More than a foot of rain in some places flooded low-lying areas across the Houston region on Monday, forcing officials to suspend bus and rail service, close schools and government offices and urge residents to stay home amid what authorities said were extremely dangerous conditions, CNN reported.

"This is a life-threatening emergency. Houston residents should avoid travel at all costs today." – City of Houston emergency website

No injuries or deaths have been reported, Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner told reporters Monday, but crews have had to head into the high waters to rescue more than 400 people, fire department spokesman Ruy Lozano told CNN.

At least 1,000 homes were flooded in Harris County, according to county Judge Ed Emmett. Some people were trapped in their homes or attics, Lozano said.

Nine hospitals in the region were closed to additional patients because of the flooding, the mayor said. Three apartment buildings had been evacuated and residents were being sheltered at a mall, Turner added.

Portions of I-10 and numerous roads throughout the metropolitan area were closed, as were many government offices. The city's bus and rail service shut down early Monday amid "severe and ever worsening weather conditions."

The storm snarled traffic at Houston's Hobby Airport, where more than 140 flights had been canceled as of early afternoon, according to the airport's Twitter account.

As of early afternoon, some 88,000 homes and businesses in the region were without electricity, according to CenterPoint Energy. That was down from a peak of 123,000 earlier in the day, the utility said.

Some areas had received as much as 16 inches of rain by Monday morning, according to the flood control district.

WN.com, Jim Berrie

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In Pictures

Photo: AP / David J. Phillip

Evacuees wade through floodwaters surrounding their apartment complex Monday, April 18, 2016, in Houston. Storms have dumped more than a foot of rain in the Houston area, added: 2016-04-19

Photo: US DoD / Missouri National Guard

Photo: AP / David J. Phillip

Felix Yanez, center, helps Lucy Olvio, right, and Judy wade through floodwaters as they evacuate from their flooded apartment complex Monday, April 18, 2016, in Houston., added: 2016-04-19

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Houston ( /ˈhjuːstən/) (Alibamu: Yosti ) is the largest city in the state of Texas, and the fourth-largest city in the United States. According to the 2010 U.S. Census, the city had a population of 2.1 million people within an area of 656.3 square miles (1,700 km²). Houston is the seat of Harris County and the economic center of Houston–Sugar Land–Baytown, which is the fifth-largest metropolitan area in the United States, with 6.08 million people as of July 1st, 2011.

Houston was founded in 1836 on land near the banks of Buffalo Bayou. It was incorporated as a city on June 5, 1837, and named after then-President of the Republic of Texas—former General Sam Houston—who had commanded at the Battle of San Jacinto, which took place 25 miles (40 km) east of where the city was established. The burgeoning port and railroad industry, combined with oil discovery in 1901, has induced continual surges in the city's population. In the mid-twentieth century, Houston became the home of the Texas Medical Center—the world's largest concentration of healthcare and research institutions—and NASA's Johnson Space Center, where the Mission Control Center is located.