Published: August 20,2015
Strong storms moved through the Houston area Thursday morning, where a lightning strike was blamed for an oil refinery fire and streets were quickly flooded by heavy rain.
Image of the refinery fire in Texas City, Texas, Thursday morning.(Twitter/John Bronkhorst)
The Texas City Fire Department told the Associated Press that the fire would be monitored and allowed to burn itself out.
(MORE: Check the Threat of Severe Weather)
Flooding rapidly became a concern the area. Flash flood warnings were issued Thursday morning, and reports of flooded roadways were relayed from city agencies.
Heavy rains inundated multiple streets in Galveston, Texas, KHOU-TV reported. High floodwaters stranded motorists and left some signal lights without power, the report added. Roadways were still draining Thursday night.
More than 15,000 customers in the Houston area lost power during Thursday's storms, CenterPoint Energy reported to the AP.
"Houston caught a long break after the torrential rains in May and June, but this morning's storms dropped over 2 inches of rain in 30 minutes in the heart of the city," said weather.com senior meteorologist Nick Wiltgen. "That kind of rain is bound to cause flash flooding in urban areas."
River gauges at Buffalo Bayou show the waterway rose six feet in two hours Thursday morning at Shepherd Drive, just west of Houston. In that area, a rain gauge picked up 2.68 inches of rain in 45 minutes, from 8:15 to 9 a.m. local time.
Southeast of Houston, a home struck by lightning Wednesday evening erupted into flames in Deer Park, according to the National Weather Service.
@KPRCBritta @jacelarson Photo Cred to my sister Renee Rodriguez, Galveston flooding.
MORE: Flooding in Texas, May 2015
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