Tornado warning issued for Chambers County as tropical depression Imelda continues to impact region Storm is expected to redevelop overnight east and northeast of Houston

Stephen Gilbert, left, and his father-in-law sit in front of their flooded property on Friday, Sept. 20, 2019, in the Mauriceville area. "I'm on my third house," said Gilbert, who lives behind his father-in-law. "I wouldn't go anywhere else in the world," he said. "All we have is family anyway." less Stephen Gilbert, left, and his father-in-law sit in front of their flooded property on Friday, Sept. 20, 2019, in the Mauriceville area. "I'm on my third house," said Gilbert, who lives behind his ... more Photo: Jon Shapley, Staff Photographer Photo: Jon Shapley, Staff Photographer Image 1 of / 179 Caption Close Tornado warning issued for Chambers County as tropical depression Imelda continues to impact region 1 / 179 Back to Gallery

The remnants of Tropical Depression Imelda continue to impact the Houston area with reports of tornadoes and street flooding in the region. Although conditions in Houston appeared to dry up during the day, officials are advising the public to "not let our guard down."

A tornado warning has been issued for southeastern Harris County and portions of Chambers County, including Anahuac and Monroe City, until 7:15 p.m.

Severe thunderstorms capable of producing a tornado were located near Mont Belvieu and Cove on Wednesday afternoon, and several media outlets later reported a tornado in that area.

Harris County Sheriff Ed Gonzalez also tweeted at 6:17 p.m. that a small tornado appeared to touch down in east Harris County, near Highlands. Only a barn and some power lines appeared to be damaged, he said. A video posted on twitter around 6 p.m. appeared to show a tornado on the ground in Baytown.

The tropical depression storm is expected to redevelop into Wednesday night and especially target communities east and northeast of Houston, according to the National Weather Service.

The National Weather Service extended the flash flood watch for Harris, Galveston, Brazoria, Chambers, Fort Bend, Matagorda, Liberty and Wharton counties until at least Thursday morning.

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Communities in Liberty, San Jacinto and Polk counties could experience up to 10 inches of new rainfall between Wednesday afternoon and Thursday, according to the weather service. Houston and communities west of the I-45 / Texas 288 corridor will likely still experience rainfall and potential street flooding.

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"We're about 24 hours or halfway through this 48-hour event, so even though we have done well overnight and haven't had significant levels of flooding, we can't let our guard down just yet," Harris County Flood Control District Meteorologist Jeff Lindner said Wednesday morning. "We need to continue to pay attention to the forecast, to the rainfall amounts, to the water levels over the next 24 hours."

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So far the highest rainfall totals along the Gulf of Mexico are about 70 miles southwest of Houston in northern Matagorda County, near the San Bernard National Wildlife Refuge. A storm gauge maintained by the Lower Colorado River Authority registered 21 inches of rain in the past 24 hours.

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Parts of southeast Harris County have received more than 9 inches of rain since early Tuesday morning, with central and northwest Harris County receiving 2 to 4 inches, according to the Harris County Flood Control District.

Lindner said the current rainfall in the past 24 hours hasn't amounted to significant flooding.

All of the bayous are running high, Lindner said, especially in southeast Harris County. But they're all within their banks.

Meteorologists haven't received any reports of structures flooding, Lindner said.

"The flood threat's probably going to be increasing a little bit today compared to yesterday," he said, because the ground is saturated.

Mayor Sylvester Turner said Wednesday that, though the city was spared some of the worst rainfall, Houstonians should remain prepared for any storm to quickly develop into something more dangerous.

"We just have to be mindful that we're living in a day and time where it doesn't have to be a hurricane, it can simply be a weather system that can evolve very quickly into something much worse," he told reporters.

The storm is slowly moving north, making its way into Montgomery County, where another 2 to 4 inches of rain an hour is possible, Montgomery County officials said.

Chambers County Judge Jimmy Sylvia issued a proclamation of a local state of disaster for the county due to the "threat of Tropical Storm Imelda and the impact that is anticipated." The proclamation activates the Chambers County Emergency Response Plan.

In Matagorda County, officials said Imelda has caused widespread flooding mostly inside of the city of Bay City and east and south of the city.

Mitch Thames, spokesman for Matagorda County Emergency Operations Center, said Sargent was the hardest-hit area in that region, with reports of up to 22 inches of rain with 13.5 inches in the last 12 hours alone.

Several high-water spots have popped up across the area, according to Houston TranStar. Those spots include along the Gulf Freeway at El Dorado Boulevard and at Clear Lake City Boulevard on the frontage roads, while other spots include West Loop 610 at South Post Oak and South Beltway 8 and Mykawa. A dirt embankment collapsed on the westbound frontage road of Loop 610 near Long.

That list does not include any surface streets that typically flood.

Drivers along Monroe Boulevard near Hobby Airport encountered high water and had to be rescued by wrecker drivers.

Other than slow-going on area roads and a few detours, reported problems have been minimal. A number of schools delayed or canceled classes out of an abundance of caution. Various events will be rescheduled.

Amanda Foster, a Houston mother, said she was relieved to wake up Wednesday to less flooding than she braced for. She mostly worries about how to navigate high waters in a low-lying minivan.

"I was more worried about how I'm supposed to get to work and how my kids will get to school," she said.

Foster, who stopped at a Walmart in the Galleria area, said she had already prepared for the worst.

"I actually already prepared over the weekend," she said. "I'm glad that it's not as bad."

Tina Mabry, who was grocery shopping at Kroger Wednesday morning, said her house in Highland Village has never flooded. Nonetheless, she was also relieved Wednesday.

"I was more concerned yesterday than I was today," she said.

The system that became Imelda formed quickly Tuesday afternoon over the Gulf of Mexico and at 1 p.m. made landfall in Freeport with maximum wind speeds of 40 mph.

The Houston-area experienced the first of two periods of concentrated rain Tuesday night into Wednesday morning and a second is predicted Wednesday night into Thursday morning, forecasters say. The area could receive 4 to 7 inches of rain through Thursday, with totals reaching 12 inches in some areas, Lindner said.

The rate of rainfall, up to 1 to 2 inches per hour, is concerning, he added.

Even as the system continues to weaken during the next few days, chances for rain in the Houston area will last until early next week.

Staffers Hannah Dellinger, Robert Downen and Dylan McGuinness contributed.

Jay R. Jordan covers breaking news in the Houston area. Read him on our breaking news site, Chron.com, and our subscriber site, HoustonChronicle.com | Follow him on Twitter at @JayRJordan | Email him at jay.jordan@chron.com