The National Weather Service reported the Brazos hitting 54.16 feet at Richmond, Texas, late on Tuesday, nearly 4 feet above the flood record set in 1994.
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The river in Richmond is still rising and is expected to crest at 54 feet, three feet above the previous record in 1994.
This is nearly 1.2 metres above the previous record set in 1994, when the region suffered major flood damage.
During the four days of torrential rain last week, at least six people died in floods in Texas.
The Brazos River Authority said every single one of the 11 reservoirs fed by the swollen river are already 95% to 100% full.
Four of the six dead were recovered in Washington County, which is between Austin and Houston, County Judge John Brieden said Monday. Lake Somerville, one of the Brazos reservoirs, was “gushing uncontrollably” over the spillway, threatening people downriver.
Aerial photos from over the weekend showed large areas of the county under water.
Near Austin, a crew aboard a county helicopter found a body on Sunday on the north end of a retention pond near the Circuit of the Americas auto racing track, which is close to where two people were reported to have been washed away by a flash flood early on Friday, Lisa Block, a Travis County sheriff’s spokesperson, said. But the water levels overpowered the system, said Beth Wolf, a county spokesman.
More than 20 inches (50.8 cm) of rain have fallen over some parts of southeast Texas during the last month, 8 inches (20.3 cm) to 10 inches (25.4 cm) above normal, Burke said.
Evacuation orders have been issued for parts of Rosenberg, another town along the Brazos and not far from Richmond.
The NWS reported the Brazos River, which winds over 840 miles across Texas, reached levels not seen since 1913 about 30 miles (50 kms) southwest of Houston, the fourth most populous city in the United States.
The weather forecast noted more heavy rain on Tuesday, particularly in the central and southeastern portion of the state, including the Houston metro area.
Elsewhere, an 11-year-old boy was missing and presumed dead in Kansas and Tropical Depression Bonnie weakened near the SC coast.
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This report contains material from The Associated Press.
