Since Friday, 44.5 inches of rain fell in the Port Arthur area. Twenty-two to 24 inches of that rain fell over a 24-hour period ending 7 a.m. Wednesday.

Lake Charles, La., National Weather Service Meteorologist Andy Tingler said flooding in the area has been caused by the tremendous and constant rainfall Tropical Strom Harvey brought.

“It is just very overwhelming,” Tingler said. “With tropical systems, they are such efficient rainfall producers. It can exceed 4 inches per hour. If it is just constantly raining in an area, it does not take long to add it up.”

Tingler said at the Jack Brooks Regional Airport, between Port Arthur and Beaumont, 26.03 inches of rainfall was recorded. The precipitation was the second-most rainfall recorded in a 24-hour period in Texas.

The most rainfall recorded in Texas was 43 inches, which happened on July 24, 1979, in Alvin, during Tropical Strom Claudette.

Tingler said year-to-date the total at the regional airport has been 86.62 inches, which has already eclipsed the area’s yearly record. Tingler said a typical year is approximately 60 inches — from Jan. 1 to Dec. 31.

The previous No. 1 — for the entire year — recorded at the airport was 83.82 inches in 1946.

Tingler said 2016 was the fifth wettest year on record, so the area would record back-to-back top rainfall years.

Over the next few days, Tingler said Harvey would continue to move northeast. However, Tingler said the rain would not stop in Port Arthur.

Today, Tingler said to expect scattered showers and storms that could taper off by nightfall. By afternoon, Tingler said the chance of rainfall would be down to 20 percent.

Through Sunday, Tingler said each day would be partly cloudy with a 20 percent change of rain each day.

With the tropical system moving out, the temperatures would begin climbing again.

Today’s high is expected to be in the mid 80s, while temperatures in the upper 80s are forecasted Friday through Sunday.

Tingler said his thoughts are with the Port Arthur area.

“It has been a horrible situation the last few days with so much rainfall,” he said. “Hopefully it will be draining off in the next couple of days.”