Northwest Florida Continues To Deal With Flooding Issues

Meanwhile, problems from the torrential rains that have already fallen persist in the region.

A flood warning is in effect through Tuesday morning around sections of the Bayou Sara waterway in Alabama's Mobile County. Authorities also are warning of a "high rip current risk" through Tuesday evening off beaches in that part of the Gulf of Mexico coast.

The area was deluged over the weekend by water that caused significant damage. Early Monday, a fresh thunderstorm dumped up to 2 inches of rain in Mobile and Baldwin counties in southwest Alabama, according to the weather service.

Rainfall totals from the spurt of storms varied considerably around the region through Monday morning, though no community escaped. West Pensacola received 23.6 inches, while Mobile, Alabama, saw between 7 and 14 inches, the weather agency reported.

Photos: More than a foot of water surges Pensacola

Officials in Escambia County, where Pensacola is located, expect damage to total more than $20 million.

Floodwaters up to 8 feet deep inundated the Forest Creek Apartments in the city.

"I walked out chin-deep in water," Lillian Murphy told CNN affiliate WEAR TV. The floodwater submerged her car and almost reached the roof of her apartment. "I don't know who to call or who to contact."

Escambia County remains in a state of emergency. But one sign of progress Monday came when three shelters set up at area schools were closed, according to an update on the county's website. A single shelter at a Pensacola church had seven people as of late Monday afternoon.

Lightning struck a boy in Gulf Shores, Alabama, on Sunday, leaving him hospitalized in critical condition.

"As soon as the lightning bolt hit, everyone hit the ground and took off running," lifeguard Justin Pearce told CNN affiliate WPMI TV. "Then we saw a person laying by the edge of the water."

The family identified the victim as Landon Broussard of Delcambre, Louisiana.