Northpark Flooded at Russell Palmer

Saturday night, Northpark flooded at the intersection of Russell Palmer and it remained flooded this morning.

On Saturday, 4/21/24 at 4:46 PM, Harris County Meteorologist Jeff Lindner communicated a flash flood advisory. He also warned of street flooding. And it happened. But the amount of rain at this location should not have caused flooding that lasted more than 12 hours.

1.72 Inches of Rain in About 12 Hours

According to the Harris County Flood Control Gage at the San Jacinto West Fork and US59, the western Kingwood area received 1.72 inches last night and this morning. The peak was 1.12 inches between 5 and 6 PM on Saturday, just minutes after Lindner’s warning.

Most streets handled the volume with only temporary ponding near storm drain inlets. But Northpark flooded near the construction zone at Russell Palmer Road. Saturday night, police had barricaded the westbound lanes.

*Photo Courtesy of Eric Hayes, taken Saturday night after the 1.12 inches in an hour.*

Looking West At Intersection Sunday Morning

As of this morning at 9 AM, Northpark remained flooded and police had erected barricades. But cars were running around them and plowing through water over their bumpers.

*Looking W along Northpark at Russell Palmer intersection, Sunday, 4/21/24 at 9AM.*

What happened?

*Closer shot looking E shows depth of water where cars snaked around barriers.*

Motorists, especially young ones, should know that if water gets over a car’s tailpipe, it will cause the engine to stall. And it could lead to expensive repairs.

*Looking W again at vehicles evading barricades*

Why Northpark Flooded

It’s not unusual for water to collect like this during intense storms. But it is unusual for it to stand like this for 15 hours.

Water in the Diversion Ditch and Bens Branch was slightly elevated this morning, but not very high. And there was barely a trickle of water entering the Diversion Ditch from the new Northpark culvert. That makes me suspect a drain was blocked somewhere.

*Looking E at extent of culvert placement.*

Before arriving at the scene this morning, I feared that the blockage might have been farther west. I saw contractors working on a junction box Friday afternoon about a hundred yards west of where Northpark flooded.

However, it appears that water in the ditch was flowing into the culvert.

*Looking E. Water flowing through area where contractors were installing junction box.*

So I suspect the trouble may be at the intersection itself. I reviewed the pictures I took Friday afternoon before the rain. It shows that the intersection is serviced by at least three drains.

*Location of three drains circled in red at flooded intersection*. *Photo taken before rain.*

This seems like a logical place to start looking for an explanation as to why Northpark flooded. This was the first test for the new drainage at this intersection. I’m sure Lake Houston Redevelopment Authority (LHRA) and its contractors will be out there soon diagnosing the problem. In the meantime, take alternate routes out of Kingwood.

This whole intersection will eventually be raised to the height of the manhole cover in the very first photo above. That should eliminate Northpark flooding problems at this location. But that will also take some time.

I will let you know what the contractors and LHRA find.

For More Information

For more information about Northpark expansion, visit the project pages of the LHRA/Tirz 10 website. Or see these posts on ReduceFlooding:

Posted by Bob Rehak on Sunday, 4/21/24 at noon

2427 Days since Hurricane Harvey