Update: Flash Flood Watch Extended until 8:00 PM or until cancelled.
For the second time in five days, the National Weather Service issued flash flood warnings. This means more street flooding. Move your vehicles to high ground.
Flash Flood Warning till 8:00 or Until Canceled
The National Weather Service has issued a Flash Flood Warning for portions of northeast Houston. It includes Lake Houston, Kingwood and northeastern Bush Intercontinental Airport, until 8:00 p.m.
Area of Flash Flood Warning
Early this afternoon, Doppler radar and automated rain gauges indicated nearly stationary thunderstorms producing heavy rain across the warned area. By 1 PM, three to almost five inches of rain had fallen and worse was yet to come. By 5PM, storm totals were approaching 10 inches with one station near FM1485 reporting 11 inches. The good news: as of 6PM, although it is still raining, the storm appears to be moving east and lessening.
Stunning Accumulations for Day That Was Supposed to be Light
Just hours ago, I posted a City of Houston alert warning of 7-10 inches of rain possible this WEEK. We have already gotten more than that today and it’s not over! And this was supposed to be the lightest day this week! Here’s what it looked like on the streets this afternoon.
Video courtesy of Josh Alberson showing the land being cleared next to HEB for retail expansion along Kingwood Drive. Someone needs to rethink that idea!New retail center called “The Docks” already under water. Photo courtesy of Josh Alberson.Taylor Gully also coming out of its banks at the end of Dunham Road. Video courtesy of Josh Alberson.This video shows the south end of Woodland Hills Drive near the soccer field road and Romerica property. It shows tree and water blocking the road/evacuation route. Courtesy of Mohamad-Khaled Chaouki Jrab.Kings Forest Pool House on Woods Estates Drive. Neighbor across the street reported more than 6″ on his rain gage.
House on Royal Circle in Kings Forest not far from pool house above. Photo courtesy of Cyndy Brown.
Elsewhere:
Kingwood College closed. Water was intruding through drains and windows. No power.
The creek by Deerwood Country Club is almost over Kingwood Drive.
8″ to 9″ standing water reported in Memorial Hermann lot in HEB Center. See below.
Street by Strawbridge Methodist Church. Video courtesy of Josh Alberson.
Storm Total Accumulations
Here’s what the storm total accumulations looked like as of 5:15.
Bright purple area in center equals 8.5 inch accumulations; darker blue areas within it show 10 inch accumulations during the course of the afternoon.
River Report and Protective Actions
The San Jacinto river is forecasted to rise above flood stage by this evening and continue to rise to near 49.6 feet by tonight. The river will fall below flood stage by after midnight WEDNESDAY.
At 49.3 feet, minor lowland flooding begins in the vicinity of the gage; the north side turnaround at US 59 begins to flood; and low points on Thelma Road, Aqua Vista Drive, and Riverview Drive begin to flood.
River Flooding Watch Area
People in the area should avoid the river as it rises. Residents near the river should make preparations in the event they are not able to leave their homes due to high water.
Turn Around, Don’t Drown®: Do not drive through flooded areas. If you see water covering the road, do not attempt to cross it. Only takes a few inches of water to float a vehicle . If you find yourself in a dangerous situation where your vehicle is taking on water, get out of the vehicle, get to a higher position, and call 911.
Monitor Official Sources for Current Information: Harris County Flood Warning System (harriscountyfws.org), Houston TranStar (houstontranstar.org), the National Weather Service Houston/Galveston Forecast Office (weather.gov/hgx), and the National Weather Service West Gulf River Forecast Center (weather.gov/wgcrfc).
Posted by Bob Rehak on May 7, 2019 at 2PM and update at 4PM and 6pm
616 Days since Hurricane Harvey
https://i0.wp.com/reduceflooding.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/05/KingsForestPool_01.jpg?fit=1500%2C1000&ssl=110001500adminadmin2019-05-07 14:06:422019-05-07 18:18:59Flash Flood Warning Extended Again! Up to 10 Inches Already Today with More on Way
Note: I posted this this morning before a surprise storm dumped up to 10 inches of rain on the Lake Houston Area this afternoon. Now the river is expected to flood … despite the pre-release. At 7PM on Tuesday, the floodgates on Lake Houston remain wide open. As the river rises past flood stage, any thoughts of being land locked are now moot.
Houston City Council Member Dave Martin issued a press release this morning warning Lake Houston property owners to prepare for lower lake levels. Houston Public Works and the Coastal Water Authority are monitoring forecasts calling for substantial rainfall over the next several days.
Lower Lake Levels Heading Lower
Lake Houston is currently at 42.11 feet and still receiving water from weekend storms. But that’s a half inch down in the last 12 hours.
Lake Houston has a normal pool elevation of 42.5 feet. All four gates on the existing dam structure are open and will remain open with a goal of lowering the lake to 41.5 feet before the next round of rainfall. Property owners are encouraged to secure property along the shoreline.
Lake-Lowering Policy
Lake Houston is lowered if the National Weather Service predicts greater than 3 inches of rain within a 48-hour period. To monitor Lake Houston and the forecasted rain, click here.
6-day precipitation forecast: 7 inches across the Houston Metro Area
Posted by Bob Rehak on 5/7/2019
616 Days since Hurricane Harvey
https://i0.wp.com/reduceflooding.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/05/Houston-Map-Lake.png?fit=800%2C509&ssl=1509800adminadmin2019-05-07 11:56:232019-05-07 18:44:06Lake Houston Property Owners Should Prepare for Lower Lake Levels (or Not)
With major rainfall expected this week, here is a pre-storm report on lake and river levels.
Lake Conroe Pre-Storm
Even though Lake Conroe has released water continuously since April 1, the SJRA has not succeeded in reducing the lake level to their seasonal target of 200 feet. They were close at one point, but recent rains have elevated the lake back to its normal pool level. As of this writing, the lake is at 200.87 feet. Normal level is 201 mean feet above sea level. Thus Lake Conroe is only down about one tenth of an inch despite the fact that the SJRA continues to release water at the rate of 522 cubic feet per second.
Lake Conroe levels for the last week. On May 1, the SJRA increased the release rate from about 350 cfs to 522 cfs. Despite that, the lake has risen back to its normal level because of recent rains.
Here’s a picture of the massive gates at Lake Conroe. Compare them to…
The gates at Lake Conroe can release water at up too 150,000 CFS but are currently releasing at only 522 CFS to avoid flooding downstream areas.
Lake Houston Pre-Storm
Lake Houston has its gates wide open. At that setting, they can release 10,000 CFS. But the recent rains are also refilling Lake Houston as fast as its draining. Normal pool level is 42.5 feet and the lake is presently. at 42.6 feet. This is why we need more gates!
Gates on Lake Houston can release a maximum of 10,000 cubic feet per second, one fifteenth the rate of Lake Conroe.
To summarize, both Lake Conroe and Lake Houston are within a tenth of an inch of normal levels. Both are releasing water. Lake Houston is releasing water as fast as it can. Lake Conroe cannot release any faster without flooding the Humble/Kingwood area, especially with more rain on the way.
With rivers already highly elevated and some at or above flood stage, additional widespread heavy rainfall will only aggravate ongoing flooding or result in worsening flooding especially along the Trinity and Brazos basins.
San Jacinto River:
No flooding is currently impacting the basin, but forecasts for this week indicate significant rainfall potential over the basin. If accurate, the rainfall would result in significant rises on the system.
Trinity River:
Flooding is in progress both upstream of Lake Livingston and downstream of the lake in Liberty County. Flooding will continue through the end of the week and likely into next week. Liberty may approach major flood levels by the end of the week depending on releases from Lake Livingston.
Navasota River:
Minor flooding is in progress as upstream releases from Lake Limestone are maintained. River is in recession and may fall back below flood stage by the middle of the week.
Colorado River:
Upstream weekend flood wave is moving downstream and is at Columbus and will near approaching Wharton in the next 24-36 hours. No flooding is currently expected on the Colorado basin.
Brazos River:
Flood wave is passing Bryan and heading for Hempstead. Minor flooding is forecasted for Richmond and moderate flooding at Rosharon. These three charts tell the story.
Brazos River at Hempstead:
Brazos River at Richmond:
Brazos River at Rosharon:
Unlike street flooding which is fast and local, river flooding is delayed and regional. As you can see from these charts, it can take days for upstream rains to create downstream floods.
Please Help
Rains later this week could be intense. Some forecasters are predicting up to 10 inches. Make sure the storm drains on your street are clear. If you can’t remove accumulated debris yourself, please call 3-1-1. The last thing we need is for all the downed tree branches, twigs, and leaf litter from last week to clog drains with 10 more inches on the way.
Posted by Bob Rehak on 5/6/2019
615 Days since Hurricane Harvey
https://i0.wp.com/reduceflooding.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/05/Screen-Shot-2019-05-06-at-7.25.15-PM.png?fit=2330%2C1132&ssl=111322330adminadmin2019-05-06 20:05:002019-05-06 20:05:26Pre-Storm Lake- and River-Level Report
Flash Flood Warning Extended Again! Up to 10 Inches Already Today with More on Way
Update: Flash Flood Watch Extended until 8:00 PM or until cancelled.
For the second time in five days, the National Weather Service issued flash flood warnings. This means more street flooding. Move your vehicles to high ground.
Flash Flood Warning till 8:00 or Until Canceled
The National Weather Service has issued a Flash Flood Warning for portions of northeast Houston. It includes Lake Houston, Kingwood and northeastern Bush Intercontinental Airport, until 8:00 p.m.
Early this afternoon, Doppler radar and automated rain gauges indicated nearly stationary thunderstorms producing heavy rain across the warned area. By 1 PM, three to almost five inches of rain had fallen and worse was yet to come. By 5PM, storm totals were approaching 10 inches with one station near FM1485 reporting 11 inches. The good news: as of 6PM, although it is still raining, the storm appears to be moving east and lessening.
Stunning Accumulations for Day That Was Supposed to be Light
Just hours ago, I posted a City of Houston alert warning of 7-10 inches of rain possible this WEEK. We have already gotten more than that today and it’s not over! And this was supposed to be the lightest day this week! Here’s what it looked like on the streets this afternoon.
It shows tree and water blocking the road/evacuation route. Courtesy of Mohamad-Khaled Chaouki Jrab.
Elsewhere:
Street by Strawbridge Methodist Church. Video courtesy of Josh Alberson.
Storm Total Accumulations
Here’s what the storm total accumulations looked like as of 5:15.
River Report and Protective Actions
The San Jacinto river is forecasted to rise above flood stage by this evening and continue to rise to near 49.6 feet by tonight. The river will fall below flood stage by after midnight
WEDNESDAY.
At 49.3 feet, minor lowland flooding begins in the vicinity of the gage; the north side turnaround at US 59 begins to flood; and low points on Thelma Road, Aqua Vista Drive, and Riverview Drive begin to flood.
People in the area should avoid the river as it rises. Residents near the river should make preparations in the event they are not able to leave their homes due to high water.
Turn Around, Don’t Drown®: Do not drive through flooded areas. If you see water covering the road, do not attempt to cross it. Only takes a few inches of water to float a vehicle . If you find yourself in a dangerous situation where your vehicle is taking on water, get out of the vehicle, get to a higher position, and call 911.
Monitor Official Sources for Current Information: Harris County Flood Warning System (harriscountyfws.org), Houston TranStar (houstontranstar.org), the National Weather Service Houston/Galveston Forecast Office (weather.gov/hgx), and the National Weather Service West Gulf River Forecast Center (weather.gov/wgcrfc).
Posted by Bob Rehak on May 7, 2019 at 2PM and update at 4PM and 6pm
616 Days since Hurricane Harvey
Lake Houston Property Owners Should Prepare for Lower Lake Levels (or Not)
Note: I posted this this morning before a surprise storm dumped up to 10 inches of rain on the Lake Houston Area this afternoon. Now the river is expected to flood … despite the pre-release. At 7PM on Tuesday, the floodgates on Lake Houston remain wide open. As the river rises past flood stage, any thoughts of being land locked are now moot.
Houston City Council Member Dave Martin issued a press release this morning warning Lake Houston property owners to prepare for lower lake levels. Houston Public Works and the Coastal Water Authority are monitoring forecasts calling for substantial rainfall over the next several days.
Lower Lake Levels Heading Lower
Lake Houston is currently at 42.11 feet and still receiving water from weekend storms. But that’s a half inch down in the last 12 hours.
Lake Houston has a normal pool elevation of 42.5 feet. All four gates on the existing dam structure are open and will remain open with a goal of lowering the lake to 41.5 feet before the next round of rainfall. Property owners are encouraged to secure property along the shoreline.
Lake-Lowering Policy
Lake Houston is lowered if the National Weather Service predicts greater than 3 inches of rain within a 48-hour period. To monitor Lake Houston and the forecasted rain, click here.
Posted by Bob Rehak on 5/7/2019
616 Days since Hurricane Harvey
Pre-Storm Lake- and River-Level Report
With major rainfall expected this week, here is a pre-storm report on lake and river levels.
Lake Conroe Pre-Storm
Even though Lake Conroe has released water continuously since April 1, the SJRA has not succeeded in reducing the lake level to their seasonal target of 200 feet. They were close at one point, but recent rains have elevated the lake back to its normal pool level. As of this writing, the lake is at 200.87 feet. Normal level is 201 mean feet above sea level. Thus Lake Conroe is only down about one tenth of an inch despite the fact that the SJRA continues to release water at the rate of 522 cubic feet per second.
Here’s a picture of the massive gates at Lake Conroe. Compare them to…
Lake Houston Pre-Storm
Lake Houston has its gates wide open. At that setting, they can release 10,000 CFS. But the recent rains are also refilling Lake Houston as fast as its draining. Normal pool level is 42.5 feet and the lake is presently. at 42.6 feet. This is why we need more gates!
Additional rainfall tomorrow should saturate the ground. More storms later in the week could cause river flooding. Harris County Flood Control expects heavy rain for the next 5-7 days.
Pre-Storm River Report
With rivers already highly elevated and some at or above flood stage, additional widespread heavy rainfall will only aggravate ongoing flooding or result in worsening flooding especially along the Trinity and Brazos basins.
San Jacinto River:
No flooding is currently impacting the basin, but forecasts for this week indicate significant rainfall potential over the basin. If accurate, the rainfall would result in significant rises on the system.
Trinity River:
Flooding is in progress both upstream of Lake Livingston and downstream of the lake in Liberty County. Flooding will continue through the end of the week and likely into next week. Liberty may approach major flood levels by the end of the week depending on releases from Lake Livingston.
Navasota River:
Minor flooding is in progress as upstream releases from Lake Limestone are maintained. River is in recession and may fall back below flood stage by the middle of the week.
Colorado River:
Upstream weekend flood wave is moving downstream and is at Columbus and will near approaching Wharton in the next 24-36 hours. No flooding is currently expected on the Colorado basin.
Brazos River:
Flood wave is passing Bryan and heading for Hempstead. Minor flooding is forecasted for Richmond and moderate flooding at Rosharon. These three charts tell the story.
Brazos River at Hempstead:
Brazos River at Richmond:
Brazos River at Rosharon:
Unlike street flooding which is fast and local, river flooding is delayed and regional. As you can see from these charts, it can take days for upstream rains to create downstream floods.
Please Help
Rains later this week could be intense. Some forecasters are predicting up to 10 inches. Make sure the storm drains on your street are clear. If you can’t remove accumulated debris yourself, please call 3-1-1. The last thing we need is for all the downed tree branches, twigs, and leaf litter from last week to clog drains with 10 more inches on the way.
Posted by Bob Rehak on 5/6/2019
615 Days since Hurricane Harvey