Worst of Kingwood Flooding May Be Over, But More Heavy Rain On Way

May 4, 2024 Part II – The worst of this week’s Kingwood flooding may be over, but more heavy rain is on the way.

At 2 PM today, flooding on the East Fork and West Fork San Jacinto Rivers was finally receding. Early even. And lower than expected.

But another storm could drop heavy rainfall on the area tonight. As a result: the National Weather Service (NWS) is keeping a flood watch in effect through Sunday night. NWS predicts that we could get another 1-3 inches with locally higher amounts of 4-8 inches possible.

Earlier and Lower Peaks than Previously Expected

The National Weather Service revised its previous estimate for the West Fork downward shortly after the gage indicated water at US59 was receding. The West Fork was not supposed to peak until early tomorrow morning. And then it would have peaked almost 4 feet higher.

*NWS Advanced Hydrologic Prediction Service, Sat. 5.4.24 at 5PM.*

The East Fork started receding last night at FM1485. Water in the Lake Houston Area started trending down late this morning as predicted. That limited Kingwood flooding somewhat.

Even the water level at the dam is going down (though it’s still six feet above normal).

This is welcome news for all Kingwood residents and their manicurists.

But whether Kingwood flooding continues to go down will depend on the amount of new rain we get. Mother Nature can be a tease sometimes.

Little Housing Damage, Rampant Street Flooding

This morning, I journeyed out with a drone and a Nikon. The most housing damage I saw was on Dunnam Road. I heard of other housing damage, i.e., in Woodstream, Atascocita Point, Kingwood Lakes and Kingwood Greens. But it tended to be isolated.

That’s little consolation for the people who got wet. But it’s a great relief for the vast majority of people who didn’t.

The Dunnam Boat Launch’s Self-Serve Bait Shop was under 17 feet of water according to the owner, who intends to rebuild. Much of her equipment was swept downstream.

Street flooding, however, was rampant and widespread from Woodstream down to Royal Shores on the East Fork and all along the West Fork, past US59.

I also saw lots of floodwater creeping toward homes. But most stopped short of entering homes.

As a consequence, this storm may become the future benchmark for Kingwood flooding. It will set the standard for how much floodwater the area can handle without major housing damage. The saving grace was homes elevated above street level.

Kingwood Flooding In Pictures

Here are more than three dozen shots that summarize what Kingwood flooding looked like on the ground today. Some impacted areas were the direct result of the river overflowing. Others were caused by “backflow flooding.” That’s when high water in the river keeps won’t let channels, streams and storm drains empty.

Please note: I couldn’t get everywhere because of blocked streets and the range of my drone.