Montgomery County Judge signs disaster declaration due to evacuations south of Lake Conroe Dam
MONTGOMERY COUNTY, Texas - Montgomery County Judge Mark Keough has announced a disaster declaration has been signed following the ongoing rainfall in the Houston area.
Days of rainfall caused Lake Conroe to rise two feet above normal, and some areas of Montgomery County have seen as much as 10 inches of rain.
On Wednesday night, McDade Park, some five miles south of Lake Conroe, was underwater.
Lake Conroe is closed due to flooded docks and debris, and boats had to be rescued,
"We've been out working with Tow Boats USA and with the Constable's Office Lake Marine Division to recover boats and make sure people are not on the water," said Captain Wesley Doolittle with Montgomery County Precinct 1.
The San Jacinto River Authority is releasing water from Lake Conroe at 16525 cubic feet per second, but flood water from Waller County is flowing into the lake faster than it's being released,
"As always, we will continue to monitor lake conditions and rainfall and make incremental releases as needed," said Michelle Simpson with the San Jacinto River Authority.
According to the river authority, the lake's level matches the level reached in 2001 during Tropical Storm Allison, but below levels reached during Hurricane Harvey in 2017.
Some tense moments after a flooding situation on the west side of Conroe had first responders rescuing at least four residents and two dogs. All the water was the result of the lake release.