As I passed the beautiful new Kingwood Middle School (KMS) last weekend, it struck me. Despite many heavy rains during construction that lasted almost three years, neighbors never reported flooding.
Too often, I hear of construction projects that alter drainage and flood neighbors. But Humble ISD seemed to consider that problem from the start and took appropriate measures to prevent it. The District even built a temporary stormwater detention basin before tearing down the old KMS. It protected the neighborhood during demolition and construction before the new permanent basin was completed.
The result is a magnificent architectural gem – a showcase for the entire community – without drama, stress or destruction.
Pictures Taken 8/27/23
Main entrance of new KMSThe KMS building now occupies the space of the old athletic fields and the athletic fields occupy the space of the old building.Note grass on the sides of the stormwater retention basin. The basin will reduce the risk of street flooding in the surrounding neighborhood.
The current drought has the football-field grass struggling. But somehow, the grass on the sides of the detention basin seems well established. The vegetation on the slopes reduces erosion which could clog the inflow/outflow pipes.
For Photographic History of Project
For photos showing the history of Kingwood Middle School demolition and re-construction, see below.
Thanks to the Humble ISD, its board and contractors for a job well done.
Posted by Bob Rehak on 9/1/23
2194 days since Hurricane Harvey
https://i0.wp.com/reduceflooding.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/20230827-DJI_0415.jpg?fit=1100%2C733&ssl=17331100adminadmin2023-09-01 09:32:212023-09-01 09:33:14Celebrating Completion of new KMS Without Flooding
August 30, 2023 – Yesterday evening, multiple news organizations reported wildfires burning near Colony Ridge in Liberty County.
Yet large parts of Colony Ridge, the fastest growing part of the county, have few fire hydrants. Some areas have none at all. And in the areas that have them, fire hydrant spacing is 2-5X greater than codes specify, while pressure is reportedly half of what codes require. And according to some sources interviewed for this article, many hydrants allegedly don’t work.
All this increases residents’ fire risk and insurance rates – if they can even get fire insurance. Some say they can’t.
Former Plum Grove Mayor, LeeAnn Penton-Walker says she and Colony Ridge residents have been trying to alert the county judge, commissioners, engineer and fire marshal to the dangers since 2015.
Fire Safety Top of Mind as Drought Deepens
Meanwhile, fire safety is at the top of everyone’s mind as the current drought deepens amid relentless heat. A burn ban remains in effect across the region. The National Weather Service has posted red-flag warnings for today. A combination of very dry vegetation, low humidity and gusty winds could easily spark fires.
Note critical fire danger in Liberty County (center).
Jeff Lindner, Harris County’s meteorologist, says that numerous fires started around the region yesterday and we have similar conditions today. “Fires especially in pine canopies continue to exhibit extensive growth rates and fast forward motion with long lasting crown runs. Increasingly larger fires are requiring large amounts of resources for an extended period of time,” says Lindner.
Recent Pictures Show Vast Areas with Apparently No Hydrants
On August 12, as I flew over Colony Ridge in Liberty County, the scarcity of fire hydrants struck me. I did not see any. However, the Liberty County fire marshal told me that the developer was trying to bring the development up to code. I knew the development had at least a handful of hydrants from a story I did three years ago. But Colony Ridge has virtually doubled in size since then.
Below are four pictures from areas recently built out. Many lots in these areas have already been sold and occupied. So you should see fire hydrants. But I couldn’t, even when magnifying high-res versions of the images on a large screen.
These photos are representative of thousands of shots I have taken from helicopters over Colony Ridge.
Areas With Fire Hydrants Do Not Meet Code Requirement
I asked the county fire marshal for a list of hydrant locations, but he could not supply me with one. So I spent a full day criss-crossing the area and burning a tank of gasoline looking for them. I located 59. See the satellite images below.
In the first, note how hydrants are clustered in rows and columns. Also note how large parts of the development have none. That verifies what I saw from the air.
Southern part of Colony Ridge. Yellow pins mark location of hydrants.
In the satellite image above, for instance, note the:
Broad empty swath across the bottom
Another broad swath on the east running north to south
An empty area in the middle
Another empty area at the top.
The next satellite image shows eight fire hydrants in the most populated portion of the northern part of Colony Ridge.
Portion of the northern part of Colony Ridge
Altogether, Colony Ridge covers more than 30 square miles. It has almost doubled in size in the last two years. If my count is accurate, it now has only about two fire hydrants per square mile.
What Fire Codes Require
Even though the Liberty County Fire Marshal’s web page does not list a fire code, Bill Hergemueller, the fire marshal, said that the county follows 2018 IFC (International Fire Code) regulations. That code specifies maximum spacing of 500 feet, but Hergemueller said the county allows 600 feet. However…
On any given east-west street above, the fire hydrant spacing averaged more than 3000 feet. That’s more than half a mile!
Measurements taken in Google Earth
Fire hydrants on north-south streets have an average spacing of 1300 feet.
So considering both directions, the average spacing exceeds code requirements by 2-5X.
But again, most streets have absolutely no fire hydrants. That makes the distances to fire hydrants far greater! A Houston fire captain told me that his trucks carried at most 500 feet of fire hose.
To service areas such as Colony Ridge, volunteer fire departments use tanker trucks. They fill their tanks at a hydrant and then shuttle to the fire until it is extinguished.
In fairness, Hergemueller also pointed out that parts of the development are still expanding and that the IFC regs were adopted after Colony Ridge started developing in 2013.
Codes Largely Agree
Most national standards call for one fire hydrant every 200-500 feet depending on the type of development.
The 2018 IFC regulations used by Liberty County specify 200- to 500-foot spacing between fire hydrants, with a few exceptions, i.e., in areas where buildings have sprinkler systems.
National Fire Protection Association standards specify that for detached one- and two-family dwellings “fire hydrants shall be within five hundred (500′) feet… The maximum distance between fire hydrants shall not exceed 800 ft.”
Texas’ Local Government Code 233.061-C gives Liberty County the right to enforce its fire code retroactively. In other words, the county could force the developer to upgrade his infrastructure to meet current code requirements.
In addition to violating fire-hydrant spacing requirements, Colony Ridge has another problem: existing water mains may not have enough pressure to douse fires before they get out of control.
The IFC code requires a minimum 1000 gallons per minute. But Colony Ridge water mains reportedly only deliver 500 gallons per minute.
Alternatives to Hydrants Also Missing
A “fire-code standards” expert I talked to in another county said that in rural areas, the alternatives to hydrants include on-site infrastructure such as water storage tanks and ponds that firefighters could use as sources of water. However, Colony Ridge does not appear to have those. In fact, the developer has drained many of the ponds to build homes over them.
So volunteers fill a tanker truck at one of the working hydrants, drive to the fire, pump their water, and refill as necessary until a blaze is extinguished. The standards expert told me that is a common practice in rural areas.
But Colony Ridge is rapidly becoming “un-rural.” In fact, Colony Ridge is likely larger than the three largest cities in Liberty County put together, though it is difficult to say for sure because of the large number of undocumented aliens.
Colony Ridge now occupies an area that is one-third of the area inside Houston’s 610 loop. Can you imagine an area that size with only 59 fire hydrants? To put that number in perspective, I live in the City of Houston and have 9 hydrants – on my block!
Problems Retrofitting Older Areas with Hydrants
An engineer consulted for this article said that once streets are in, it’s difficult retrofitting neighborhoods with hydrants and larger water mains. Not impossible, but difficult. It requires tunneling under streets and driveways, and that rapidly becomes expensive. That’s why most developers put utilities in before they pave.
Who Will Pay for Water?
During my hydrant inventory, I noticed that most Colony Ridge fire hydrants contained this sign. It says, “Fire hydrant use requires registered meter with Quadvest. For emergencies, usage must be reported to Quadvest. Unlawful use prohibited and punishable by law.” Then it lists Quadvest’s address and phone number.
This fire hydrant gets so much use, they leave the covers off.Or is that a signal it doesn’t work?
It appears that someone will be charged for the water coming out of this hydrant. However, it’s not clear whether that will be fire victims, volunteer fire fighters, the municipal utility district or water-rate payers. At press time, sources had not returned phone calls to clarify who would pay.
Calls for Service Up as Colony Ridge Expands in Drought
By August 21, according to a Facebook Post, the Plum Grove VFD had already received 855 calls for service compared to 1,111 in all of last year. So, three per day last year. And so far, 3.7 per day this year. That’s a lot of demand on volunteers! One wonders how it affects their regular jobs.
Growth has no doubt played a role in the increase. So has the drought and an increase in wildfires.
Without hydrant spacing that meets fire codes, unsuspecting residents face extra risk and higher insurance costs – if they can even get insurance.
Burned to the ground in Colony Ridge. Remnants of an American dream.
If any responsible parties would like to respond to this post, I will make space available.
Posted by Bob Rehak on 8/28/2023
2189 Days since Hurricane Harvey
The thoughts expressed in this post represent opinions on matters of public concern and safety. They are protected by the First Amendment of the US Constitution and the Anti-SLAPP Statute of the Great State of Texas.
https://i0.wp.com/reduceflooding.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/08/20230828-Screenshot-2023-08-28-at-9.50.25-AM.jpg?fit=1100%2C780&ssl=17801100adminadmin2023-08-30 15:02:052023-08-31 10:33:38As Wildfire Weather Sets In, Fastest Growing Area in Liberty County Fails to Meet Fire-Code Requirements
Harvey was a near week-long event. So it’s hard to pinpoint an exact day for the anniversary. But I chose to start the clock ticking from the day floodwaters arrived at my doorstep – August 29, 2017, 2191 days ago.
Looking east at West Fork Flooding over Townsen Blvd. during Harvey
Since then, I have investigated why we flooded (beyond the heavy rainfall) and how to prevent similar catastrophes in the future. The causes include:
Unpredictability of storms
Development in risky places
Construction practices
Sand mining
Political complications
Short memories
Let me explain each briefly.
Unpredictability of Storms
The only way to predict the future is by looking at the past. But the future often surprises us. Unfortunately, we base engineering on yesterday’s storms, not tomorrow’s. Engineering bigger safety margins into our flood control systems is too costly. Especially when you try to do it retroactively.
Development in Risky Places
We build too close to rivers. In swamps. Over wetlands. On fault lines. Why? Simple. Money. There’s always an engineer somewhere willing to render a favorable report about the safety of doing so with certain precautions. But again, they are looking at the past, not the future. And they write lengthy reports that defy comprehension by ordinary homebuyers.
The developers and their trade associations also lobby regulators and politicians to keep requirements loose. Every dubious project falls into that gray area called “acceptable risk.” And it can take years or decades to incorporate known flood risks from storms like Harvey into regulations that govern development. That gives everyone with property in risky places plenty of time to develop it.
Clearing for Madera. 2022 photo of development at FM1314 and 242. Parts of development are in 10-year floodplain.
Construction Practices
Why build stormwater detention basins and ditches as big as you should? Why install silt fences? Why plant grass in them to reduce erosion if nobody is inspecting them? All that costs money. But it also sends extra silt downstream. And when the extra water comes on top of it, there’s nowhere for the water to go but into people’s homes.
Eroding ditch in Colony Ridge due to lack of erosion control measures such as backslope interceptor systems and grass.
Sand Mining
To produce marketable sand, mines must wash small particles of clay out of it. Miners then direct the wastewater to settling ponds. But that wastewater builds up. And soon it must be released. Some mines pump it over the sides of dikes. Some just open up their dikes. The result: accelerated deposition of sediment, again blocking rivers and streams.
Confluence of Spring Creek and West Fork. TCEQ found that Liberty Mines discharged 56 million gallons of white waste water into the West Fork.
The construction of dikes also makes them susceptible to rupture during floods. They are thin, tall, made out of sand, next to rivers, and often unvegetated. Floodwaters can push them in, scoop up silt, and carry it downstream.
Triple PG sand mine draining industrial wastewater into Caney Creek and Lake Houston.
Political Complications
Political leaders deal with dozens of problems a day. A storm like Harvey gets their attention. Six years later, in the middle of a drought, not so much. Flood control spending has dropped precipitously. And what little spending remains has focused on low-to-moderate income areas, not the areas with the most flood damage.
As of end of 2023Q1. Data obtained via FOIA Request.Based on same data, this shows a totally different rank ordering that ignores impact on communities.
Would it surprise you to learn that halfway through a ten year flood bond, we’ve spent only about 30% of the money? That six years after Harvey, we’re just now seeing the outline of the state’s first flood plan? That sprawling upstream developments pay little attention to sediment control? That many jurisdictions still haven’t adopted minimum drainage regulations?
Short Memories
For the most part, homeowners have restored their property using insurance payments, public assistance, and/or their kids college funds.
Now they want to worry about their kids’ prom dresses, birthday parties, the next vacation and a new car they can’t afford. They just assume that the Flood Bond they approved after Harvey is being spent wisely to protect them. Most don’t even remember what the money was supposed to be spent on.
Photo by Camille Pagel. Her children are helping to gut the kitchen instead of going to school after the Harvey flood.
So it might surprise them to learn that not one capital improvement construction project in the Lake Houston area has yet been approved. It would also surprise them to learn that after spending millions of dollars on studies, their flood risk remains and that the economics of upstream development (see sand mining and construction practices above) continue to increase that risk.
Higher Priorities Replace Flood Mitigation
Now we have crime, election chaos, impeachment spectacles and Trump mug shots to divert our attention. But we will grow weary of these, too. And then the rains will return. People will flood. And we will wonder, “Why didn’t that get fixed?”
Posted by Bob Rehak on August 29, 2023
2191 Days since Hurricane Harvey
The thoughts expressed in this post represent opinions on matters of public concern and safety. They are protected by the First Amendment of the US Constitution and the Anti-SLAPP Statute of the Great State of Texas.
Celebrating Completion of new KMS Without Flooding
As I passed the beautiful new Kingwood Middle School (KMS) last weekend, it struck me. Despite many heavy rains during construction that lasted almost three years, neighbors never reported flooding.
Too often, I hear of construction projects that alter drainage and flood neighbors. But Humble ISD seemed to consider that problem from the start and took appropriate measures to prevent it. The District even built a temporary stormwater detention basin before tearing down the old KMS. It protected the neighborhood during demolition and construction before the new permanent basin was completed.
The result is a magnificent architectural gem – a showcase for the entire community – without drama, stress or destruction.
Pictures Taken 8/27/23
The current drought has the football-field grass struggling. But somehow, the grass on the sides of the detention basin seems well established. The vegetation on the slopes reduces erosion which could clog the inflow/outflow pipes.
For Photographic History of Project
For photos showing the history of Kingwood Middle School demolition and re-construction, see below.
Thanks to the Humble ISD, its board and contractors for a job well done.
Posted by Bob Rehak on 9/1/23
2194 days since Hurricane Harvey
As Wildfire Weather Sets In, Fastest Growing Area in Liberty County Fails to Meet Fire-Code Requirements
August 30, 2023 – Yesterday evening, multiple news organizations reported wildfires burning near Colony Ridge in Liberty County.
Yet large parts of Colony Ridge, the fastest growing part of the county, have few fire hydrants. Some areas have none at all. And in the areas that have them, fire hydrant spacing is 2-5X greater than codes specify, while pressure is reportedly half of what codes require. And according to some sources interviewed for this article, many hydrants allegedly don’t work.
All this increases residents’ fire risk and insurance rates – if they can even get fire insurance. Some say they can’t.
Former Plum Grove Mayor, LeeAnn Penton-Walker says she and Colony Ridge residents have been trying to alert the county judge, commissioners, engineer and fire marshal to the dangers since 2015.
Fire Safety Top of Mind as Drought Deepens
Meanwhile, fire safety is at the top of everyone’s mind as the current drought deepens amid relentless heat. A burn ban remains in effect across the region. The National Weather Service has posted red-flag warnings for today. A combination of very dry vegetation, low humidity and gusty winds could easily spark fires.
Jeff Lindner, Harris County’s meteorologist, says that numerous fires started around the region yesterday and we have similar conditions today. “Fires especially in pine canopies continue to exhibit extensive growth rates and fast forward motion with long lasting crown runs. Increasingly larger fires are requiring large amounts of resources for an extended period of time,” says Lindner.
Recent Pictures Show Vast Areas with Apparently No Hydrants
On August 12, as I flew over Colony Ridge in Liberty County, the scarcity of fire hydrants struck me. I did not see any. However, the Liberty County fire marshal told me that the developer was trying to bring the development up to code. I knew the development had at least a handful of hydrants from a story I did three years ago. But Colony Ridge has virtually doubled in size since then.
Below are four pictures from areas recently built out. Many lots in these areas have already been sold and occupied. So you should see fire hydrants. But I couldn’t, even when magnifying high-res versions of the images on a large screen.
These photos are representative of thousands of shots I have taken from helicopters over Colony Ridge.
Areas With Fire Hydrants Do Not Meet Code Requirement
I asked the county fire marshal for a list of hydrant locations, but he could not supply me with one. So I spent a full day criss-crossing the area and burning a tank of gasoline looking for them. I located 59. See the satellite images below.
In the first, note how hydrants are clustered in rows and columns. Also note how large parts of the development have none. That verifies what I saw from the air.
In the satellite image above, for instance, note the:
The next satellite image shows eight fire hydrants in the most populated portion of the northern part of Colony Ridge.
Altogether, Colony Ridge covers more than 30 square miles. It has almost doubled in size in the last two years. If my count is accurate, it now has only about two fire hydrants per square mile.
What Fire Codes Require
Even though the Liberty County Fire Marshal’s web page does not list a fire code, Bill Hergemueller, the fire marshal, said that the county follows 2018 IFC (International Fire Code) regulations. That code specifies maximum spacing of 500 feet, but Hergemueller said the county allows 600 feet. However…
Fire hydrants on north-south streets have an average spacing of 1300 feet.
So considering both directions, the average spacing exceeds code requirements by 2-5X.
But again, most streets have absolutely no fire hydrants. That makes the distances to fire hydrants far greater! A Houston fire captain told me that his trucks carried at most 500 feet of fire hose.
To service areas such as Colony Ridge, volunteer fire departments use tanker trucks. They fill their tanks at a hydrant and then shuttle to the fire until it is extinguished.
In fairness, Hergemueller also pointed out that parts of the development are still expanding and that the IFC regs were adopted after Colony Ridge started developing in 2013.
Codes Largely Agree
Most national standards call for one fire hydrant every 200-500 feet depending on the type of development.
The 2018 IFC regulations used by Liberty County specify 200- to 500-foot spacing between fire hydrants, with a few exceptions, i.e., in areas where buildings have sprinkler systems.
National Fire Protection Association standards specify that for detached one- and two-family dwellings “fire hydrants shall be within five hundred (500′) feet… The maximum distance between fire hydrants shall not exceed 800 ft.”
Texas’ Local Government Code 233.061-C gives Liberty County the right to enforce its fire code retroactively. In other words, the county could force the developer to upgrade his infrastructure to meet current code requirements.
In addition to violating fire-hydrant spacing requirements, Colony Ridge has another problem: existing water mains may not have enough pressure to douse fires before they get out of control.
Alternatives to Hydrants Also Missing
A “fire-code standards” expert I talked to in another county said that in rural areas, the alternatives to hydrants include on-site infrastructure such as water storage tanks and ponds that firefighters could use as sources of water. However, Colony Ridge does not appear to have those. In fact, the developer has drained many of the ponds to build homes over them.
So volunteers fill a tanker truck at one of the working hydrants, drive to the fire, pump their water, and refill as necessary until a blaze is extinguished. The standards expert told me that is a common practice in rural areas.
But Colony Ridge is rapidly becoming “un-rural.” In fact, Colony Ridge is likely larger than the three largest cities in Liberty County put together, though it is difficult to say for sure because of the large number of undocumented aliens.
Colony Ridge now occupies an area that is one-third of the area inside Houston’s 610 loop. Can you imagine an area that size with only 59 fire hydrants? To put that number in perspective, I live in the City of Houston and have 9 hydrants – on my block!
Problems Retrofitting Older Areas with Hydrants
An engineer consulted for this article said that once streets are in, it’s difficult retrofitting neighborhoods with hydrants and larger water mains. Not impossible, but difficult. It requires tunneling under streets and driveways, and that rapidly becomes expensive. That’s why most developers put utilities in before they pave.
Who Will Pay for Water?
During my hydrant inventory, I noticed that most Colony Ridge fire hydrants contained this sign. It says, “Fire hydrant use requires registered meter with Quadvest. For emergencies, usage must be reported to Quadvest. Unlawful use prohibited and punishable by law.” Then it lists Quadvest’s address and phone number.
It appears that someone will be charged for the water coming out of this hydrant. However, it’s not clear whether that will be fire victims, volunteer fire fighters, the municipal utility district or water-rate payers. At press time, sources had not returned phone calls to clarify who would pay.
Calls for Service Up as Colony Ridge Expands in Drought
By August 21, according to a Facebook Post, the Plum Grove VFD had already received 855 calls for service compared to 1,111 in all of last year. So, three per day last year. And so far, 3.7 per day this year. That’s a lot of demand on volunteers! One wonders how it affects their regular jobs.
Growth has no doubt played a role in the increase. So has the drought and an increase in wildfires.
Without hydrant spacing that meets fire codes, unsuspecting residents face extra risk and higher insurance costs – if they can even get insurance.
If any responsible parties would like to respond to this post, I will make space available.
Posted by Bob Rehak on 8/28/2023
2189 Days since Hurricane Harvey
The thoughts expressed in this post represent opinions on matters of public concern and safety. They are protected by the First Amendment of the US Constitution and the Anti-SLAPP Statute of the Great State of Texas.
Harvey Flood’s Sixth Anniversary Passes Virtually Unnoticed
August 29, 2023 – Six years ago today, thousands of Lake Houston Area residents woke up with water in their bedrooms thanks to Hurricane Harvey and a massive release of 79,000 cubic feet per second from the Lake Conroe Dam.
Harvey was a near week-long event. So it’s hard to pinpoint an exact day for the anniversary. But I chose to start the clock ticking from the day floodwaters arrived at my doorstep – August 29, 2017, 2191 days ago.
Since then, I have investigated why we flooded (beyond the heavy rainfall) and how to prevent similar catastrophes in the future. The causes include:
Let me explain each briefly.
Unpredictability of Storms
The only way to predict the future is by looking at the past. But the future often surprises us. Unfortunately, we base engineering on yesterday’s storms, not tomorrow’s. Engineering bigger safety margins into our flood control systems is too costly. Especially when you try to do it retroactively.
Development in Risky Places
We build too close to rivers. In swamps. Over wetlands. On fault lines. Why? Simple. Money. There’s always an engineer somewhere willing to render a favorable report about the safety of doing so with certain precautions. But again, they are looking at the past, not the future. And they write lengthy reports that defy comprehension by ordinary homebuyers.
The developers and their trade associations also lobby regulators and politicians to keep requirements loose. Every dubious project falls into that gray area called “acceptable risk.” And it can take years or decades to incorporate known flood risks from storms like Harvey into regulations that govern development. That gives everyone with property in risky places plenty of time to develop it.
Construction Practices
Why build stormwater detention basins and ditches as big as you should? Why install silt fences? Why plant grass in them to reduce erosion if nobody is inspecting them? All that costs money. But it also sends extra silt downstream. And when the extra water comes on top of it, there’s nowhere for the water to go but into people’s homes.
Sand Mining
To produce marketable sand, mines must wash small particles of clay out of it. Miners then direct the wastewater to settling ponds. But that wastewater builds up. And soon it must be released. Some mines pump it over the sides of dikes. Some just open up their dikes. The result: accelerated deposition of sediment, again blocking rivers and streams.
The construction of dikes also makes them susceptible to rupture during floods. They are thin, tall, made out of sand, next to rivers, and often unvegetated. Floodwaters can push them in, scoop up silt, and carry it downstream.
Political Complications
Political leaders deal with dozens of problems a day. A storm like Harvey gets their attention. Six years later, in the middle of a drought, not so much. Flood control spending has dropped precipitously. And what little spending remains has focused on low-to-moderate income areas, not the areas with the most flood damage.
Would it surprise you to learn that halfway through a ten year flood bond, we’ve spent only about 30% of the money? That six years after Harvey, we’re just now seeing the outline of the state’s first flood plan? That sprawling upstream developments pay little attention to sediment control? That many jurisdictions still haven’t adopted minimum drainage regulations?
Short Memories
For the most part, homeowners have restored their property using insurance payments, public assistance, and/or their kids college funds.
Now they want to worry about their kids’ prom dresses, birthday parties, the next vacation and a new car they can’t afford. They just assume that the Flood Bond they approved after Harvey is being spent wisely to protect them. Most don’t even remember what the money was supposed to be spent on.
So it might surprise them to learn that not one capital improvement construction project in the Lake Houston area has yet been approved. It would also surprise them to learn that after spending millions of dollars on studies, their flood risk remains and that the economics of upstream development (see sand mining and construction practices above) continue to increase that risk.
Higher Priorities Replace Flood Mitigation
Now we have crime, election chaos, impeachment spectacles and Trump mug shots to divert our attention. But we will grow weary of these, too. And then the rains will return. People will flood. And we will wonder, “Why didn’t that get fixed?”
Posted by Bob Rehak on August 29, 2023
2191 Days since Hurricane Harvey
The thoughts expressed in this post represent opinions on matters of public concern and safety. They are protected by the First Amendment of the US Constitution and the Anti-SLAPP Statute of the Great State of Texas.