After Harvey, the SJRA, Harris County, National Weather Service and USGS added and upgraded stream gages throughout the region. Think of these gages as a distant early warning system. Looking at upstream conditions tells you what will soon happen in your area.
Here’s a list of handy web sites that display river, bayou and stream levels around Lake Houston and the state. Explore them before an emergency. Bookmark those that offer the best information for your area.
Reference Guide
Texas Water Development Board A one-stop shop for flood preparedness anywhere in Texas. Brings together local information from all over the state. Check everything from stream gages to the status of evacuation routes.
Harris County Flood Warning System. Real-time rainfall, and river-channel monitoring and forecasting. The Warning System also contains near-real-time inundation mapping. For instructions on how to use it and a discussion of its limitations, see this post.
Gages listed on the Harris County Flood Warning System in northern Harris and Montgomery Counties. This screen capture was made at 11:18 AM on 12/7/18. You can see that heavy rain is already falling at the top of the area shown in this map.
If you lose track of this post, you can always find these sites under the LINKS tab of this web site.
Posted by Bob Rehak on 12/7/2018
465 Days since Hurricane Harvey
https://i0.wp.com/reduceflooding.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/12/HCFWS.jpg?fit=1572%2C1210&ssl=112101572adminadmin2018-12-07 11:31:432018-12-07 15:20:34Handy Web Sites to Monitor Flooding
465 Days after Hurricane Harvey, the U.S. Army has finally liberated River Grove Park in Kingwood. They literally took the beach.
Drainage ditch at River Grove is now open to the San Jacinto River.
Actually, they took the giant sand bar that Harvey deposited one night. It had been blocking the drainage ditch that runs through the park and that caused excessive flooding. The two shots immediately below show what that sand bar looked like before dredging.
Sandbar deposited by Hurricane Harvey at River Grove forced water to make a 90 degree turn before it could reach the river. This slowed the velocity of runoff and backed up water into subdivisions, like the Barrington in the background. While the sandbar looks low from the air it was up to 15 feet high directly in front of the drainage ditch (middle left). See below.
The same dune in the previous image photographed from the boat dock.
Dredge Now Moves Downriver
Dredge is now moving downriver.
Work to Date
Dredge #1 is working alongside the West Lake Houston Parkway bridge. It has dredged approximately 135,000 cubic yards of sand and silt to date, according to the Corps’ project manager.
Dredge #2 is working on the upstream end of the project, still near River Grove. It has dredged approximately 226,000 cubic yards to date. After dredging the access channel to River Grove, surveys showed there were some areas that the dredge could not reach. Great Lakes, the contractor will use a barge-mounted excavator to perform final clean-up work. Updated surveys will then confirm achievement of plan goals.
Dredging plans for River Grove indicate a channel width of 50 feet and a depth of 15 feet near the boat ramp.
For all the people who live upstream from the drainage ditch that runs through River Grove, this is an early Christmas present. It will be interesting to see what happens to flood levels in the park now that the bar blocking the ditch has been removed…just in time for a major fall storm that could drop up to 10″ on the US59 corridor. However, we also need to remember that the City is dropping the level of the Lake by at least 18″.
Posted on December 7, 2018 by Bob Rehak
465 Days since Hurricane Harvey
https://i0.wp.com/reduceflooding.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/12/MH-CCC-NightDredge-RG-12.6_1_01.jpg?fit=1500%2C1000&ssl=110001500adminadmin2018-12-06 17:40:102018-12-06 17:57:44U.S. Army Liberates River Grove Park
Just received word from Harris County Precinct #4 that Mercer Botanic Gardens and the Mercer Society (TMS) have cancelled Holiday in the Gardens this Saturday. Reason: expected severe weather including flooding and possible tornadoes.
The event had been scheduled for Saturday, Dec. 8 from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. at 22306 Aldine Westfield Road in Humble, 77338.
Holiday in the Gardens has been cancelled this year due to expected flooding and severe weather.
Storms forecast to hit the area Friday, Dec. 7, into early Saturday morning could dump as much as 8-10 inches of rain. Jeff Lindner, Harris County meteorologist expects the US59 corridor to be the focus of some of the most intense. He predicts flooding along Cypress Creek which borders the Mercer Botanic Gardens.
Stay tuned for details regarding additional events planned in 2019.
TMS, a nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization, partners with Mercer Botanic Gardens to provide support for ongoing flood recovery efforts, programming, as well as improvements and expansions at Mercer Botanic Gardens. For more information about TMS or to make a donation, visit themercersociety.org.
Since 1974, Mercer has grown to more than 300 acres with more than 20 acres of beautifully maintained gardens in addition to an extensive walking trail system, ponds, ongoing educational and recreational programs, and more. For more information, visit www.hcp4.net/mercer.
Once again, Holiday in the Gardens has been cancelled this year due to expected severe weather.
Posted by Bob Rehak on December 6, 2018
464 Days since Hurricane Harvey
https://i0.wp.com/reduceflooding.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/12/Screen-Shot-2018-12-06-at-3.12.13-PM.jpg?fit=2792%2C1620&ssl=116202792adminadmin2018-12-06 15:21:392018-12-06 15:21:39Mercer Cancels Holiday in the Gardens Because of Expected Severe Weather
Handy Web Sites to Monitor Flooding
After Harvey, the SJRA, Harris County, National Weather Service and USGS added and upgraded stream gages throughout the region. Think of these gages as a distant early warning system. Looking at upstream conditions tells you what will soon happen in your area.
Here’s a list of handy web sites that display river, bayou and stream levels around Lake Houston and the state. Explore them before an emergency. Bookmark those that offer the best information for your area.
Reference Guide
Texas Water Development Board A one-stop shop for flood preparedness anywhere in Texas. Brings together local information from all over the state. Check everything from stream gages to the status of evacuation routes.
Advanced Hydrologic Prediction for Humble/Kingwood Area NOAA predictions for the West Fork at the 59 bridge. You can also navigate to predictions for the East Fork.
Harris County Flood Warning System. Real-time rainfall, and river-channel monitoring and forecasting. The Warning System also contains near-real-time inundation mapping. For instructions on how to use it and a discussion of its limitations, see this post.
National Weather Service Get current weather info and warnings for our area.
National Weather Service regional rainfall for the last 24 hours. Useful for looking at upstream and downstream rainfall when evaluating potential for flooding.
Water-On-The-Go App USGS stream-gage data surrounding you wherever you go in Texas. Location-aware app with historical information.
Weather.gov. Recommended by professionals.
Coastal Water Authority. For levels of Lake Houston at the dam and approaching weather.
SJRA. See the dashboard on their home page Lake Conroe levels and discharge rates. For other gages, dig further into their website.
If you lose track of this post, you can always find these sites under the LINKS tab of this web site.
Posted by Bob Rehak on 12/7/2018
465 Days since Hurricane Harvey
U.S. Army Liberates River Grove Park
465 Days after Hurricane Harvey, the U.S. Army has finally liberated River Grove Park in Kingwood. They literally took the beach.
Drainage ditch at River Grove is now open to the San Jacinto River.
Actually, they took the giant sand bar that Harvey deposited one night. It had been blocking the drainage ditch that runs through the park and that caused excessive flooding. The two shots immediately below show what that sand bar looked like before dredging.
Sandbar deposited by Hurricane Harvey at River Grove forced water to make a 90 degree turn before it could reach the river. This slowed the velocity of runoff and backed up water into subdivisions, like the Barrington in the background. While the sandbar looks low from the air it was up to 15 feet high directly in front of the drainage ditch (middle left). See below.
The same dune in the previous image photographed from the boat dock.
Dredge Now Moves Downriver
Dredge is now moving downriver.
Work to Date
Dredge #1 is working alongside the West Lake Houston Parkway bridge. It has dredged approximately 135,000 cubic yards of sand and silt to date, according to the Corps’ project manager.
Dredge #2 is working on the upstream end of the project, still near River Grove. It has dredged approximately 226,000 cubic yards to date. After dredging the access channel to River Grove, surveys showed there were some areas that the dredge could not reach. Great Lakes, the contractor will use a barge-mounted excavator to perform final clean-up work. Updated surveys will then confirm achievement of plan goals.
Dredging plans for River Grove indicate a channel width of 50 feet and a depth of 15 feet near the boat ramp.
For all the people who live upstream from the drainage ditch that runs through River Grove, this is an early Christmas present. It will be interesting to see what happens to flood levels in the park now that the bar blocking the ditch has been removed…just in time for a major fall storm that could drop up to 10″ on the US59 corridor. However, we also need to remember that the City is dropping the level of the Lake by at least 18″.
Posted on December 7, 2018 by Bob Rehak
465 Days since Hurricane Harvey
Mercer Cancels Holiday in the Gardens Because of Expected Severe Weather
Just received word from Harris County Precinct #4 that Mercer Botanic Gardens and the Mercer Society (TMS) have cancelled Holiday in the Gardens this Saturday. Reason: expected severe weather including flooding and possible tornadoes.
The event had been scheduled for Saturday, Dec. 8 from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. at 22306 Aldine Westfield Road in Humble, 77338.
Holiday in the Gardens has been cancelled this year due to expected flooding and severe weather.
Storms forecast to hit the area Friday, Dec. 7, into early Saturday morning could dump as much as 8-10 inches of rain. Jeff Lindner, Harris County meteorologist expects the US59 corridor to be the focus of some of the most intense. He predicts flooding along Cypress Creek which borders the Mercer Botanic Gardens.
Stay tuned for details regarding additional events planned in 2019.
TMS, a nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization, partners with Mercer Botanic Gardens to provide support for ongoing flood recovery efforts, programming, as well as improvements and expansions at Mercer Botanic Gardens. For more information about TMS or to make a donation, visit themercersociety.org.
Since 1974, Mercer has grown to more than 300 acres with more than 20 acres of beautifully maintained gardens in addition to an extensive walking trail system, ponds, ongoing educational and recreational programs, and more. For more information, visit www.hcp4.net/mercer.
Once again, Holiday in the Gardens has been cancelled this year due to expected severe weather.
Posted by Bob Rehak on December 6, 2018
464 Days since Hurricane Harvey