2 killed, more than 200 rescued in San Antonio floods

Katharine Lackey and William Cummings | USA TODAY

Show Caption Hide Caption Mayor: Person killed in San Antonio flooding The San Antonio Fire Department says a 29-year-old woman was trapped in her car, got on the roof and was swept away in floodwaters. Her body was later found against a fence. (May 25)

235 people have been rescued from their homes and cars in the San Antonio area

Nearly all streams and rivers in the area are flooded as a result of heavy rains

Flood levels on the San Antonio River reached a new record of 34.2 feet at Loop 410

Two people have been killed, another is missing and about 235 have been rescued in the San Antonio area after the region was inundated with nearly 10 inches of rain Saturday.

San Antonio Fire Department spokesman Christian Bove told the Associated Press that a 29-year-old woman was trapped in her car, got on the roof and was swept away in floodwaters. Her body was later found against a fence.

A second woman's body was recovered hours after her car was swept away as firefighters tried to save her. The rising waters rolled the car over before they could pull the 60-year-old woman free, the Express-News reported.

"They were in the midst of getting her out when the currents changed and washed that vehicle away," San Antonio Fire Chief Charles Hood told KSAT 12 News.

Officials are also searching Cibolo Creek and its banks for a 17-year-old boy who was reported missing after attempting to cross the creek, according to the Express-News.

The San Antonio Fire Department says it has conducted more than 235 water-related rescues of people from their homes and cars in the San Antonio area, where water is up to 4 feet high in some homes. In one neighborhood, first responders used inflatable boats to remove 54 people alone, said Bexar County spokeswoman Laura Jesse.

By Saturday afternoon, the San Antonio International Airport had recorded nearly 10 inches of rain since midnight. The highest amount reported in that same time frame was 15.5 inches at Olmos Creek at Dresden Drive. Nearly all streams and rivers in the area are flooded as a result of the heavy rains.

A Wilson County judge issued an evacuation order for those living along the San Antonio River. A shelter was scheduled to open Saturday evening for area residents.

The river is expected to crest around 60 feet sometime early Sunday morning and to recede sometime Sunday afternoon, according to a Wilson County press release.

"This is a life-threatening situation and should not be taken lightly," the press release read.

Saturday marks the second-wettest day ever recorded in San Antonio, the San Antonio Express-News reported. The wettest day on record is Oct. 17, 1998, when 11.62 inches of rain fell. In that flood, the Guadalupe and San Antonio River basins overflowed, leaving more than 30 people dead, according to the Guadalupe-Blanco River Authority.

The 1998 record is likely to stand as the heavy rains have moved east of the city. (Because the gauge at Olmos Creek is not an official weather station, the National Weather Service does not consider it to be a record.)

Flood levels on the San Antonio River at Loop 410 reached a new record of 34.2 feet, beating a previous record of 32.57 feet set on Oct. 17, 1998, CNN reported.

By Saturday evening, the water was receding quickly in much of San Antonio. However, pools of water could still be seen in some low-lying areas. And several roads were closed, including a major highway that links the suburbs and the city.

Despite a break in the rain, Mayor Julian Castro urged motorists to stay off roads.

"Many roads throughout the city continue to be impassable and dangerous," he said in a statement. "Just because it's not raining at the moment, does not mean that the threat has passed."

It is not known how much the rainfall will impact drought in the region because much of it will run off into creeks and rivers, NWS meteorologist Pat McDonald told the Express-News.

"Hopefully, it will help, but it will take us a week or two weeks for all the data to come in," he said. "It depends on how much soaks into the aquifer."

Contributing: The Associated Press