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Woman, four great-grandchildren killed in Texas flooding

Katharine Lackey
USA TODAY

A 64-year-old woman and her four great-grandchildren were killed early Saturday when floodwaters ripped through their neighborhood in Palestine, Texas.

A car is submerged by flooding in Texas.

The bodies of the five victims were found near one of the homes on their street in the early morning hours, according to the the Palestine Police Department.

City officials identified the victims as Lenda Asberry, 64, Venetia Asberry, 9, Devonte Asberry, 8, Von Anthony Johnson Jr., 7 and Jamonicka Johnson, 6. The children were her great-grandchildren, the Associated Press, NBC and CBS reported.

"The water was up to the roofline of the homes and that’s what prevented the people from being able to get away," said Captain James Muniz. "The water just came up too fast."

A sixth victim was located after an all-day search on Saturday. Giovani Olivas, 30, died after being swept into heavy flooding in Anderson County, Texas, near Palestine.

About six to 10 homes were damaged, displacing several families, Muniz said.

"We had calls from all over," Muniz said. "We just had people trying to respond as quickly as we could, but we were kind of inundated with the number of calls coming in."

Palestine is located about 110 miles southeast of Dallas. Nearly 8 inches of rain fell on the town in a 24-hour period, according to the National Weather Service.

The heavy rain was part of a widespread system that brought dangerous storms to the Plains and the South on Friday. The line of intense thunderstorms will move from eastern Texas and Louisiana into Mississippi later Saturday, AccuWeather reported.

Flood watches or warnings were posted Saturday for much of eastern Texas and Louisiana as well as portions of Arkansas and Mississippi. Some areas could see 5 inches of rain from the slow-moving system, according to AccuWeather.

Cities at risk include Houston, Baton Rouge, La., and Jackson, Miss.

The National Weather Service in New Orleans warned of possible tornados and 60 mph winds in the region Saturday afternoon. Alek Krautmann, a weather service meteorologist in the Big Easy, said the region could also see 1 to 3 inches of rain and frequent lightning.

Torrential downpours delayed outdoor track and field events at Louisiana State University’s facilities in Baton Rouge. The state capital received 1.6 inches of rain Saturday, and most of it fell within a single hour, Krautmann said.

Forecasters detected tornado rotation near Walker, La., and sounded sirens Saturday afternoon, but residents reported no serious damage.

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