The eleventh tropical cyclone and ninth named storm of the 2019 Atlantic hurricane season, Imelda formed out of an upper-level low that developed in the Gulf of Mexico and moved westward.

Imelda weakened after landfall, but continued bringing large amounts of flooding rain to Texas and Louisiana, before dissipating on September 21.

The system brought heavy rain and dangerous flooding to parts of southeastern Texas (especially the cities of Galveston and Beaumont) as its motion gradually slowed over land.

[9] Shortly thereafter, at 18:30 UTC, Imelda made landfall near Freeport, Texas at peak intensity, with maximum 1-minute sustained winds of 45 mph (75km/h) and a minimum central pressure of 1,003 millibars (29.6 inHg).

[13][14] Imelda's slow movement over Southeast Texas and a continuous influx of tropical moisture led to copious amounts of rainfall over the region.

[19] Several counties spanning parts of the Greater Houston metropolitan area and Beaumont, Texas, recorded over 30 in (760 mm) of rain.

[21] Flood depths in some locations exceeded those recorded in Hurricane Harvey due to the high rainfall rates.

[20] In Houston, Imelda's rainfall caused many of the local bayous to overtop their banks and flood residential areas.

A roof of a United States Postal Service building collapsed, leaving three people with minor injuries.

George Bush Intercontinental Airport closed for about 90 minutes due to flooding on the runways, canceling 655 flights.

[30] During the flood, nine barges escaped a shipyard, and at least two struck the Interstate 10 bridge over the San Jacinto River, causing visible damage to some of the columns supporting the highway.

Freshwater flooding in Johnson Bayou inundated most secondary roads and was augmented by the elevated tide levels caused by the tropical storm.

[5][38] Storm surge also resulted in minor coastal flooding along the upper Texas and Louisiana coasts, inundating areas with 1–2 ft (0.30–0.61 m) of water.

A National Ocean Service gauge at Eagle Point, Texas, measured a peak surge height of 2.35 ft (0.72 m) above normal tide levels.