Rising water levels breached a levee near Houston in the aftermath of Hurricane Harvey, leading to more flooding and destruction in the catastrophic storm.
Officials in Brazoria County are telling residents of Columbia Lakes to evacuate immediately after a large levee was breached. Brazoria County is south of Houston and, like most of the the area, residents have been fighting the hurricane for several days.
The Brazos River began overflowing its banks as rain continued to fall, causing a breach in the Columbia Lakes levee and forcing immediate evacuation. Police officials issued strong warnings, saying the additional flooding will be catastrophic.
“We are asking residents to please get out,” said Sharon Trower, a spokeswoman for the county, which has already rescued hundreds of residents after severe flooding. “The additional river flooding is just going to be catastrophic.”
Six people died in Harris County in Houston, one person died in the small city of Rockport, and another person was found dead in La Marque, near Galveston. Authorities expect the toll to rise throughout the next several days as rescue efforts continue.
The full thrust of Harvey’s destruction remains unclear in the southeastern parts of Texas and Louisiana. Officials are also warning that more than 30,000 people could be forced from their homes due to sheets of rain that the storm continues dumping on the state.
Officials have reportedly been monitoring the rising river levels swelled days of relentless rain. Authorities in Brazoria County announced a levee breach at Columbia Lakes. (RELATED: HURRICANE WATCH: More Than 30,000 People Expected At Makeshift Shelters Due To Fallout From Harvey)
“The threat is now moving from rain to river,” KPRC-TV meteorologist Britta Merwin said.
#BREAKING Officials in Brazoria County, southwest of Houston, say levee is breached, urge residents to evacuate https://t.co/HulXeIF1fU
— USA TODAY (@USATODAY) August 29, 2017
#BREAKING: ‘GET OUT NOW’: Levee at Columbia Lakes breachedhttps://t.co/W81pGXrZV5
— ABC13 Houston (@abc13houston) August 29, 2017
— Brazoria County (@BrazoriaCounty) August 29, 2017
The Daily Caller News Foundation is continuing to monitor Hurricane Harvey, and will be providing breaking updates.
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