Severe storms wreaked havoc over parts of the area and more storms are forecast in the upcoming days.

Nederland Police Chief Darrell Bush reports lightning struck the police station’s radio tower temporarily knocking out power and phone lines on Tuesday. The strike also caused for problems with the door locking mechanism and the device had to be manually disabled.

A lightning strike also caused for a scary moment for a parent at Tyrrell Elementary School in Port Arthur.

“A parent was walking up to the school and lightning struck nearby,” Port Arthur independent School District Superintendent Mark Porterie said, adding the woman was ‘very, very scared.’ “An ambulance was called to ensure she was ok.”

Porterie added that no children were involved in the lightning strike.

A power outage also caused Lamar State College Port Arthur to cancel afternoon classes but the campus will reopen at 8 a.m. Wednesday, according to a press release from LSCPA.

Port Arthur hadn’t seen any major incidents by Tuesday afternoon.

“Nothing out of the ordinary but that is subject to change with the exception of the sporadic power outages,” Port Arthur Police Maj. John Owens, who is the city’s emergency management coordinator, said.

Officers assigned to the Sabine Pass area will keep an eye on Texas from the Intracoastal Canal Bridge all the way to Sea Rim State Park, an area that is prone to flooding.

“They will check for water in the roadway and if there is they will handle accordingly and work with the city’s public works department,” he said.

Tides will run above normal coupled with high winds will push water from Sabine Lake and the Intracoastal waterway onto roadways.

The city will continue its work with Jefferson County Drainage District No. 7 and the city’s public works department will work to ensure the pumps are functioning properly as more rain is in the forecast.

Neither Groves nor Port Neches officials reported any damage as of Tuesday afternoon.

The National Weather Service-Lake Charles is predicting between four to 11 inches of rain across the region between Tuesday and Thursday with the highest totals in southeast Texas. Widespread flooding is possible and area rivers will likely reach moderate to major flood stage later this week or weekend, depending on where the heaviest rainfall occurs, according to a press release from the NWS.

The strong southeast winds will continue Tuesday into Wednesday but should weaken by Thursday.

Coastal flooding will be a problem during high tides over the next several days. Sabine Pass and parts of southwest Louisiana will be at risk for water on roads during high tides.

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