Tropical Depression Hanna continued to lash South Texas and northeastern Mexico on Sunday with high winds and torrential downpours.
Flash flood warnings were issued across the Rio Grande Valley as the storm continued to push inland. A flash flood emergency was declared in Mission, Texas, where as much as 10 inches of rain had fallen. Officials with the city of Mission asked people to stay away because motorists were becoming stranded in the flooding and that was taking time away from first responders.
A flash flood emergency also was declared for frontage roads and city streets around U.S. Highway 83 in Hidalgo County.
Chris Birchfield, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service office in Brownsville, Texas, said even though Hanna's winds had weakened, the heavy rainfall was still a real threat.
"We're not even close to over at this point," Birchfield told the Associated Press. "We're still expecting catastrophic flooding."
More than 240,000 homes and businesses still had no electricity as of 12:30 p.m. CDT Sunday, according to poweroutage.us. Hidalgo County officials had to move an evacuation shelter to a hotel after power went out at Weslaco High School, KRGV.com reported.
(MORE: What's Next for Hanna?)
Three people had to be rescued from a sailboat sinking in Corpus Christi's Marina del Sol late Saturday, KIII-TV reported. A water rescue team from Texas A&M Task Force 1 used two inflatable Zodiac boats to reach the endangered sailboat as 65-mph winds roiled the waters, smashing boats into kindling. Two people in their 80s and the 40-year-old owner were aboard the sailboat.
"Conditions were pretty rough, not going to lie, it was debatable, but the handicapped people on the boat were sending SOS using a flashlight and boats were literally ripping apart. I asked the rescue squad leader and boat operators if they felt comfortable. I got three thumbs up," TX-TF1 Water Group Supervisor Kevin Deramus said, according to KIII.
Jame Rowles examines the damage after the docks at the marina where his boat was secured were destroyed as Hurricane Hanna made landfall, Saturday, July 25, 2020, in Corpus Christi, Texas.Parts of North Beach in Corpus Christi remained underwater on Sunday, according to KRIS. North Beach remained closed to cars and pedestrians.
Water rescues also were needed in Hidalgo County, Valley Central reported, and major flooding was reported in Edinburg, McAllen, Mission, San Juan, and Weslaco. The roof of a funeral home in Edinburg collapsed overnight.
Hidalgo County Judge Richard Cortez said the county received 8 to 12 inches of rain and it could take 24 to 48 hours for all the water to drain downstream. He said many vehicles were stranded and power lines were down. He also said residents were being evacuated.
While treating a patient overnight, Dr. Ivan Melendez, the health authority in Hidalgo County noticed a pool of water forming on the floor.
“I thought, ‘Hey, something’s leaking,’” Melendez told AP. “The nurse looks at me and says, ‘Look behind you.’ I look and see this water coming and coming and coming down the wall.”
Roofs were ripped off buildings in Willacy County, according to Valley Central.
A beach and roadway in Matagorda County, Texas, were covered with debris from Hurricane Hanna on Saturday, July 25, 2020.An airport manager said planes were shoved around and windows blown out of buildings at the Brownsville South Padre Island International Airport on Sunday during a possible tornado, the NWS reported. The airport's perimeter fence was also damaged.
Highways and streets were closed across many parts of South Texas because of flooding and downed trees and power lines.
(MORE: In the Era of Coronavirus and Social Distancing, Should You Go to a Shelter?)
Storm surge washed over South Texas beaches when Hanna made landfall as a Category 1 hurricane at 5 p.m. Saturday. about 15 miles north of Port Mansfield, Texas, according to the National Weather Service.
Gov. Greg Abbott declared a state of emergency for 32 counties, many of them in areas ravaged in recent weeks by the coronavirus pandemic.
Water washed boards, tree limbs, trash and other debris over seawalls, piers and roads all along the coast.
A portion of the Bob Hall Pier in Corpus Christi washed away, and floodwaters had reached the city's Art Museum of South Texas, KIII-TV reported. Images posted on social media also showed flooding in the downtown area.
Across the border in Mexico, Hanna's winds and rains continued to cause damage.
Water flooded into an obstetrics hospital in Reynosa, which is just south of the border. El Universal reported that patients had to be moved from the emergency room and recovery rooms. A pump was brought in to get the water out of the hospital.
Authorities said some families were trapped in their homes in Reynosa, El Universal reported. Three youngsters were swept away by floodwaters in Reynosa's Paseo neighborhood, the newspaper reported.
A nearly 30-mile stretch of the Monterrey-Reynosa Highway was closed by flooding and several cars were stranded on the roadway.
Saturated ground could no longer support trees and strong winds toppled several across roads in Monterrey, according to El Norte.
The Weather Company’s primary journalistic mission is to report on breaking weather news, the environment and the importance of science to our lives. This story does not necessarily represent the position of our parent company, IBM.
The Weather Company’s primary journalistic mission is to report on breaking weather news, the environment and the importance of science to our lives. This story does not necessarily represent the position of our parent company, IBM.
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