At a Glance

The couple's amphibious vehicle got stuck in the Neches River.He went for help, but fell and drowned.She stayed with the ATV until someone found her two days later.

A Texas woman spent two nights clinging to an ATV stuck in the rain-swollen Neches River after her husband drowned while trying to go for help.

The woman, whose name has not been released, and her husband, Mallie Kelly, 79, KBMT reported.

On Wednesday, they left camp to buy groceries. When they returned, the amphibious eight-wheeled vehicle got stuck in the river.

They tied it to a tree, and Kelly tried to wade to the riverbank. He fell and Jasper County Sheriff Mitchel Newman told the Beaumont Enterprise.

The woman remained in the vehicle.

Heavy rains in the past few weeks have pushed the river to flood stage. A remains in effect for the river near Evadale, Texas, until Wednesday, the National Weather Service says.

The northern parts of Jasper County have seen rainfall totals 8 to 10 inches above normal over the past 90 days.

Roads and woodlands near the Neches and Angelina rivers have been flooded.

The rain has also pushed Lake Sam Rayburn, which feeds into the Angelina River and eventually the Neches, to near record levels.

The reservoir's water level was measured at KJAS reported. That is short of the record level of 175.1 feet that was recorded in March 1992.

Gusty winds pushed the lake’s waters over the bridge on Highway 147 on Saturday and left the roadway covered with debris, Rhonda Oaks, a Texas Department of Transportation spokeswoman, said in a news release.

Oaks said Sunday the water had receded from the bridge and all lanes were open.

The winds also pushed water onto property at the south end of the lake, causing some damage, KJAS reported.

Jasper County Judge Mark W. Allen issued a disaster declaration that will allow flooded property owners to apply for disaster assistance, the Beaumont Enterprise wrote.