FEMA Group Flood Insurance from Harvey Expiring October 24

Harvey households with FEMA group flood insurance policies must buy standard policy by Oct. 24. Lack of coverage may affect eligibility for future disaster assistance.

Flooded Street by Julie Yandell. During Harvey.
Flooded Street during Harvey by Julie Yandell.

Three-Year Policies End in October

Approximately 6,690 Hurricane Harvey survivors have been notified that their Group Flood Insurance Policy (GFIP) will expire Oct. 24. These three-year policies end soon, so policyholders must plan now to switch to a standard flood insurance policy to ensure continuous flood insurance coverage.

Many people may not even know they have group flood insurance. FEMA provided the insurance to people awarded grants after Harvey and deducted the cost of the insurance from the amount of the grant.

Insurance a Condition for Future Disaster Assistance

Following the devastating disasters and hurricane season of 2017, FEMA purchased GFIP policies for thousands of disaster survivors whose homes were flooded. Part of the eligibility of receiving future financial assistance after a flood is that a homeowner or renter must obtain and maintain flood insurance to ensure that there is no lapse in coverage. If a property affected by a flood is sold, the new owners are required to have flood insurance for the property as well.

This means Harvey households who received a group policy need to purchase a new, standard flood insurance policy. Alternatively, they may obtain other flood insurance for at least the amount of assistance that they received for repairs and replacement of property. This keeps them eligible for future FEMA assistance. 

Those who received a GFIP policy as part of their FEMA disaster assistance after Harvey but don’t buy a standard flood insurance policy will likely not receive federal disaster assistance for home repairs if they experience another flood event. 

Flood Insurance Can Be Key to Recovery

Flood insurance policies are crucial to recover quickly following a flood event as homeowners and renters’ policies do not typically cover flood damage.

Additionally, flood insurance will pay claims regardless of whether there is a major disaster declaration. Flood insurance claims can be paid for such events as flash flooding, storm sewer backup, river overflow, storm surge, mudslides or tropical systems.

$69 Billion Paid by FEMA through NFIP

Since its inception in 1968, FEMA’s National Flood Insurance Program has paid more than $69 billion in flood claims to help survivors rebuild their lives following flood events.

How to Learn Your Status and Find an Agent

  • To find an insurance carrier or agent, visit FloodSmart.gov, or call FEMA NFIP Direct toll-free, (800) 638-6620, option 2.
  • For more information about the National Flood Insurance Program and or insurance, call the National Flood Insurance General Call Center at 800-427-4661.
  • If you have questions about your Group Flood Insurance Policy call the National Flood Insurance Direct Call Center at 800-638-6620.

To find out if you have a flood insurance requirement:

  • Call FEMA toll-free at 800-621-3362 (voice, 711/VRS – Video Relay Service) (TTY: 800-462-7585).
  • Multilingual operators are available (press 2 for Spanish).
  • The Texas Recovery Office GFIP Help Desk phone number is 877-503-6053.

If It Rains Where You Live, It Can Flood

Harvey impacted 41,500 square miles of Texas. If it rains, it can flood, which means all Texans should purchase or renew flood insurance policies. The 2020 hurricane season began June 1 and ends on November 30, but a policy protects you from financial losses from other flood events all year. Just 1 inch of water can cause $25,000 of damage to a home.

For additional information about Hurricane Harvey and Texas recovery, visit the:

Posted by Bob Rehak on 9/28/2020 with thanks for the reminder to Congressman Dan Crenshaw

1126 Days after Hurricane Harvey

West Lake Houston Parkway Repaving Starts October 1

This is a off-topic, but it affects most of this website’s readers in Kingwood, Atascocita and Humble. Houston Public Works will start replacing nine concrete panels on West Lake Houston Parkway beginning Thursday, October 1. All are on north bound lanes between Life Storage and the Lake Houston YMCA. Weather permitting, Public Works should complete the work by October 22.

From October 1-22, Houston Public Works will replace nine concrete panels on West Lake Houston Parkway in the area between the two red lines.

Time of Day for Construction

Construction activities will take place Monday through Friday from 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., and on Saturdays from 7:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m.

Flagmen and orange traffic cones will help with traffic flow through the construction zones. The project will require one lane closure. Two-way traffic will remain at all times.

Businesses and residents will have access to driveways and sidewalks at all times, but may experience an increase in noise levels due to trucks and equipment.

For More Information

The cost of the project: $38,605. Mayor Pro Tem Dave Martin’s Council District Service Funds will pay for the improvements.

For more information, please contact Mayor Pro Tem Dave Martin’s office at (832) 393-3008 or districte@houstontx.gov.

Posted by Bob Rehak on 9/28/2020 with thanks to Mayor Pro Tem Dave Martin

1126 Days after Hurricane Harvey

How a Hurricane Shaped World History

Bob Henson, a meteorologist and journalist based in Boulder, Colorado, published a fascinating a story in The Washington Post on September 26, 2020. It makes good weekend reading. The story is about a 17-year old boy named Alexander Hamilton, living on the island of St. Croix, when a hurricane struck it on August 31, 1772.

Alexander Hamilton, Portrait by John Trumbull

Hurricane Article Establishes Hamilton’s Creds as Writer

Says Henson, “The hurricane — probably at least a Category 3 in St. Croix, according to a leading weather historian — prompted a teenage Alexander Hamilton to write an evocative description of the storm published in a local newspaper. Impressed by his essay, leaders of the Caribbean island took up a collection to send him to the American Colonies for formal education. The rest is history…”

Hamilton literally wrote his way off the island.

Bob Henson in The Washington Post

Hamilton’s Account of the Storm

Hamilton wrote: “It seemed as if a total dissolution of nature was taking place. The roaring of the sea and wind, fiery meteors flying about it in the air, the prodigious glare of almost perpetual lightning, the crash of the falling houses, and the ear-piercing shrieks of the distressed, were sufficient to strike astonishment into Angels. A great part of the buildings throughout the Island are levelled to the ground, almost all the rest very much shattered; several persons killed and numbers utterly ruined; whole families running about the streets, unknowing where to find a place of shelter; the sick exposed to the keeness of water and air without a bed to lie upon, or a dry covering to their bodies; and our harbours entirely bare. In a word, misery, in all its most hideous shapes, spread over the whole face of the country.”

Busiest Hurricane Season in History

Michael Chenoweth, a climate historian quoted in the article, believes that the storm grew into a Category 4 hurricane and may have been one of the five strongest hurricanes in the Atlantic before 1900. Chenoweth also believes that the decade of that storm ties for the busiest in history.

Reading Henson’s article I felt compelled to dig more into the history of Hamilton and St. Croix.

History of St. Croix

St. Croix has been a territory of the United States since 1917. Columbus discovered the island in 1493, but the Spanish never colonized the island. Denmark, England, Norway and France jostled for possession of the island in the 1600s. For nearly 200 years, Saint Croix, St. Thomas and St. John were known as the Danish West Indies. In 1916, Denmark sold Saint Croix, St. Thomas, and St. John to the United States in the Treaty of the Danish West Indies. The cost: US$25 million in gold.

 Hamilton’s Contributions

Hamilton’s ideas are credited with laying the foundation for American government and finance.  He was:

  • An American statesman, politician, legal scholar, military commander, lawyer, banker, and economist.
  • One of the Founding Fathers of the United States.
  • New York’s delegate to the Constitutional Congress.
  • Our first Secretary of the Treasury.
  • Founder of the nation’s financial system.
  • An influential interpreter and promoter of the U.S. Constitution.
  • Commanding General of the US Army
  • Active in ending the legality of the international slave trade

Reshaping History

Hamilton campaigned against Aaron Burr, whom he felt was unprincipled. Hamilton died in a duel with Burr in New Jersey in 1804, but not before shaping the nation that would shape world history.

Had it not been for that hurricane in 1772, he might have died an orphan on St. Croix. And who knows how different history might have been?

Posted by Bob Rehak on 9/27/2020

1125 Days since Hurricane Harvey

Close-Up Photos of Noxxe’s Devastation

The oil and gas company with the joke name (Exxon spelled backwards) is no joking matter. After flooding from Hurricane Harvey, Noxxe left a mile-long trail of devastation in Forest Cove for taxpayers to clean up. The company’s toxic legacy includes dozens of abandoned wells, toppled tanks, and twisted, rusting, ruptured pipes – all in the floodway of the San Jacinto River West Fork, which supplies drinking water to two million people.

Meeting with Texas Railroad Commission

After a series of posts on this subject, I received a call from the Texas Railroad Commission (TRRC). TRRC took control of Noxxe’s operation after the company went bankrupt in February.

Sign posted on entry to Noxxe lease

The Commission’s District Cleanup Coordinator invited me to tour the site with him and discuss the status of cleanup. There’s good news and bad.

Good News

  • Tanks have been drained of toxic chemicals.
  • Some wells have been plugged.
  • TRCC believes the oil spilled on the ground will degrade naturally.
  • A small check dam should keep oil-contaminated rainwater from washing into the river (except in floods).

Bad News

  • Many of the wells have NOT been plugged.
  • Oil has spilled on the ground.
  • Rusting, oil-covered equipment litters the property.
  • Legally, the state has no recourse against the company’s management or the property owners.
  • The State Comptroller’s Office has taken over bidding for cleanup jobs like this, but reportedly has no specialists in toxic waste cleanup.
  • The Comptroller’s Office has reportedly established an “approved vendor list” for these jobs, but the list doesn’t have enough vendors to handle all the work needed in the State.
  • TRRC has no budget to handle the Noxxe job and may not get it.
  • Thieves steal equipment with salvage value.
  • Brine (saltwater produced with oil and gas) has contaminated many parts of the site, killing vegetation.

Ground-Level Photos

These photos represent only a small portion of the site. But I’m sure you get the picture.

Editorial Opinion

Texas and Texans make their living from minerals. But left like this, those minerals may be the death of us, too. Noxxe has given a black eye to the entire oil and gas industry, which has thousands of reputable companies and millions of hard-working people in Texas.

Posted by Bob Rehak on 9/26/2020

1125 Days after 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.

Action Alert: Aggregate Production Testimony Needed

Deadline 5pm today, Friday, 9/25: We need you!

Please sign up to speak at an ONLINE/VIRTUAL town hall meeting about sand mines and/or other aggregate production operations (APOs). The meeting will be Thursday, 10/1 for the House Interim Committee on Aggregate Production Operations. Please send an email to both jeff.frazier_hc@house.texas.gov and jeff.frazier@house.texas.gov stating your name, contact info, and your request to speak at the 10/1 town hall.

Probably not everyone will be called on to speak, but we want the committee to know that this affects vast numbers of people. It’s CRITICAL to communicate how many of us are negatively affected by existing and planned sand mines, quarries, concrete plants, and other APOs.

All of the House Interim Committee members will be present and this will be similar to speaking in front of the committee at the Capitol in Austin–but online.

Speakers will also come from the Hill County where APOs are severely impacting quality of life.

Examples of Problems in Lake Houston Area

Mouth bar on the West Fork San Jacinto that mostly formed during Hurricane Harvey. It backed up water and contributed to flooding thousands of homes and businesses. Much of the sediment came from 20 square miles of sand mines immediately upstream. Cleanup cost to state and federal governments so far: about $150 million.
The day the West Fork (right) ran white after the LMI Mine upstream put 56 million gallons of process wastewater into the drinking water for 2 million people (Source: TCEQ).
Breach at Triple PG mine one White Oak Creek emitted process wastewater into headwaters of Lake Houston, the source of drinking water for 2 million people. Attorney General is suing mine for approximately $1 million.
Concentrated silt after sand is washed. Exposed in floodway of the San Jacinto West Fork.
River mining without a permit at the Spring Wet Sand and Gravel Plant on the west fork.

Speak for Up to 3 Minutes

Be prepared to speak for up to three minutes about how YOU personally have been or will be impacted by quarries, concrete batch plants, or asphalt plants. Pick one or two of these key issues that most affect you personally:

???? Air particulate emissions
???? Water use and availability
???? Water pollution and flooding
???? Rapid development of APOs without adequate regulatory oversight, mine planning, or reclamation
???? Truck traffic
???? Nuisance issues: blasting, noise, odor, light trespass, visible blight
???? Economic impacts, devaluation of property

URGENT: DO TODAY BEFORE 5pm

Just send in an email requesting to speak. You’ll have a week to plan and prep. Thanks for helping protect our families and community!

If possible, it is VERY IMPORTANT to speak at this meeting. However, if you aren’t selected to speak, or you don’t get your request submitted in time, there will be an additional opportunity later this month to submit written testimonial. We’ll send more info on this in the upcoming days and weeks.

SEND EMAIL

Posted by Bob Rehak on 9/25/2020

1123 Days since Hurricane Harvey

Two Top Geologists Suggest Mouth Bar Dredging Strategy

Two world-class geologists, Tim Garfield and R.D. Kissling, both of whom live in the Lake Houston Area, agreed (at ReduceFlooding.com’s request) to offer their opinions on what would be the best strategy for dredging near the San Jacinto West Fork Mouth Bar. Garfield and Kissling helped bring mouth bar issues to the attention of the public after Harvey. Both have followed various dredging programs in that area closely ever since.

Looking west across the mouth bar on 9/11/2020 while hovering over Kings Point. Suspended sediment shows that main current of river is between remainder of the above-water portion of the mouth bar and Atascocita Point on the upper left. Photo taken 9/11/2020.

History

The Army Corps of Engineers dredged from River Grove Park to Kings Harbor in 2018 and 2019, removing approximately 1.8 million cubic yards. After a contentious battle with the City, the Corps then agreed to remove another 500,000 cubic yards south of the Mouth Bar in the Spring and Summer of 2019. This year, the City of Houston started removing the portion of the mouth bar that remained above water; they are still working on it (see above). Recently, FEMA agreed to remove another million cubic yards. And waiting in the wings is another $30 million that can be applied to additional dredging. State Representative Dan Huberty secured that money in the last legislature.

However, none of the various parties involved has volunteered to share their thinking about objectives and strategies behind mouth bar dredging alternatives. That’s why I asked Garfield and Kissling to offer their thoughts on what constituted the best strategy. Both worked for one of the world’s largest oil companies at the very highest levels.

Old Bathymetric Maps No Longer Valid

The first thing they realized was that they didn’t have enough data to make informed recommendations. The last published bathymetric maps were based on surveys taken before Imelda and before the Corps’ mouth-bar dredging.

Gathering Own Data

So Garfield and Kissling gathered their own data – with sonic depth finders, GPS, and a 14-foot pole with depth markings. They started upstream of the mouth bar, where the Army Corps finished its Emergency West Fork Dredging program near Kings Harbor. And they worked their way downstream beyond FM1960 to the railroad bridge.

Scope of Garfield/Kissling survey

Found Underwater Plateau 20′ High and 3 Miles Long

They found an underwater wall approximately 20′ high where the Corps stopped its first dredging program near Kings Harbor. It extended downstream more than 3 miles.

Cross section of river channel shows a rise of almost 20 feet wall on the upstream side of the mouth bar near Kings Harbor and an even greater drop near FM1960. The result: a 3-mile long underwater plateau.

That wall, they say, “…constitutes a significant and abrupt hydraulic barrier that will likely exacerbate flooding and sedimentation.”

That wall is the leading edge of a 3-mile-long underwater plateau.

Note abrupt drop north of FM1960 Causeway.

Recommend Following Original Channel

The cross-section graph of the river bed above represents the deepest part of the river. On either side of that centerline, the riverbed rises to two or three feet below the surface of the water. The centerline closely follows the paleo (original) channel of the river before the Lake Houston dam was built.

Garfield and Kissling recommend dredging along the deepest path (see below). They reason that would save money.

Recommended and alternate routes identified by Garfield and Kissling that take advantage of deeper water.

“This might not only be the most beneficial dredging plan, but could also be the most cost effective as it leverages the paleo-channel as much as possible,” they say. “It harnesses nature, rather than fighting it.”

The geologists also identified a second possible route farther to the east but still south of the above-water portion of the stream mouth bar (labeled SMB in diagram above).

They caution that hydraulic modeling should be used to decide the best dredging plan. Political considerations drove initial mouth bar dredging rather than data. The Corps was authorized only to dredge an amount that it believed Harvey deposited. “We should be past the politics at this point and looking to get the most bang for our bucks,” say the geologists.

Whichever strategy the City settles on, Garfield and Kissling recommend excavating a channel, not a broad area, to get the best results for the dollars invested.

Objective: Re-establish Full Channel From Kings Harbor to Lake Houston

“This new channel should be no shallower, nor narrower than the upstream dredged channel at its end dredge location (450’ wide x 26’ deep),” say the geologists.

As a minimum, the future dredging plan should re-establish a continuous and down-stream deepening channel volume from where the Corps channel dredging ended to the 1960 bridge.


Tim Garfield and RD Kissling

This will help reduce sediment build up upstream from the plateau. By accelerating water through the blockage, it will let the river carry sediment farther out into the deeper portion of the lake. It will also reduce water backup that contributes to flooding.

Read Garfield and Kissling’s full study, Evaluating West Lake Houston Bathymetry, Dredging Status and Recommendations.

Recommendations Consistent With City’s Preliminary Findings

The City has been methodically surveying Lake Houston and is in the process of developing its own maps, objectives and strategies. Stephen Costello, the City’s flood czar said they are not finished with that effort yet. However, he also said that the preliminary information they obtained suggested that a route south of the mouth bar might be the most effective.

Posted by Bob Rehak on 9/25/2020 with thanks to Tim Garfield and RD Kissling

1123 Days after Hurricane Harvey

TWDB Advances 4 of 5 SJRA Grant Applications for Flood Infrastructure Funding

The Texas Water Development Board (TWDB) has advanced four of five San Jacinto River Authority (SJRA) abridged grant applications to the next round for consideration. TWDB named them as priorities for the 2020 Flood Infrastructure Fund (FIF) cycle. That advances SJRA one step closer to funding for the projects. 

SJRA Now Invited to Submit Full Applications


With these rankings, SJRA will now submit full grant applications for four projects for approval. In the two-stage process, applicants first submit an abridged application. TWDB then prioritizes them within the overall available funding capacity. 

Senate Bill 7 last year made the Flood Infrastructure Fund (FIF) possible. Senator Brandon Creighton sponsored it. The Legislature passed it and Texas voters approved it through a constitutional amendment. FIF provides financial assistance in the form of loans and grants for flood control, flood mitigation, and drainage projects. 

Why SJRA Seeks Grants, Partnerships

As with most Texas river authorities, SJRA is not a taxing entity, therefore these large-scale flood mitigation projects require regional and local partnerships as well as grant funding.

“Hundreds of abridged applications were submitted by entities—cities, counties, other political subdivisions—as part of this competitive process. We are very proud SJRA was selected to move ahead in the approval process on four of our five abridged grant applications,” said Chuck Gilman, SJRA Director of Water Resources and Flood Management. “The next step is to find local partners who, along with SJRA, will commit to the local-match funding and in-kind services. These large-scale, impactful projects come with a very high price tag. It will take a regional approach with various funding commitments to see these projects through to completion. The FIF funding is an essential piece of that process.”

Flood Infrastructure Fund Criteria

According to Flood Infrastructure Fund criteria, eligible projects must fall under one of four categories:

  1. Flood Protection Planning for Watersheds
  2. Planning, Acquisition, and Design, Construction/Rehabilitation
  3. Federal Award Matching Funds
  4. Measures Immediately Effective in Protecting Life and Property

TWDB will review the full grant applications and make final selections for grant and loan funding later this year. 

SJRA

Proposed Projects Advancing to Next Round


Upper San Jacinto River Basin Regional Sedimentation Study 

Would identify and create a plan for implementing potential sedimentation solutions in the Upper San Jacinto River Basin (Lake Houston watershed). It would evaluate the input, output, and storage of sediment for the entire basin as well as for sub-watersheds.  

LMI River Bend Sand Mine on San Jacinto West Fork exposes more than 500 acres of sand to floodwaters. Altogether, sand mines expose approximately 20 square miles of sand along the West Fork to floodwaters in a 20 mile stretch between I-45 and US59.
Spring Creek Watershed Flood Control Dams Conceptual Engineering Feasibility Study 

Would perform a conceptual engineering feasibility study of two potential dam/reservoir locations within the Spring Creek watershed. This is the next phase of the Spring Creek Siting Study, which is currently being completed as part of the San Jacinto Regional Watershed Master Drainage Plan. Harris County Flood Control District leads the Master Drainage Plan effort. SJRA and other regional partners support it.

Lake Conroe – Lake Houston Joint Reservoir Operations Study 

Would develop a joint reservoir operations and communications strategy for Lake Conroe and Lake Houston. 
The City of Houston is currently studying new tainter gates for the Lake Houston dam. They could greatly increase the controlled release capacity. 

The main goal of the plan: to determine the most efficient and safe operation of the two reservoirs in series. The study would evaluate multiple individual components of a joint operational strategy. 

It will evaluate:

  • Operational synergy between the two reservoirs
  • Joint notification and communications protocols
  • Pre-release
  • Impacts on water supply
  • Use of forecasting tools.

This project will benefit both water supply and flood mitigation in the region.

Flood Early Warning System for San Jacinto County 

Would provide for installation of rain and river/stream gages at three locations identified as critical by San Jacinto County to provide early warning information to the county during storm events.  

Locations:

  • Winters Bayou at State Highway 150
  • East Fork San Jacinto River at FM 945
  • Peach Creek at FM 3081. 

Rain and river/stream stage data obtained at the sites would be transmitted to SJRA’s ALERT2 network and displayed on SJRA’s Contrail system. The data could be viewed online via SJRA’s website. That lets San Jacinto County staff and residents view the data at any time.

Not Advancing to Next Round

The SJRA had also submitted a first-round grant application to develop preliminary designs for sand traps. The sand traps were supposed to reduce the amount of sediment moving downstream. SJRA confirmed that this grant application will not move forward.

Posted by Bob Rehak on 9/24/2020 based on input from SJRA

1122 Days since Hurricane Harvey

Lake Houston Area Lucked Out With Beta

Beta is now off to the east. As of 10:30 am on 9/23/2020, the East and West Forks are well within their banks. So are the lesser tributaries with the exception of Cypress Creek. Lake Conroe is still below 200 feet. And Lake Houston, thanks to a pre-release, is only about a tenth of an inch above normal so far, though it is rising this morning.

4-Day Rainfall Total for Storm

The radar image below shows the total rainfall accumulations across the Houston Area for the duration of the storm, starting at 2:37p.m. on 9/19/2020. This was a story of selective drenching. The south and southwest sides of the city received four times as much rain as Kingwood, Crosby and Atascocita. And more than twice as much rain as Humble. They got caught under a training feeder band; we missed it.

Source: RadarScope Pro

Here are the totals associated with the different colors above:

  • Light green = 2 inches
  • Dark green = 3 inches
  • Light purple = 4 inches
  • Dark purple = 5 inches
  • Light blue = 6 inches
  • Dark blue = 7 inches
  • Yellow = 8 inches
  • Orange = 10 inches
  • Red = 12 inches
  • Brown = 15 inches

Harris County Flood Warning System Shows Slightly Higher Totals

The radar image may understate the totals. The four-day-rain totals from Harris County Flood Control District gages mirror the pattern above, but show slightly higher numbers. For instance, the radar image shows 3-4″ for Kingwood, but the gages show 4-5″. I live in Kingwood and my personal weather station recorded 4.92 inches for the same four-day period.

Regardless, those caught under training feeder bands on the south and southwest sides got drenched. The Lake Houston Area escaped the worst of the rains.

Source: Harris County Flood Warning System

Sheer, Dry Air Result in Low-Side of Predictions

While these totals are within the ranges predicted at the start of the storm, they definitely fall on the low side. Why?

Space City Weather offered this. “We had two big allies over the last week; moderate wind shear to prevent Beta from strengthening, and dry air over the state from a weak front that disrupted its circulation and prevented the formation of several, thick bands of rainfall. Instead, if you watched the radar closely, there was only ever really one strong band that was perhaps 10 to 15 miles across. This just happened to set up over Houston on Monday and Monday night…”

The Lessons of Beta

Even the heaviest rains we received were about one fourth of what Harvey dropped (40-60 inches). Beta was not unusual. As Space City Weather offered, “A tropical storm that brings a range of 5 to 15 inches rain across Houston, with rainfall rates below 2 inches per hour, is a fairly common event.”

Yet some areas still flooded. In my opinion, this underscores the need for:

  • HCFCD to continue and accelerate (if possible) its work.
  • All governments in the region to adopt higher regulations for new developments that reflect Atlas-14 rainfall tables.
  • People at all levels of government (Federal, State, Counties, Cities) to work together and make flood mitigation a top priority.
  • Leaders throughout the region to realize that we are all in this together. Slowing floodwater down in one area while speeding it up in another is a losing battle that undermines the economic heart of the region.

Posted by Bob Rehak on 9/23/2020

1121 Days after Hurricane Harvey and 370 after Imelda

Lake Houston Area Could Be in Beta’s Crosshairs Tonight

The center of Beta is currently near Bay City and moving ENE. For the next 24 hours, the National Hurricane Center (NHC) forecasts maximum winds at 30 mph.

If any readers in the Lake Houston Area felt left out by Beta, tonight could be your night. According to the NHC, Harris County Meteorologist Jeff Lindner and Space City Weather, models continue to show that a heavy band of rainfall will begin to develop over the next few hours across the northern portions of Harris County.

Beta Tuesday Evening
Beta Tuesday evening at 5PM, courtesy of RadarScope. The bands are moving from SE to NW. But the forward motion of the storm is perpendicular, from SW to NE. That could push new feeder bands into the Lake Houston Area later tonight.

Current Radar Trends Show Storm Moving Toward Northeast Harris County

“Current radar trends show what may be the start of this banding feature from Downtown Houston to Jersey Village to Waller where a broken band of heavy to excessive rainfall is forming,” said Lindner at 4pm today.

He continued, “Models show this band continuing well into the evening and overnight hours across much of northern and northeastern Harris County into Liberty County. Training of heavy rainfall is likely with this banding along with flash flooding.”

Additional rainfall of 4-7 inches will be possible over the northern portions of Harris County into Liberty County and possibly southern Montgomery County with isolated totals of 10-12 inches possible.

JEFF LINDNER, HARRIS COUNTY METEOROLOGIST

(Update At 9:10 PM) The radar image above looked like this and heavy rain had started in Kingwood.

Source: RadarScope

However, in the upper San Jacinto Watershed, the expected rainfall amounts will likely produce flooding only on Cypress and Little Cypress Creeks.

In other parts of Houston, the following streams could flood:

  • Greens Bayou
  • Halls Bayou
  • Hunting Bayou
  • White Oak Bayou tributaries
  • Cedar Bayou
  • Gum Gully
  • Langham Creek
  • Horsepen Creek
  • South Mayde Creek
  • Bear Creek

The largest threat at this point is street flooding. So move your cars out of the street tonight.

West Fork Still At Normal Level

At 4PM CDT Tuesday, the West Fork San Jacinto at US59 is still nearly seven feet from coming out of its banks.

Source: Harris County Flood Warning System. The normal level of Lake Houston at this gage is 42.4 feet.

Flood Warning System Shows Effects of Heavy Training

The high rainfall gradient across Harris County should the effects of heavy training by Beta’s feeder bands during the last 48 hours. Places under the bands received 12 to 14 inches of rains. Meanwhile, the Lake Houston Area received only around an inch so far.

Beta’s heaviest rainfall until now focused on SW Harris County. Figures shown represent last 48 hours. Source: Harris County Flood Warning System. Note 13.44 inches on HW288!

Worst Likely Over for SW Harris County

Some heavy rainfall is still possible in already hard-hit southern and southwestern Harris County. However, where and potentially how much may fall in that area is uncertain.

Beta Continuing to Weaken

High-resolution visible satellite imagery, surface observations, and NOAA Doppler weather radar data from San Antonio and Houston, Texas, indicate that Beta has continued to weaken.

Cloud tops only extend up to 25,000- 30,000 ft, mainly near and northeast of the center. However, they are quite prodigious rain-producers. Rainfall totals of 13-14 inches having been measured across portions of the Houston metropolitan area thus far.

The Future of Beta

Since Beta should remain inland throughout the forecast period, the cyclone is not expected to regain tropical storm status. Beta should degenerate into a remnant low within 36 hours and dissipate over Mississippi or Alabama in 96 hours, if not sooner.

At 4 p.m. Tuesday, September 22, 2020, the National Hurricane Center (NHC) issued its last update on Beta.

Said Space City Weather, “The good news is that this mess will begin to clear our of here by Wednesday morning, if not sooner for some areas. The bad news is that we’ve got to get through later today and tonight.”

Posted by Bob Rehak on 9/22/2020 based on data from HCFCD, NHC and Space City Weather

1120 Days after Hurricane Harvey and 369 since Imelda

Beta Downgraded to Tropical Depression

At 10 a.m. CDT, the National Hurricane Center (NHC) downgraded Tropical Storm Beta to a tropical depression. The NHC also cancelled the tropical storm and storm surge warnings that were in effect. However, flash flood warnings remain in effect for large parts of the seven-county Houston region, especially the southern part. A flash flood watch remains in effect for the entire region.

RadarScope split image. Left half shows track of active storms as of 9:06AM CDT. Right half shows total rainfall accumulation for Beta. Note band of extreme rainfall near Sugar Land and sharp drop-off near Kingwood.

Flash Flood Warnings and Watches

A flash flood warning means that flooding is in progress. A Flash Flood Watch means that conditions may develop that lead to Flash Flooding.

Source: National Weather Service. Updated at 10:29 a.m. 9/22/2020. Reddish area = Flash flood warning. Green = Flash flood watch.

Lake Conroe/Lake Houston Within Banks

Neither Lake Conroe, nor Lake Houston have yet been adversely affected by Beta.

The level of Lake Conroe stands at 199.63 feet. Normal conservation pool equals 201.

According to the Coastal Water Authority, Lake Houston is at:

Lake Level41.41 ft.
Normal Pool42.4 ft.
Source: Coastal Water Authority

USGS shows that even though the lake has received about 1.75 inches of rainfall to date…

…the lake level has been dropping, no doubt due to a preemptive release.

Posted by Bob Rehak at 10:50 on 9/22/2020 based on NHC, NWS, and RadarScope data

1120 Days since Hurricane Harvey and 369 since Imelda