Flash flooding traps young driver in Dallas

DALLAS - The intense rain is expected to continue all week and could cause more flash flooding in North Texas.

There are barricades up in the area where high water trapped a young driver Tuesday night. She was driving on the Interstate 635 frontage road near Central Park Drive around 10 a.m. and didn’t realize the water was nearly 4 feet deep.

The young woman was forced to climb onto the roof of her car. She had a cellphone and was able to call 911. But she still had to wait in the cold rain for more than an hour until firefighters to rescue her.

Because of the current, firefighters could not safely wade into the water. They threw her a life jacket and used a motorized boat to get to her. Paramedics then checked her out. She was wet and cold but otherwise okay.

“She’s very fortunate that she had an operational cellphone because I’m not sure how anyone would have found her otherwise. And the water was much too swift for her to try to get off the car and get to shore,” said Dallas Fire-Rescue battalion chief Ray O’Dell.

DFR’s swift water rescue team trains and is trained for such calls and rescues. They’ll likely conduct more high-water rescues this week because of the continued rain in the forecast.

Drivers are encouraged to pay attention to the roads and not try to go around barricades.

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