Saturday, September 13, 2008 - Page updated at 09:20 AM

Ike causes 'devastating' floods in southeast Texas

Officials in one southeast Texas county say they are trying to rescue families trapped by devastating floods from Hurricane Ike.

BRIDGE CITY, Texas —

Officials in one southeast Texas county say they are trying to rescue families trapped by devastating floods from Hurricane Ike.

Orange County Judge Carl Thibodeaux says rescue teams in dump trucks are plowing through deep water Saturday in a risky effort to help families stranded on roofs and in attics. Thibodeaux says the effort is a gamble but authorities have to do something.

He says the flooding from Ike will be worse than Hurricane Rita, which ravaged the county near the Louisiana border in 2005. Floodwaters are as high as 8 feet in some areas.

Thibodeaux expects it will be weeks before power is restored to parts of the county.

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