“We’ve had numerous water rescues, people trapped in cars and rescued by fire departments and police departments, and we’ve had damage reports of trees on houses and trees on roadways, and it’s really across the entire Birmingham metro area,” Jefferson County Emergency Management Agency Director Jim Coker told CNN by phone.
There are no reports of deaths or injuries at this point, he said.
The October average for Birmingham is 3.34 inches, meaning portions of the area received up to double the rainfall they normally receive in an entire month.
Up to 3-6 inches of more rain is possible into the early morning hours Thursday.
The Riverchase Galleria area in Birmingham, as well as Highway 119 and 31 in Pelham to the south, have been included in the areas where rescues are occurring and cars have been flooded, the weather service said.
The flash flood emergency lasts through 1:15 am local time.
Coker told CNN the impact of the flooding will be felt over the next several days.
“Crews will be out tomorrow checking damage and checking infrastructure, which is everything from roadways to pipelines to powerlines,” he said.
A big concern is the condition of the roadways, Coker said, as they want to ensure there aren’t any washed-out areas that could cause traffic problems.