'Once in a Thousand Years': Dallas Deluged by Massive Rainfall, Flooding

It's being called a "once in a thousand years event" – a slow-moving storm system dumping historic amounts of rain on areas that haven't seen substantial rainfall all summer. 

"(It) caught people off guard. But I think everybody wasn't anticipating this much rain this fast," said Lt. Joseph Martinez with the Dallas Fire-Rescue Department. 

The deluge brought Dallas to a standstill, Monday, forcing motorists to abandon their vehicles and get off the roads before being swept away by flash-flooding. 

Sunday to Monday, the city experienced its highest 24-hour rainfall totals in 90 years. Weather stations report more than a foot of rain across the Dallas area. 

"The current's so strong going past my house, it'll wash you away," said one resident.

The rapidly increasing water levels left many in dangerous situations. The floodwaters swept up vehicles and dumped them blocks away, backing up traffic. Some neighborhoods were left with virtual rivers running through their streets, forcing rescue teams to pull families to safety. 

Other parts of the Southwest experienced the monsoon rains over the weekend. In New Mexico's Carlsbad Caverns National Park, about 150 people had to be evacuated after being stranded for hours due to impassable roads. 

In Utah, rescue workers at Zion National Park are still looking for 29-year-old Jetal Agnihotri of Tucson, who was hiking when floodwaters swept through the area.  

"I mean, it's frustrating. It's already day three for us and we haven't found any clue except the backpack," said her brother, Pujan Agnihotri.

As residents work on drying out, cleaning up, and surveying the damage, more rain is in the forecast. Accuweather predicts another round of flooding downpours across those same south-central states through Thursday.