Since Hurricane Harvey first hit the Greater Houston area, the city has received almost the same amount of rain in the span of a week as it does in an average year. Nearly 76 centimetres has made its way through the area and has triggered life-threatening flash floods. Additionally, rainfall could reach 127 centimetres in some locations over the next several days.

Former Altona resident Bev Lawson has lived in Houston, Texas for four years, and experienced her first hurricane this weekend.

"The devastation is unbelievable. It was unbelievable watching everything getting flooded and beach homes burning to the ground. You can hardly believe it," said Lawson.

She said her neighbourhood has taken a softer hit, though, compared to the rest of the city. Since Saturday, they have received almost 60 centimetres of rain, and water levels reached 1.5 meters from the top of the drainage ditch and cleared within two hours. The highest the levels have reached is half way up their yard, and they have experienced no flooding in their house.

"We have been so very blessed in this corner. Every time we get a little rain it's draining as it should," she said, adding that they have had uninterrupted power throughout the duration of the storm.

Lawson said the hurricane does not come close to comparing to snow storms she experienced when she lived in Manitoba.

"Prairie folks - we don't know how good we have it when we have a snow storm. It's so much more predictable ... [Here], you never know where the water's going to swamp you," she said.

Lawson and her husband have not travelled beyond their street corner since Friday due to closures and flooding. Until the storm lets up, she said they plan to stay home, or volunteer at a shelter.

Submitted photo of Bev Lawson's street