Storms bring flooding in South Texas, other areas

Weekend may see severe weather

DALLAS — Officials in far South Texas were using helicopters Thursday to rescue residents from flooded areas where rains have fallen all week.

Texas Department of Public Safety Lt. Johnny Hernandez said that residents were being rescued Thursday in the Mission area, along the border with Mexico. First lady Melania Trump arrived in nearby McAllen as she made an unannounced visit to a facility housing migrant children.

Streets in far South Texas were flooding and authorities were distributing sandbags to residents.

Thunderstorms that have moved across Texas this week have also brought heavy rains to areas that less than a year ago were hit by flooding from Hurricane Harvey, including the Corpus Christi area and the Beaumont-Port Arthur area, east of Houston.

National Weather Service meteorologist Tim Speece said the rain was expected to continue Thursday in far South Texas before moving out by Friday.

Some other parts of the U.S. were also experiencing heavy rains and flooding.

In Montana, creeks and rivers were funneling water from weekend rains along the Rocky Mountain Front downstream toward the Missouri River. Water was above flood stage and still rising Thursday morning where the Smith River runs into the Missouri River about 10 miles southwest of Great Falls.

Forecasters say much of the central and southeast U.S. will be at risk of severe storms as the weekend approaches. The national Storm Prediction Center said an area that encompasses parts of western Oklahoma, western Kansas and eastern Colorado will be at most risk of strong to severe thunderstorms Friday. Storms could also be severe in the Deep South.