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Houston roads were flooded and thousands of residents lost power on Monday after powerful thunderstorms plowed through the area, with a possible tornado damaging and shutting down a nearby mall. Several inches of rain fell in the drought-stricken area over a two-hour period. Roads rapidly flooded and drivers became stranded on major arteries that connect the city’s sprawling neighborhoods and suburbs. In Texas City, about 40 miles southeast of Houston, a possible tornado damaged the roof and wall of the Mall of the Mainland. The building was evacuated and shut. In North and West Texas, the National Weather Service said, a steady downpour will drop an inch or two of much-needed rain. Texas got an estimated 14.89 inches of rain in 2011, compared with a normal average of 29.39 inches.

Article source: http://www.nytimes.com/2012/01/10/us/texas-much-needed-downpour-comes-with-a-downside.html