Flash flooding in Texas forces road closures and rescues

Residents in the area of Dallas, Texas are recovering from torrential rains and floodwaters that inundated entire neighborhoods and roads and prompted dozens of high-water rescues this week.

Photos and video footage show firefighters rescuing residents from flooded homes and people escaping and swimming away from inundated vehicles. At least one person is dead after floodwaters swept away their vehicle in east Dallas, authorities said.

More than 100 homes have been damaged after parts of the Dallas area saw more than 10 inches of rainfall on Monday. Flooding also caused sanitary sewers to overflow in several locations, the city said in a release on Monday.

The flooding in Texas this week is the latest extreme weather event to impact the U.S. Disasters like storms and flooding, wildfires and heatwaves are becoming more frequent and intense as the climate changes. Scientists have warned that climate change fuels more brief and intense periods of rain.

Gov. Greg Abbott on Tuesday signed a disaster declaration for 23 counties to provide state resources for flood victims. He said the situation was Dallas’ second worst rainstorm and flooding event on record. The National Weather Service said that flood warnings in the Dallas area were in effect until at least Wednesday morning.