Texas flooding has intensified after days of pounding rain, sending emergency crews scrambling to rescue people from high water before sunrise Thursday and setting off urgent warnings from forecasters: “Move to higher ground now!”

Rescue Efforts Underway

Texas Game Wardens have participated in rescues of more than 40 people so far from the flooding, mostly in the Uvalde County area, according to a Texas Parks and Wildlife Department spokesperson.

The National Weather Service in San Antonio said a “large and deadly flood wave” was barreling down the same river devastated by floods a year ago when two dozen children and counselors were killed at Camp Mystic.

The storms threatened multiple counties close to the border with Mexico and in the Texas Hill Country, where city officials in Kerrville urged people to shelter at the highest levels of their homes.

The Uvalde County Office of Emergency Management issued its own shelter-in-place message. “All major highways and many city streets are closed due to flooding and water over the roadway,” it said.

Flood Warnings Remain in Effect

Forecasters had warned that already dangerous conditions were likely to worsen in some hard-hit communities. The deluge dumped nearly a foot of rain in some counties and put people in multiple counties under flood watches.

Some of the flood watches were expected to remain in effect through Friday evening.

Texas Gov. Greg Abbott has issued disaster declarations for dozens of counties.

Original reporting: 40/29 / KHBS (NW Arkansas) — read the source article.