No, you cannot make it through that floodwater. It doesn't matter how good a driver you think you are or how tall or big your vehicle is.
Less than a foot of water can send your car floating away, and in a flood, that means you can sink and drown.
But every safety official keeps giving warnings and people continue to think they can defy the treacherous force of water.
A woman in College Station was caught on camera driving straight into a creek hidden under high waters as southeast Texas was hit by storms this week.
"Watched this poor girl drive into the creek right behind our building in College Station. Good news is she's OK. This is why you ALWAYS turn around, don't drown," X user Ryan Star said.
Star said he captured the video and witnessed the woman sitting on a barrier until help came her way.
According to the Federal Emergency Management Administration:
- Just 6 inches of moving water will reach the base of most passenger vehicles
- 2 feet of water can sweep away your vehicle, even an SUV or truck
- Most vehicles will float in just one foot of water
If that doesn't seem like a lot, consider that a cubic foot of water weighs more than 60 pounds. Each foot of rising water applies 500 pounds of lateral force on a vehicle.
If floodwaters rise around your car but the water is not moving, the agency advises you to abandon the car and move to higher ground. Do not leave the car to enter moving water.
Meteorologists have repeatedly warned how dangerous it is to drive through water.
Torrential rain caused flooding Thursday in the Houston area, with officials ordering some residents along a river to leave and telling others they may wind up stranded.
In Montgomery County, north of Harris County, officials issued a voluntary evacuation order and said roads were closed because of flooding along the river.
The area got about 5 to 8 inches of rain within 24 hours, with some spots getting as much as 10 to 12 inches of rain, according to National Weather Service meteorologist Hayley Adams. More rain was expected through Friday morning.
The storm brought down trees and left vehicles stranded. It prompted the San Jacinto River Authority to close Lake Conroe and increase water releases from the dam that created the reservoir.
At least nine people were rescued from rising water, the Houston mayor's office said. No injuries or deaths had been reported.
CNN's Ashley Fantz and the Associated Press' Ken Miller and Valerie Gonzalez contributed to this report. WATCH SKYEYE ABOVE EAST FOR OF SAN JACINTO RIVER AMID DISASTER DECLARATION SkyEye was above the East fork of the San Jacinto River amid a disaster declaration for flooding.
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