SAN ANTONIO – With rain pouring down all Wednesday morning, water on local roadways rose -- in several cases it was halfway up the tires of cars driving down the Interstate 35 frontage road near Splash Town.
But it was the lower level of I-35 that had almost completely flooded out
A police officer drove down the lower level of I-35 to block off traffic around 9 a.m. but there were already several vehicles stranded by then.
A pickup was stuck with water almost covering the top of the truck bed. A woman and a dog inside the truck were able to get out safely.
Before a boat could come to their rescue, a white car got stuck on the lower level near San Pedro with water three-quarters of the way up the windows
Traffic piled up on the flooded interstate until emergency responders helped everyone safely off of the road.
Several big rigs even pulled off to the shoulder to wait out the rain. They eventually backed off of the interstate so they could move on before the high water went down. They would have been waiting for hours.
Texas Department of Transportation officials say there are five pumps located in the downtown area designed to draw water away from low-lying areas. However, one didn't start when it was supposed to and had to be manually started.
TxDOT officials say they expect the lower level to stay closed through rush hour on Wednesday evening.
Another problem with the pumps, TxDOT officials say, is all the trash floating in the water. Without regular rain to keep streets free of debris, it all stacks up and backs up the pumps.