Stormy Weather Triggers Flash Flooding in Texas State Capitol Building

After stormy weather caused flash-flooding all around the city, the floors in the Texas State Capitol building located in Austin were filled with water on Sunday.

Several inches of rainwater made its way into some passageway and offices in the Texas State Capitol building situated in Austin after multiple thunderstorms caused "substantial flash flooding" all around the city, as per Andrew Johnson-Levine, an AccuWeather Meteorologist.

Flash-flooding

On Sunday, Austin, Texas, and a neighboring area that had a total population of more than 750,000 were issued a flash flood warning from the National Weather Service.

A spokesperson for the State Preservation Board whose name is Chris Currens said, as per The Austin American-Statesman: "A storm drain became clogged and backed up water into one of the skylight drain troughs, and water came into the building."

Footage uploaded on Twitter showed rainwater seeping out into the capitol through a roof light into the building's atrium. The footage revealed a thick layer of rainwater covering the grounds of the building's atrium and passageways.

Thunderstorm

Gregg Abbott, Texas Gov. also went on Twitter to give a formal speech about the situation of the flooding in the Capitol building of the state on Sunday.

As per Abbott, various government organizations are making effort to clear out the flooding from the building. Abbott said: "It's all hands on deck."

While most surrounding regions also witnessed showers and thunderstorms, downtown Austin saw the most torrential rainfall of the region's storms, as per Johnson-Levine.

In addition to the Capitol building, internet users also disclose that there was flooding at the University of Texas's Gregory Gym at Austin campus. Various athletic facilities on the campus together with the Gregory Gym, were shut down on Sunday because of the weather.

Johnson-Levine said: "Additional rainfall through this evening could continue to intensify flooding issues in the area." Also, showers and thunderstorms could possibly persist on Monday in Austin and the neighboring area.

He said while the floods are not likely to be as widespread as the activity of today, they may cause localized flooding, mostly in urban areas.

Effects of Flooding

Normally, flash floods take place when heavy rainfall occurs - when the amount of water is excess for drains and sewers to hold. It can happen very fast and without much warning.

Roads can become unusable with cars abandoned. Floodwater can damage homes and shops. Also, it can affect major public infrastructure both transport networks and hospitals.

The region more likely to see this type of "surface water" flooding is Urban areas since there are lots of hard surfaces there. When rain occurs here it can't be absorbed into the ground as it would do in the countryside.

An instance is when Storm Elsa hit New York City in July and flooded the subway system.

Related Article: Flash Flood: 200 Evacuated as Floodwaters Sweep Through Turkey's Black Sea Region

For more news, updates about floods and similar topics don't forget to follow Nature World News!