life-threatening amounts of rainfall" have already fallen. Jefferson County was drenched by more than 40 inches of rain in a span of just 72 hours.
Terry Spencer carries his daughter, Trinity, through high water on 59th Street near Stewart Road in Galveston, Texas, Wednesday, Sept. 18, 2019, as heavy rain from Tropical Depression Imelda caused street flooding on the island. (Jennifer Reynolds/The Galveston County Daily News via AP)
County officials reported a combination of at least 1,000 high-water rescues and evacuations to get people to shelter in ongoing rescue efforts.
At least 700 flights were also canceled Thursday at Houston's George Bush Intercontinental Airport, and an additional 200 flights were delayed.
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Gov. Greg Abbott declared disaster areas in 13 counties suffering from severe flooding and heavy rainfall.
Fox News' Nicole Darrah and The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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