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| Hurricane Harvey has dumped the most rain on the continental US in history it was revealed today - as catastrophic scenes unfold in Houston with shelters overwhelmed with survivors, a curfew in place to prevent looting, dams overflowing and a chemical plant at risk of exploding. There are currently 20,000 Hurricane Harvey evacuees in shelters, according to Homeland Security Secretary Elaine Duke, and in Houston's main shelter, the George R Brown Convention Center, there are 9,000 people, which is almost double the capacity of the center. However, people continued to flock to the overcrowded shelter as floodwaters kept rising on Tuesday. Rainfalls reached 51.88inches in Cedar Bayou, Texas, on Tuesday afternoon, which is the record in Texas and the continental US. (even larger storms have been recorded in Hawaii) There are initial reports that at least 30 people have died from the storm and its aftermath, however, the complete death toll can't be fully counted until after the floodwaters recede. And while military help has been limited by weather and flooding, Air Force Major General James Witham said up to 30,000 National Guard troops are prepared and could be called on to help. In the state, hundreds of thousands of people are under evacuation orders and shelters are filled with people who craved news about loved ones and the state of their homes. |
Up to 30 percent of Harris County — home to 4.5 million people in Houston and its suburbs — is under water.
A fertilizer plant in Crosby, Tex., is in critical condition after its refrigeration system and power generators failed, raising the possibility that chemicals on the site could explode.
After more than 50 inches of rain over four days, Houston was less of a city and more of an archipelago: a chain of urbanized islands in a muddy brown sea. All around it, flat-bottomed boats and helicopters were still plucking victims from rooftops, and water was still pouring in from overfilled reservoirs and swollen rivers.