AUSTIN, Texas — Severe weather left about 1 million Texans without power for portions of Tuesday as Texas released a draft of its first-ever statewide flood plan.
According to a draft, more than 5 million Texans live or work in areas prone to flooding. The plan also estimates that close to 1.3 million Texas homes are in areas susceptible to flooding.
The plan, which the Texas Water Development Board will release, is an effort to reduce the risk for Texans by recommending solutions against floods and rising sea levels in the Lone Star State.
According to the Associated Press, the plan used existing flood data to create the maps that serve as a baseline, but many regions either didn't have flood maps or had outdated maps. The plan estimates one-fourth of the state's land either falls within 100-year or 500-year floodplains. Each of Texas' 254 counties has experienced at least one federally declared flood disaster since 1953.
The plan comes as damaging winds and baseball-sized hail have pummeled the state, leaving at least one person dead. Widespread outages were reported across Texas, leaving dozens of polling places in North Texas without power during the state's runoff elections.
In Houston, cars stopped on flooded highways as the storms left more than 300,000 people without power, including those recovering from hurricane-force winds earlier this month. A fire department outside of Houston said a 16-year-old worker also died when three homes under construction collapsed.