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Revisiting Houston's Tax Day Floods one year later

By , Houston ChronicleUpdated
How the disaster unfolded Monday Morning: The degree of flooding only became fully known as daylight broke over the region Monday. Two men walk out of high water near Greens Bayou and Greens Rd., Monday, April 18, 2016, in Houston.
How the disaster unfolded

Monday Morning: The degree of flooding only became fully known as daylight broke over the region Monday.


Two men walk out of high water near Greens Bayou and Greens Rd., Monday, April 18, 2016, in Houston.
Steve Gonzales/Houston Chronicle

Last year, Houston was suffering one of its worst wet spells in history.

Appropriately named the "Tax Day Floods," the storm system dropped as much as 17 inches of rain in parts of the city from April 17 to 18. After it was all said and done, eight people died, and over 700 homes and apartments were flooded.

The trouble began during the overnight hours of April 17 when a group of thunderstorms decided to sit right on top of the Greater Houston area. As the morning hours crept in, rains were already hitting 4 inches per hour.

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AERIAL PHOTOS: Get a different perspective of the Tax Day Floods

Highway 6 in west Houston was one of the hardest-hit areas. Between Clay Road and Park Row, high waters had completely overtaken the roadway, despite the nearby reservoir. It would take several weeks before it finally reopened.

Possibly one of the more annoying moments that had occurred throughout the ordeal was the emergence of fake information propagated on social media. Unscrupulous Twitter users announced school district closures, and others used their photo editing skills to show sharks wandering around floodwaters.

RAW VIDEO: Drowning horses fight for survival in flood waters near Houston

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Flood victims, especially those in the Greenspoint area, had to abandon their homes due to the storm. Worse, the city's response to their situation was deemed too slow. Just several months into the job, Mayor Sylvester Turner had to apologize to the 1,000 or so people who showed up at community meetings and voiced their concerns.

Houston Chronicle photographers compiled the most powerful photos taken during those weeks. We've organized them all for easy viewing in the gallery above.

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Photo of John-Henry Perera
Food Editor

John-Henry Perera is the food editor for Chron. JP has been with Hearst for 10 years and is responsible for all the general eating coverage in Houston.

Prior to re-joining Chron, he was a food reporter on the features desk at the Houston Chronicle and an audience producer for both publications.