Torrential rain led to flash flooding in Southeastern Texas and Southwestern Louisiana Monday, May 17.
According to CNN, between 7-14 inches of rain fell and flood warnings were issued for Western Jefferson County in Texas and East Baton Rouge Parish and Easter Calcasieu Parish counties in Lousiana, which includes the city Lake Charles.
Lakes Charles received more than 12 inches of rain by Monday evening, prompting Gov. John Bel Edwards to issue a State of Emergency for the southwest region of the state. The city of Lake Charles is still recovering from two hurricanes and an ice storm that have occurred over the past year. Hurricane Laura hit the area in August with heavy winds equivalent to an EF-2 tornado, and in October, Hurricane Delta brought torrential rainfall that caused major flooding, according to CNN.
The rainfall on Monday was the third most rainfall in a single day in the city’s history with more rain falling than during either 202 hurricane, CNN reported.
In a video address, Lake Charles Mayor Nic Hunter said the rain totals will meet the threshold of a 100-year event, according to NBC News. Hunter also said he estimates that the number of flooded homes will be the hundreds.
The rain is forecasted to continue for days with Lake Charles and other parts of Southwest Louisiana under a flash flood watch through the evening Thursday, May 20, according to NBC News.
In addition to the rainfall, more than a dozen tornado warnings were issued, NBC News reported.
Read related about flooding and flood control:
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Katie Johns
Katie Johns, editor-in-chief of Stormwater Solutions, graduated from the University of Missouri in 2016 with a Bachelor of Journalism and a Bachelor of Arts in Spanish. Johns joined the Stormwater Solutions team in September 2019. Johns also helps plan the annual StormCon conference and co-hosts the Talking Under Water podcast. Prior to entering the B2B industry, she worked as a newspaper reporter and editor in Sarasota, Florida, and a magazine assistant editor in the Chicago suburbs. She can be reached at [email protected].
