Flooding, severe weather devastate Texas

Six people died and at least two others were missing Sunday after heavy rains in Texas and Kansas caused severe flooding. In one case near Austin, which received nine inches of rain this week, a vehicle with two people was swept off a flooded roadway.

Threats of floods prompted authorities to evacuate thousands of prisoners near Houston, and inmates in another prison on Saturday fought with correctional officers after flooding caused a power outage.

Most of the deaths took place in rural Washington County, Texas, between Austin and Houston, where more than 16.5 inches of rain fell in some places late last week, the Associated Press reported. The bodies of two other missing motorists were found Saturday in separate parts of the county, authorities said.

One of the victims, 64-year-old Lela Holland, died Friday when floods washed through her home, according to the Washington County Sheriff's Office. Most of the other victims died when their vehicles were overtaken by high water, according to police, including:

Pyarali Rajebhi Umatiya, 59, who was killed after his vehicle stalled in high water.
Two people in Travis County, Texas, were swept away in floodwaters Friday, County Emergency Services spokeswoman Lisa Block told NBC News. A witness reported that one person was holding onto a pole and was ripped away by the waters, while firefighters saw another person get swept away in a vehicle, Block said.

In hard-hit Houston, rising rivers and creeks prompted Harris County officials on Saturday to ask about 750 families in the Northwood Pines subdivision to voluntarily evacuate the Houston Chronicle reported.