(CNN) — What could become the first tropical storm of the Atlantic hurricane season is supercharging flooding in Texas and parts of the Gulf Coast this week.
At least one person died Monday in flooding in Texas. Swift water rescue crews recovered the body of a woman whose vehicle was swept into a creek northwest of San Antonio early that morning, officials said. Water rescues have been reported in Texas and Louisiana since the flood threat began on Sunday.
Flood watches for the dangerous setup have been issued for more than 16 million people from South Texas to central and southern Mississippi. Brownsville, and Houston, Texas; Lake Charles, Louisiana; and Jackson, Mississippi, are among the cities that could see significant to life-threatening flash floods.
The Weather Prediction Center has issued a Level 3 out of 4 threat of flash flooding for each day from Tuesday to Thursday in parts of Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama.
Another 6 to 12 inches of rain will fall over the next few days on top of what has already fallen.
Many areas in Texas and Louisiana have picked up 1 to 5 inches of rain so far, with locally higher amounts. The highest total as of late Monday night was just over 9 inches near Caldwell, Texas.
The soaking pattern is being fueled in part by a record amount of moisture for June coming from the remnants of last week’s Tropical Storm Cristina from the Eastern Pacific.
There is a medium chance this system could become the Atlantic’s first tropical depression or storm of the year if it pushes offshore into the northwest Gulf on Tuesday or Wednesday, according to the National Hurricane Center. It would be named Arthur if it does reach tropical storm strength.
The potential formation of a short-lived Arthur means tropical storm watches or warnings could be issued for the northwest Gulf Coast as soon as Tuesday.
Even if the system stays over land or moves over water and doesn’t become a tropical storm, its moisture in combination with a stalled front will cause heavy rain to fall at rates of 3 to 4 inches per hour at times through midweek. Any places where such intense rainfall persists for several hours could have widespread flooding impacts.
Areas on the immediate coast could also experience gusty winds and coastal flooding.
Flooding kills driver, prompts water rescues
Drenching rains along the stalled front have already caused significant flooding in central and south-central Texas. Gov. Greg Abbott issued a disaster declaration for 101 counties and activated additional state emergency response resources on Monday.
In Bandera County northwest of San Antonio, a woman was killed after her vehicle was swept into a flooded creek early Monday morning. The woman called 911 and said she was “floating downstream at a high rate of speed and unable to exit her vehicle,” the sheriff’s office said in a statement. Authorities launched swift water rescue teams after losing contact with the woman. Her vehicle was found “several miles downstream from the initial entry point completely submerged,” the sheriff said.
Crews rescued another person Monday morning who was stranded in their vehicle at a low water crossing, Bandera County Emergency Management Coordinator Judy Lefevers told CNN, noting many crossings are flooded across the county.
In Houston, some drivers were up to their trailer hitches in lapping waters, while photos from Waco, Texas, showed roadways washed away by the storms.
One person was also rescued in Travis County after becoming stranded at a low water crossing Monday, Travis County Judge Andy Brown told CNN. About 80 low water crossings in Travis County were flooded as of Monday morning, Brown said.
Responders also assisted drivers stranded at two different low water crossings in neighboringWilliamson County, county spokesperson Connie Odom told CNN.
Multiple water rescues were also carried out in Bexar County Monday morning, according to Bexar County Fire Marshal and Emergency Management Coordinator Chris Lopez.
In Waco, Texas, multiple vehicles were stranded in floodwater on parts of Interstate 35 on Sunday night, forcing rescues, according to the Texas Department of Transportation.
“I have not seen flooding like that in Waco before,” Texas Game Warden Capt. Matthew Kiel told CNN, adding most low water crossings were flooded in rural areas of McLennan County, where Waco is located, as well as in Milam, Williamson and Burleson counties. The Texas Game Wardens had completed a handful of water rescues across central Texas as of Monday morning, Kiel said.
In Shreveport, Louisiana, floodwater stranded drivers and entered a few commercial buildings and at least one building at a technical college on Monday, Caddo Parish Sheriff’s Deputy John Lane told CNN. The sheriff’s office received 52 calls for water rescues in a roughly six-hour period, but Lane didn’t know how many of those calls ultimately required a rescue. No injuries were reported, he said.
Similar or worse impacts are likely to play out this week.
Timing the flood threat
Here’s where the most serious flooding concerns are expected in the next few days:
• Tuesday to Tuesday night: Coastal Texas to southwest and central Louisiana and a small part of central Mississippi are in the area with the biggest flooding concerns. Localized flooding is possible as far east as central and southern Alabama and western and central Georgia.
• Wednesday to Wednesday night: The upper Texas coast, including Houston and Galveston, and southwest Louisiana, could see the most dangerous flooding, especially where rainfall has already saturated the ground from earlier in the week.
• Thursday to Thursday night: Central Louisiana to southern and central parts of Mississippi and Alabama have the biggest threat of flooding rain. At least localized flooding will be possible as far southwest as upper Texas to as far north and east as Georgia, the Tennessee Valley and the central and southern Appalachians. That’s because a new cold front will help pull the tropical moisture farther north and east.
• Friday to Friday night: The cold front could cause at least isolated flash flooding in much of the South, but details are still uncertain.
The-CNN-Wire™ & © 2026 Cable News Network, Inc., a Time Warner Company. All rights reserved.