Hurricane Harvey Latest News: Heavy Rainfall, Flooding Not Over Yet; Death Toll Rises
Hurricane Harvey is expected to continue ravaging several parts of Texas in the next couple of days. Meanwhile, as rescue operations continue, police have stated that the death toll caused by the storm is rising.
In a recent forecast bulletin from the National Hurricane Center, they have warned the public that "ongoing catastrophic and life-threatening flooding will continue across southeastern Texas."
The NHC issued one of the latest forecast discussions on Tropical Storm Harvey on Tuesday at 10 a.m. CDT (11 a.m. EDT) and stated: "Additional rainfall accumulations of 6 to 12 inches are expected across the upper Texas coast into southwestern Louisiana, with isolated storm totals as high as 50 inches."
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With that, people residing or located in affected areas must follow the advice of local officials and are highly discouraged from attempting to travel.
Meanwhile, the NHC has also provided a forecast that the flooding will spread onto some parts of Louisiana. The forecast bulletin indicated that the flood threat is expected to affect "farther east" into the said state.
Southern Louisiana, coastal Mississippi and Alabama should also expect 5 to 10 inches of rainfall amounts to hit them.
Aside from the additional rainfall amounts in the past several days and into this week, the flooding in Houston has been worsened by the need to release heavy amounts of water from dams.
In times of heavy rainfall or strong hurricanes, water reservoirs have the tendency to exceed their water volume limit. If the authorities do not let out water from the affected dams, it will cause long-term damages to nearby communities.
On Tuesday, authorities said the death toll has now risen to 14 after it was reported that a family of six had perished in an attempt to escape floodwaters. According to Fox News, the victims were comprised of four children and their great-grandparents who were aboard a van that was swept away by the current and sank. The van's driver, who was the children's great-uncle, was able to exit the vehicle, but the same could not be said for the others.
Meanwhile, President Donald Trump is expected to visit areas in Texas hit by Harvey on Tuesday.
