Heavy, gusty thunderstorms march across Texas; Eye Louisiana into Monday night

By Kristina Pydynowski, AccuWeather senior meteorologist

February 20,2017, 11:20:48AM,EST

 

 Flooding rain and locally severe thunderstorms will push eastward across the south-central United States into Monday night.

As the deadly California storm swept eastward and tapped into moisture from the Gulf of Mexico over the weekend, heavy showers and thunderstorms erupted across central Texas and Oklahoma late Sunday.
The thunderstorms late Sunday and Sunday night caused localized flooding and prompted several tornado warnings, including one near San Antonio, Texas.
The rain and thunderstorms will slowly push across eastern Texas, eastern Oklahoma, western Arkansas and Louisiana through Monday.

“Heavy rain will likely be the primary threat with local flash flooding a concern,” AccuWeather Enterprise Solutions Storm Warning Meteorologist Alex Avalos said.
The severe weather danger in terms of hail and damaging winds will wane during Monday night, but an isolated severe thunderstorm or tornado is still possible.
Storms caused flight delays at Houston Hobby Airport Monday morning. A high voltage tower was toppled in San Antonio, Texas, during early Monday morning. Straightline wind damage was reported in Guadalupe County.

A National Weather Service storm survey confirmed an EF1 tornado touched down in the San Antonio area Monday.

More than 24,000 customers were without power at one point early Monday morning around San Antonio.
According to News 4 San Antonio, more than 30 streets were closed at one point due to flooding and there were over 100 reports of damaged homes in the city. Two minor injuries were reported. Additionally, 15 homes were damaged but there were no reports of injuries in The Glen and Camelot neighborhoods in Bexar County.
The risk of flooding downpours will target Houston and Tyler, Texas, during Monday morning. The worst of the storms will be around Shreveport and Lake Charles, Louisiana, during Monday afternoon. The rain will hold off in Baton Rouge and New Orleans, Louisiana, until Monday evening.
With Monday being a federal holiday, some residents will be able to stay home from work and school and not have to worry about venturing out into the adverse weather.
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A total of 1-3 inches of rain may fall from eastern Texas and southeastern Oklahoma to Louisiana. There can be locally higher amounts where there are repeated rounds of downpours and thunderstorms.
The hardest-hit areas may be subject to road closures and flight delays and cancellations. Streams could overflow their banks and inundate neighboring land and homes.
Even where flooding does not ensue, the downpours will create slower travel and hazards for motorists by reducing visibility and heightening the risk of vehicles hydroplaning when traveling at highway speeds.
This includes on stretches of interstates 10, 20, 30, 45 and 49.
Dry and warmer weather will quickly follow the storm, which is expected to dive southward and could deliver welcome rainfall to Florida at midweek.
Any severe weather that ignites with the next storm to emerge from the West later this week would likely threaten more of the lower Great Lakes than areas closer to the Gulf Coast.