Heavy rains lash Houston ahead of Modi visit

Heavy rains lash Houston ahead of Modi visit

HOUSTON, Aug. 30, 2017 (Xinhua) -- A motorist drives on a waterlogged street in southwest Houston, the United States, on Aug. 29, 2017. Tropical storm Harvey has broken the record of rainfall from a cyclonic storm in the U.S. mainland, with 132 centimeters of rain observed in the state of Texas, authorities said on Tuesday. (Xinhua/Liu Liwei/IANS)

Houston (Texas), Sep 20 (IANS) Heavy rains lashed Houston ahead of the 'Howdy Modi' mega diaspora event on Sunday that will see Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi address a crowd of over 50,000 people, and also be attended by US President Donald Trump.

Roads were flooded across Houston, due to heavy rains caused due to a tropical depression.

According to the weather office, it was the "wettest calendar day ever recorded in the month of September and the 5th wettest calendar day ever recorded. September 2019 is now the wettest September in city history".

The Houston freeway was inundated with water as torrential rain wreaked havoc in southeastern Texas.

Ignoring the rains, preparations were in full swing for the Indian-American community event 'Howdy Modi' at the NRG stadium.

Massive LED screens have been set up and chairs placed on the ground in preparation for Sunday's event.

The Houston event will be attended by over 60 US lawmakers - Senators, Congressional leaders and others.

Houston is the centre of America's energy sector.

Thanks to its shale oil fracking, the US is now the world's largest oil producer, ahead of Russia and Saudi Arabia. Modi is likely to announce a big energy deal with the US during the Houston event.

--IANS

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