Story highlights Flooding comes on the heels of a wet 2016 for Houston

Flash flooding closed schools and rain flooded Rice University's football field

(CNN) Parts of Houston were at a standstill Wednesday morning as more than five inches of rain fell across the metro area.

The rain began on Tuesday night, with the bulk occurring between 4 a.m. and 8 a.m. Wednesday. Areas on the north side of Interstate 610 got 5.3 inches of rain. However, just a few miles south received 3.3 inches. And even farther south, portions of the metro area only picked up a trace.

Why so much rain in one area? These storms were what meteorologists call "training." Imagine train cars on a track -- following one after the other. These thunderstorms were doing the same thing for hours, leaving some areas with nearly half a foot of rain, while others saw barely anything.

Houston flash flooding at 6 am! A video posted by deb (@debjessup) on Jan 18, 2017 at 7:14am PST

All though some morning commuters made it through the flood waters, some people had to be rescued. Currently there have been no reports of injuries or fatalities.

Vehicles stranded and schools closed