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Dangerous flash flooding is wreaking havoc in Texas with the remnants of Tropical Storm Imelda dumping massive amounts of rain overnight and into the morning.

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The torrential rain prompted a full ground stop at Houston’s George Bush Intercontinental Airport on Thursday morning. The airport later reopened but officials warned of flooded roadways and delayed flights.

PHOTO: In a photo obtained from social media, a bus is shown stuck in floodwaters at the Houston airport, Sept. 18, 2019.Amiee Gardner/Twitter
In a photo obtained from social media, a bus is shown stuck in floodwaters at the Houston airport, Sept. 18, 2019.
PHOTO: A man walks into high water into his neighborhood as rain from Tropical Depression Imelda inundated the area on Sept. 19, 2019, near Patton Village, Texas.Brett Coomer/Houston Chronicle via AP
A man walks into high water into his neighborhood as rain from Tropical Depression Imelda inundated the area on Sept. 19, 2019, near Patton Village, Texas.

More than 33 inches of rain has fallen in the town of Hamshire, Texas, since Tuesday — and over 25 inches of that rainfall was overnight.

In the small town of Winnie, Texas, the conditions are “horrible,” with rapidly rising floodwaters making roads impassable, Chambers County Sheriff Brian Hawthorne told ABC News as the rain pounded down Thursday.

“This is the worst flooding I’ve ever seen,” Hawthorne said.

Some of the same houses flooded during Hurricane Harvey two years ago are now taking on water again, said Hawthorne.

PHOTO: Angel Marshman carries a gas can as he walks through floodwaters from Tropical Depression Imelda to get to his flooded car, Sept. 18, 2019, in Galveston, Texas.David J. Phillip/AP
Angel Marshman carries a gas can as he walks through floodwaters from Tropical Depression Imelda to get to his flooded car, Sept. 18, 2019, in Galveston, Texas.

The water has “run out of places to go,” the sheriff said.

Some homes have four to five feet of water inside, Hawthorne said, and dump trucks and airboats were being used to get people to safety. The sheriff believed about 45 people still needed to be rescued as of Thursday morning.

The local hospital stayed open but about one dozen patients were evacuated, he added.

“Until it quits raining, it’s gonna be a nightmare,” the sheriff said.

PHOTO: Mark Bazan, left, Lola Sierra, center, holding her baby, Melani, and Amanda Huschle look out over their flooded yard in Galveston, Texas, Sept. 18, 2019, after heavy rain from Tropical Depression Imelda caused street flooding.Jennifer Reynolds/The Galveston County Daily News via AP
Mark Bazan, left, Lola Sierra, center, holding her baby, Melani, and Amanda Huschle look out over their flooded yard in Galveston, Texas, Sept. 18, 2019, after heavy rain from Tropical Depression Imelda caused street flooding.

In Beaumont — between Houston and Lake Charles, Louisiana — over 250 high-water rescue requests were called into 911, the local police department said Thursday morning.

PHOTO: A flooded out car is stranded in high water off U.S. 59 as rain from Tropical Depression Imelda inundated the area on Sept. 19, 2019, near Spendora, Texas.Brett Coomer/Houston Chronicle via AP
A flooded out car is stranded in high water off U.S. 59 as rain from Tropical Depression Imelda inundated the area on Sept. 19, 2019, near Spendora, Texas.
PHOTO: Don Dressler pulls his granddaughters Elsie and Jillian Deans on a kayak through the water after the rain from Tropical Storm Imelda stopped in Galveston, Texas, on Sept. 18, 2019.Kelsey Walling/The Galveston County Daily News via AP
Don Dressler pulls his granddaughters Elsie and Jillian Deans on a kayak through the water after the rain from Tropical Storm Imelda stopped in Galveston, Texas, on Sept. 18, 2019.

“Please shelter in place and seek high ground,” the Beaumont police tweeted. “DO NOT drive.”

Rainfall rates up to 5 inches per hour were reported overnight near Beaumont, Texas, dumping the worst flooding since Hurricane Harvey.

The threat isn’t over. What’s left of Tropical Storm Imelda is still sitting over eastern Texas and western Louisiana, bringing more rain Thursday morning.

PHOTO: According to Matagorda County Constable Bill Orton, Sargent received 22 inches of rain since Imelda started impacted the area on Tuesday. Photographed from above Sargent, Texas, Sept. 18, 2019.Mark Mulligan/Houston Chronicle via AP
According to Matagorda County Constable Bill Orton, Sargent received 22 inches of rain since Imelda started impacted the area on Tuesday. Photographed from above Sargent, Texas, Sept. 18, 2019.

The remains of Imelda will then slowly track north on Thursday spreading rain into northeastern Texas, northern Louisiana and southern Arkansas and Oklahoma.

As much as 10 inches of additional rain is expected in eastern Texas and more flash flooding is expected in the next 24 hours.

ABC News’ Clayton Sandell and Will Gretsky contributed to this report.



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