One thing became immediately clear after reviewing aerial photos of the Kingwood area’s first RV resort last Monday. The heavy rains created a mud pit. After removing every tree and blade of grass on these 20 acres, the owners of this project will have to pave over virtually the entire site to make it useable.
I took all photos below on Sunday morning 1/9/22 after heavy rains stopped, but between sporadic light rains.
Laurel Springs RV Resort after Heavy Weekend Rains
Looking NW from over Laurel Springs Lane at Kingwood’s first RV resort and its detention pond after a 5.5 inch rain.
Silt seems to be piling up along silt fence on right, an indication of how site is sloped.
Contractors are starting to build roads. But look at ponding on either side of first one.
Looking SSE across RV resort from over UP railroad tracks at Lakewood Cove.
Rains can delay construction by making it difficult to work the ground.
Note drainage running down Centerpoint utility corridor.
Note heavy erosion and debris in detention pond.
Currently lip of detention pond is below road level. Overflow from pond will likely go into Edgewater Park’s cypress ponds below hill.
Bad News, Good News
Most of the initial fears that Lakewood Cove residents had about this site remain valid. Railroad noise. Traffic safety. Road destruction. School impact. And more.
However, after seeing the response of the site to last weekend’s heavy rains, I’m less concerned about the site flooding Lakewood Cove if the southern lip of the detention pond remains at its current height.
Presently, the pond lip is much lower than the road as you can see in the photo above. If it stays that way, overflow stormwater will go down the hill west of Laurel Springs into what will soon become Precinct 4’s new Edgewater Park.
However, there’s also a significant amount of dirt piled on the northern lip of the pond. It’s unclear where contractors will put that. If they use it to build up the southern lip, that could change the game.
Clearly, the owners lucked out with the timing of this storm. They substantially completed the detention pond before the storm. Otherwise, this could have turned into another Woodridge Village/Elm Grove situation.
Posted by Bob Rehak on 1/14/2022
1599 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/2022/01/20220109-DJI_0406.jpg?fit=1200%2C799&ssl=17991200adminadmin2022-01-14 16:11:342022-01-14 16:21:34Photos of Kingwood’s First RV Resort after Heavy Rains Last Weekend
Today, Jeff Lindner, Harris County’s meteorologist issued a report on last weekend’s (1/8/22 – 1/9/22) storm. One of the more interesting findings: According to the National Weather Service, the Kingwood tornado was the widest, strongest and longest of five that touched down in Harris County. See below.
EF stands for Enhanced Fujita Rating Scale, a table used to compare tornado winds. All these tornadoes ranked on the low end of the scale which goes up to EF-5. The scale considers 0 and 1 as weak tornadoes.
Wealth of Detail Beyond ReduceFlooding Reports
Lindner’s report confirms my “after-action” reports, but adds a wealth of details.
For instance:
Rainfall rates of 2-3 inches/hour were common in the slow-moving training thunderstorms.
That led to rapid and significant street flooding, and rises on area creeks and bayous.
The highest measured discharge (streamflow) rate was in Greens Bayou at Mount Houston Parkway – 7,067 cubic feet per second.
Lindner found that certain areas experienced 2- to 10-year rains based on Atlas-14 exceedance probabilities. Based on 1- to 3-hour rainfall rates, those included middle Buffalo Bayou, Luce Bayou, middle and upper Halls Bayou, middle Greens Bayou, middle and lower White Oak Bayou, and the lower portion of the East Fork of the San Jacinto River. However, based on 12- to 24-hour rates, all impacted watersheds experience 2- to 5-year rains.
Because the storms trained perpendicular to the direction of most bayous, the rainfall within their watersheds varied greatly. For instance:
Greens Bayou received on 0.9 inches at Mount Houston Parkway, but 6.2 inches at US59.
Buffalo Bayou received 5.2 inches in places and 0.2 in others – a 26X difference.
Like all of the work that comes out of Lindner’s department, the documentation is meticulous.
House Flooding Estimates
Contrary to previous reports, some house flooding did occur. It happened along Brickhouse Gully on the west side of Bingle Rd. Approximately 6-8 structures experienced flooding to depths of 4.0-6.0 inches.
Says Lindner, “Other isolated structures may have flooded in portions of Spring Branch due to the intense rainfall rates overwhelming street and local drainage systems. A few houses also flooded along Valley Stream downstream (east) of I-45 along Halls Bayou.”
Alarms Triggered
Unfortunately, Lindner doesn’t offer much more information about the Kingwood tornado at this time. Nor does he cover flooding in surrounding areas, such as Liberty County. However, the storm did set off a number of alarms.
The storm triggered 26 rainfall alarms when gages received more than an inch of rain in 15-minutes.
Rising water triggered 14 flood warnings when streams reached 3 feet below bankfull.
For detailed maps, rainfall rates, and exceedance statistics at dozens of locations, see Lindner’s full report. Note: on major storms, Lindner often issues an immediate report and a final report several weeks later. This report falls into the “immediate” category. For future reference, you can also find this report under the Major Storms tab on the reports page.
Houston Public Work’s Emergency Operations and District E staff are working with the Solid Waste Management Department to identify locations and the scope of debris pickup needed. But in case they miss something…
Report the need for residential debris pickup by calling (713) 837-0311. Make sure you report the issue as “STORM DEBRIS.”
And if you see any trees blocking roadways or if any street lights need to be reset again, call Houston 311 or (713) 837-0311.
Redbud Lane in Forest Cove
Instructions
Crews began debris pickup Tuesday.
Residents should separate piles when placing debris at the curb.
Please keep roadways clear, so crews can maneuver in and around affected areas more easily.
Have contractors haul off materials from their repairs.
Palmetto Lane in Forest Cove is narrowed to one lane making it difficult for crews to work as residents try to maneuver around them.
Numbers to Call, How to Follow Up
Please continue to utilize Houston 311 to make your initial report for “storm debris” and follow up by sending your service request number to districte@houstontx.gov. Put “Storm Debris” in the subject line. This will let the District E office track cases to make sure they are handled expeditiously.
Should you have any questions please contact the District E office by emailing districte@houstontx.gov or call (832) 393-3008.
Posted by Bob Rehak on 1/12/22 Based on Information Provided by District E
1597 Days since Hurricane Harvey
https://i0.wp.com/reduceflooding.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/01/20220111-IMG_1076.jpg?fit=1200%2C900&ssl=19001200adminadmin2022-01-12 11:35:042022-01-12 11:35:07City Starts Tornado Debris Pickup, How to Help
Photos of Kingwood’s First RV Resort after Heavy Rains Last Weekend
One thing became immediately clear after reviewing aerial photos of the Kingwood area’s first RV resort last Monday. The heavy rains created a mud pit. After removing every tree and blade of grass on these 20 acres, the owners of this project will have to pave over virtually the entire site to make it useable.
I took all photos below on Sunday morning 1/9/22 after heavy rains stopped, but between sporadic light rains.
Laurel Springs RV Resort after Heavy Weekend Rains
Bad News, Good News
Most of the initial fears that Lakewood Cove residents had about this site remain valid. Railroad noise. Traffic safety. Road destruction. School impact. And more.
However, after seeing the response of the site to last weekend’s heavy rains, I’m less concerned about the site flooding Lakewood Cove if the southern lip of the detention pond remains at its current height.
Presently, the pond lip is much lower than the road as you can see in the photo above. If it stays that way, overflow stormwater will go down the hill west of Laurel Springs into what will soon become Precinct 4’s new Edgewater Park.
It’s important to keep in mind that last weekend’s storm was a 2- to 5-year storm, according to Jeff Lindner, Harris County’s meteorologist. So this wasn’t a very big test of the resort’s drainage systems. A hundred year storm would drop three times the rainfall.
The pond currently has half the required capacity to meet current rainfall standards. Still, last weekend was significant. Kingwood was among the hardest hit areas in Harris County.
However, there’s also a significant amount of dirt piled on the northern lip of the pond. It’s unclear where contractors will put that. If they use it to build up the southern lip, that could change the game.
Clearly, the owners lucked out with the timing of this storm. They substantially completed the detention pond before the storm. Otherwise, this could have turned into another Woodridge Village/Elm Grove situation.
Posted by Bob Rehak on 1/14/2022
1599 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.
HCFCD Report Shows Kingwood Tornado was Widest, Longest, Strongest
Today, Jeff Lindner, Harris County’s meteorologist issued a report on last weekend’s (1/8/22 – 1/9/22) storm. One of the more interesting findings: According to the National Weather Service, the Kingwood tornado was the widest, strongest and longest of five that touched down in Harris County. See below.
Wealth of Detail Beyond ReduceFlooding Reports
Lindner’s report confirms my “after-action” reports, but adds a wealth of details.
For instance:
Lindner found that certain areas experienced 2- to 10-year rains based on Atlas-14 exceedance probabilities. Based on 1- to 3-hour rainfall rates, those included middle Buffalo Bayou, Luce Bayou, middle and upper Halls Bayou, middle Greens Bayou, middle and lower White Oak Bayou, and the lower portion of the East Fork of the San Jacinto River. However, based on 12- to 24-hour rates, all impacted watersheds experience 2- to 5-year rains.
Because the storms trained perpendicular to the direction of most bayous, the rainfall within their watersheds varied greatly. For instance:
Like all of the work that comes out of Lindner’s department, the documentation is meticulous.
House Flooding Estimates
Contrary to previous reports, some house flooding did occur. It happened along Brickhouse Gully on the west side of Bingle Rd. Approximately 6-8 structures experienced flooding to depths of 4.0-6.0 inches.
Says Lindner, “Other isolated structures may have flooded in portions of Spring Branch due to the intense rainfall rates overwhelming street and local drainage systems. A few houses also flooded along Valley Stream downstream (east) of I-45 along Halls Bayou.”
Alarms Triggered
Unfortunately, Lindner doesn’t offer much more information about the Kingwood tornado at this time. Nor does he cover flooding in surrounding areas, such as Liberty County. However, the storm did set off a number of alarms.
The storm triggered 26 rainfall alarms when gages received more than an inch of rain in 15-minutes.
Rising water triggered 14 flood warnings when streams reached 3 feet below bankfull.
For detailed maps, rainfall rates, and exceedance statistics at dozens of locations, see Lindner’s full report. Note: on major storms, Lindner often issues an immediate report and a final report several weeks later. This report falls into the “immediate” category. For future reference, you can also find this report under the Major Storms tab on the reports page.
Posted by Bob Rehak on 1/13/22
1598 Days since Hurricane Harvey
City Starts Tornado Debris Pickup, How to Help
Mayor Pro Tem Dave Martin announced debris pickup has started for the tornado that struck Kingwood and Forest Cove Sunday morning, 1/9/22. Here’s how you can help.
Help Requested
Houston Public Work’s Emergency Operations and District E staff are working with the Solid Waste Management Department to identify locations and the scope of debris pickup needed. But in case they miss something…
Report the need for residential debris pickup by calling (713) 837-0311. Make sure you report the issue as “STORM DEBRIS.”
And if you see any trees blocking roadways or if any street lights need to be reset again, call Houston 311 or (713) 837-0311.
Instructions
Crews began debris pickup Tuesday.
Numbers to Call, How to Follow Up
Please continue to utilize Houston 311 to make your initial report for “storm debris” and follow up by sending your service request number to districte@houstontx.gov. Put “Storm Debris” in the subject line. This will let the District E office track cases to make sure they are handled expeditiously.
Should you have any questions please contact the District E office by emailing districte@houstontx.gov or call (832) 393-3008.
Posted by Bob Rehak on 1/12/22 Based on Information Provided by District E
1597 Days since Hurricane Harvey