A dam in suburban Houston that protects the city has begun to overspill, according to reports.

Water levels in Houston’s Addicks reservoir have reached 108 feet, overspilling the dam.

Officials say that the rainfall from Hurricane Harvey is unprecedented, and it’s hard to say what the final impact on Houston and surrounding communities will be.

“We have never faced this before. We have uncertainty in how the water is going to react as it moves out of the spillway and into the surrounding area,” Harris County flood control meteorologist Jeff Lindner told reporters Tuesday. “We are trying to wrap our heads around what this water will do.”

Another dam and reservoir is also at risk of overspilling, according to a Guardian report. Some residents in streets to the west of the reservoir are already under voluntary evacuation orders.

“New streets will continue to flood, new homes will continue to flood,” Lindner said. “…The amount of water that goes over the spillway will be increasing.”

Both Addicks and Barker dams were constructed in the 1940s by the US Army Corps of Engineers, the Guardian reported. Both dams have undergone extensive repairs recently because the corps deemed them to be at “extremely high risk” of failing.

Learn more about flood insurance at the Future of Flood Summit being held in Miami, Florida on November 16. Click here for more details and to register.


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