Rain levels in most of Houston approached 20 inches late Sunday night. Many homes and several major interstate highways are under water, forcing the schools to close and the loss of power to thousands of Texas residents. By Monday evening parts of Houston had already received over a foot of rain. 

At least five people have died due to the storm, authorities said.  Over 260 water rescues were carried out, immediately to the north of Houston in Montgomery County,  County Emergency Management officials said. Mayor Sylvester Turner, told residents to stay home to fend off a weather system he called “stubborn.” More rain was projected over the next two to three days, although heavy downpours had subsided and only another half-inch was expected through Monday night, he said.

Two bodies were found in a vehicle shown on traffic cameras driving around barricades and unsuccessfully attempting to navigate a flooded underpass. One person was found in a submerged vehicle not far from the airport. A second person, a truck driver, was found dead in the cab of his rig. Several shelters were established for people who had been forced from their homes. At least 1,000 people taken from apartment complexes in the north part of the city and moved to a shopping mall were being ferried by city buses to a shelter, the mayor said.

Emmett said thousands of homes in the county outside Houston were flooded, many for the first time. At least 450 high-water rescues were conducted, he said. About 1 million students got the day off, including the Houston Independent School District’s 215,000 students, Texas’ largest public school district. Most colleges and universities also closed because of the bad weather.

In 2001, Tropical Storm Allison inundated parts of the city by dumping as much as nearly 29 inches of rain, causing $5 billion in damages.

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