Monday’s heavy rains in the drought-stricken Dallas–Fort Worth area led to flooding and stranded automobiles, despite officials’ warnings to keep off the roads. Water even made its way into some homes and businesses. According to National Weather Service meteorologist Daniel Huckaby, “The Dallas-Fort Worth area was pretty much ground zero for the heaviest rain overnight,”
According to the National Weather Service’s official record station at Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport, 9.19 inches (23 cm) of rain fell in the 24 hours preceding Monday at 2 p.m. That was the second-highest total rainfall in 24 hours in Dallas’s history.
On September 4–5, 1932, we had 9.57 inches (24.3 cm) of rain. “We have been in drought conditions, so the ground soaked up a lot of it,” Huckaby said, “but when you get that much rain over that short a period of time, it is certainly going to cause flooding,” and that is precisely what happened in the urban areas here.
Sarah Barnes, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service, stated that rainfall totals varied widely over the region, from under 3 millimeters to more than 38. She reported that the rain had stopped by Monday afternoon.
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Barnes noted that “There was quite a bit of variation in the rainfall totals” that existed in the sums of rain that fell. Rescue workers from around the region said they had to respond to hundreds of complaints about rising water, and at least one death was attributed to the storms.
Dallas County commissioners chairman Clay Jenkins said that a woman in her 60s was killed when floodwaters washed away her car.
Jenkins has proclaimed Dallas County to be in a state of disaster and has asked for aid from the federal government and other states.
Rescue operations were conducted on Monday in the Dallas neighborhood of Balch Springs, where over two dozen homes were burned by a grass fire last month that originated in a dry open field. According to Fire Chief Eric Neal, his crew rescued five people from two flooded homes.
Neal stated, “We had to get to them by boat and pull them to safety,” adding that some people stayed in their flooded homes. When the rain finally ceased, the water level quickly dropped, as Neal put it.
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Many people came out in the rain on Monday morning to watch White Rock Lake near Dallas, which has been dry throughout the scorching summer months, become a raging river.
Trenton Cody, age 29, claims he visited the lake on Monday morning to observe the impact of the floodwaters on the dam. Cody remarked, “It looks like we’re high in the mountains somewhere with some like Class V rapids, which is crazy,”
The streets and highways, according to Huckaby, began to flood overnight. “It fell very, very quickly,” Huckaby emphasized. It rained more than 3 inches (8 centimeters) in some parts of Dallas in only one hour.
‘There is just so much that the drainage systems can manage,’ he said, referring to the amount of concrete found in cities. Some stores had water seep into them.
The owner of Tarantino’s Cicchetti Bar and Record Lounge in Dallas, Peter Tarantino, reported to The Dallas Morning News that 6 inches of water flooded the dining area but had drained out by late morning. He indicated he might perhaps save the furniture, but the carpets and rugs would have to be replaced.
“I’m hoping by Thursday we’ll be able to open up the bar with a few snacks,” he told the paper. I do not readily give up when I set my mind to anything.
On the basis of initial damage estimates, Dallas County Judge Clay Jenkins announced through Twitter that he was declaring a state of disaster in Dallas County and asking for assistance from the state and federal governments.
At the same time, the weather prompted hundreds of flight delays and cancellations at DFW International Airport and Dallas Love Field. It is official: after Monday’s downpour, this August is the second-wettest on record for this region.
As of 2 p.m. local time on August 31st, the National Weather Service reported 10.08 inches (25 cm) of rainfall at Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport. In 1915, we saw 10.33 inches (26 centimeters) of August precipitation.
Barnes predicted that “It will probably put a small dent on the drought, I would imagine, but I don’t think it’s going to get rid of it by any means,” but he was skeptical that it would ultimately end the drought. In the upcoming week, she predicted, the likelihood of precipitation is minimal at best.
Drought conditions are expected to increase again unless rains persist, Barnes warned.
