Hurricane Patricia could increase heavy rains in Texas
DALLAS -- More rain soaked parts of Texas on Friday as millions of residents braced for other storms that could spin off from massive Hurricane Patricia approaching southwest Mexico.
Hurricane Patricia, a Category 5 storm, was expected to make landfall near Puerto Vallarta, Mexico, and move northeast toward South Texas through the weekend. Category 5 hurricanes include winds of 157 mph or higher, with the possibility of catastrophic damage.
Rain that reached West Texas earlier this week continued moving east, falling Friday in Dallas, Fort Worth, Austin and San Antonio, though no major flooding or damage has been reported.
A flash flood watch was in effect through Sunday for the areas, according to the National Weather Service. Coastal flood warnings were issued.
Forecaster Lamont Bain said the Dallas-Fort Worth area received between 3 and 5 inches of rain since Thursday morning, in waves of showers moving out of the area Friday.
At least 40 flights were cancelled or delayed at Dallas Fort Worth International Airport, which set a record Thursday with 2.58 inches of rain, breaking the Oct. 22 rainfall record of 2.19 inches set in 1908, according to NWS.
"We had a very wet spring and then the summer and fall, the first part of the fall, proved to be very, very dry," Bain said. "The rain is certainly welcome across the area."
CBSDFW.com reports that when rain comes after that dry weather, flooding is expected.
More than half of the state's 254 counties had outdoor burn bans in effect Friday, due to previous dry conditions, the Texas A&M Forest Service reported.
The soggy weather spoiled some outdoor homecoming weekend activities at Baylor University in Waco. The world's largest Baptist university, with nearly 17,000 students enrolled this fall, canceled a Friday night bonfire and fireworks show. No. 2 Baylor hosts Iowa State on Saturday.
A handful of Texas high school football games Thursday were postponed because of lightning. Schools preparing for Friday night games monitored the weather.
A $23 million Galveston beach expansion project, adding about 20 blocks of sandy beach through dredging of the Galveston Ship Channel, was delayed until next week due to weather and high tides, said Mary Beth Bassett, with the Galveston Park Board of Trustees. Plans to have the project completed by the end of October will likely be pushed back by a week or so due to the weather delays, Bassett told The Galveston County Daily News.