WeatherFanatics: August 2017

Wednesday, August 30, 2017

'Your House Is Gone': Rockport Residents Survey Massive Damage from Harvey

Sean Breslin
Published: August 29,2017
Evacuees trickled back into Texas coastal towns Tuesday to survey the damage, and as they saw the remains of their damaged homes, it was too much for some to handle.
"Our neighbor called and he said, 'Christina, have you heard?' I said 'no.' He said, 'your house is gone,'" an emotional Christina Urdiales told ABC News as she cleaned up the remains of her destroyed home in Rockport, Texas.
Up and down the coast, the story was much the same. Residents compared what they saw to bomb blasts and worked to salvage whatever was still in one piece.
"I told [our 6-year-old son] that when we tell the people to build the next one, it will be as strong as his muscles," Christina Jellison, who lives in Austin full-time but lost her family's vacation home to the storm, told ABC News.

A damaged car sits outside a heavily damaged apartment complex in Rockport, Texas, after Hurricane Harvey struck the area, Saturday, Aug. 26, 2017.
(Courtney Sacco/Corpus Christi Caller-Times via AP)

Thousands across the region remain without power. American Electric Power Texas told KIII-TV Sunday 95 percent of residents without power in Corpus Christi and the Sinton area will have power restored by Wednesday, although they caution that it might take longer in some areas. The company could not offer ETAs for power restoration for customers in the hardest hit areas of Rockport, Port Aransas, Fulton, Woodsboro, Port Lavaca, Lamar and Bayside.
In the town of Rockport, entire blocks are wiped out and crews are struggling to get in to search for those missing. Volunteer groups, churches and other organizations have begun mobilizing to help the victims and clear debris from littered roadways.
"It was dangerous," Rockport resident Ruben Nino, who rode out the storm with his family, told NPR. "There's sheet rock and glass breaking and all kinds of stuff. We survived in a little closet with four people until we called 911. And they came and rescued us. There was a lot of screaming and praying to Jesus and stuff like that."
The only known fatality along the coast occurred after a man was trapped inside a home that caught fire, Aransas County Judge C.H. "Burt" Mills, Jr. told the Associated Press.

(FORECAST: Harvey's Flood Threat to Continue For Days)
The storm has contributed to at least six deaths in addition to the one in Rockport. A woman died in Mongomery County Monday after a tree collapsed on top of her home while she slept, according to the Montgomery County Sheriff's Office.
City Manager Kevin Carruth told KIII the courthouse was hard-hit, with a cargo trailer ending up halfway in the building. He said several people were taken to a makeshift hospital at the county jail for treatment after the roof of a senior housing complex collapsed.
Mills told the AP that no fewer than 35 vehicles in the city's emergency vehicle fleet are now out of action due to broken windows and windshields.
A group of storm chasers who took shelter in Rockport reported one of the walls collapsing at their hotel, KIII reported, and the gym at Rockport Fulton High School is missing entire walls. The storm twisted the steel door frame of its auditorium and blew out windows all over campus.
Emergency and disaster relief crews from as far away as North Carolina and New York have arrived to help, according to the AP.

'Extreme' Damage Hampering Recovery Efforts in Port Aransas

Port Aransas City Manager David Parsons said Sunday that most of the structures in the island city are compromised to some level, according to a release obtained by KIII.
"Some extreme. Some only shingles or siding or windows," Parsons said. "Others, like my home, suffered severe damage."
He added that cellphone service had been compromised and satellite phones have been hard to come by, causing a delay in updates, KIII reports. The town was hit very hard and crews are working to repair numerous gas leaks and clear debris from roads.
"Please be patient and know our primary objective is to at least get folks back in here to check on their homes," said Parsons. "We are trying our best. Many local and state resources are pouring in. We have a massive police presence patrolling your homes and businesses.
"I will try and get more information out as it comes in. We'll get through this. We all have a long road ahead of us, but I know this community has the the guts," he added.
Mayor Charles Bujan said Saturday afternoon that no injuries or fatalities had been found in Port Aransas.

'Devastating' Impact on Victoria, Texas

"At least God let us live, that's the important part," resident Delia Garza told the Victoria Advocate.
Garza, who lived in a trailer with her niece and her 6-year-old daughter weathered the storm in her father's home across the street. Sunday the family picked through the debris of trailers owned by Garza and her sister.
"My sister was looking out the door and watched her trailer get torn apart," she told the Advocate.

Corpus Christi Mostly Dodges Harvey Impacts

Corpus Christi International Airport reopened Monday, resuming service to and from Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport, according to the terminal's Facebook page. The airport sustained only minor damage during the storm.
Sunday, city officials said evacuees may return but they warned that there is a water boil advisory in place and that wastewater usage is limited due to outages at a treatment plant.
Even before Harvey made landfall late Friday, dozens of oil and gas platforms had been evacuated, at least three refineries had closed and at least two petrochemical plants had suspended operations.

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Houston Mayor Opens Toyota Center as Additional Shelter for Harvey Evacuees

The Associated Press
Published: August 29,2017
Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner announced Tuesday that the Toyota Center would be opened as an additional shelter for people displaced by Harvey.
Turner said the center was opened to alleviate crowding at the George R. Brown Convention Center, which exceeded its estimated capacity of 5,000 people.
The convention center is sheltering 10,000 people as of Tuesday, the Associated Press reports. Evacuees will still have to go to the convention center first before going to the downtown basketball arena. Turner thanked Rockets owner Les Alexander for letting the city use the facility and also thanked him for his donation of $10 million for Harvey relief efforts.
Turner says the number of people at the convention center has continued to grow because the facility is housing not only Houston residents but people from surrounding communities outside the city limits who are in need of shelter.
Volunteers pushed cots together to make space on the floor. Some people are laying out towels, blankets and strips of cardboard.
The second night inside the center was louder, more crowded and at times, more chaotic, the AP said. At one point, officers tended to two men lying unresponsive in front of an exit, pushing away onlookers. The men had taken drugs and would both recover within an hour.
Frustrations were growing. One person said she had only gotten one meal Monday while watching others take several helpings of food. Another person, Kevin Perkins, described sleeping on the floor and feeling accosted by police officers inside.
"It's hell," Perkins said.
He shook his head and walked away as Turner toured the convention center Monday and approached near where he was standing.
"All my stuff damaged. I have no clothes, no shoes, no nothing," he said.
While a daunting task for emergency responders, it's a far less dire situation than during Hurricane Katrina in 2005, when 30,000 evacuees filled New Orleans's Superdome during Hurricane Katrina.
At a news conference in Corpus Christi on Tuesday with President Donald Trump, FEMA Administrator Brock Long directly addressed the mistakes that occurred in the wake of Katrina, which first made landfall in Louisiana exactly 12 years ago.
Said Long: “We’re very aware of the issues at the convention center, but let me be clear: This is not the Superdome.”

Jackson Lee, D-Houston, who visited the shelter Sunday." data-reactid="29" type="text">Still, local officials said the center was prepared to meet the needs of evacuees.

Jackson Lee, D-Houston, who visited the shelter Sunday." data-reactid="29" type="text">"We feel that we have the resources and the knowledge not to have this be anything but safe for families, children and others who need support and safety," Sheila Jackson Lee, Texas Democratic Congresswoman, told the AP.

The center has requested the public donate more supplies to evacuees seeking shelter, including baby formula, diapers, hand sanitizer, non-perishable food, sweatsuits, socks, towels, bottles of water, comfort kits, blankets and pillows.
The American Red Cross says there are more than 17,000 people in Texas seeking refuge in shelters. Red Cross spokesman Don Lauritzen said Tuesday that there are 45 shelters in the Houston area, along the Gulf Coast and elsewhere. He says more are opening in Louisiana. Officials estimated that Harvey will force 30,000 Texans into them.
Dallas Mayor Mike Rawlings said Tuesday that the cavernous Kay Bailey Hutchison Convention Center in that city is ready to hold upward of 5,000 people.
But Rawlings says it's not clear how many people will be housed at the Hutchison center because of the difficulty those in the Houston area are having finding dry roads and highways to travel along.
Airbnb also said they were offering free housing for evacuees from today until Sept. 1.
Patricia Cain was one of the affected evacuees to take shelter at Houston's convention center, the AP reported, arriving with no shoes and two oxygen tanks, arriving after being rescued by the U.S. Coast Guard. She brought along her son William, and grandson, who also came with no shoes.
“I live in a lake where there was once dry land,” William told a reporter.

Houston Mayor Imposes Curfew to Ensure Public Safety Amid Harvey Flooding

August 29,2017
This article is no longer being updated. Follow the latest news here.
Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner imposed a curfew on the city Tuesday in an effort to ensure public safety.
The order extends from 10 p.m. Tuesday to 5 a.m. Wednesday, the Associated Press reports.

Turner says it is being enacted to prevent property crimes at evacuated homes, Chron.com reports. He added he did not want flood victims to be concerned about break-ins while they are displaced.
"Don't victimize our victims. We will come after you," Houston Police Chief Art Acevedo said in a statement obtained by KHOU.com.
Workers at a chemical plant in Crosby, Texas, had to be evacuated Tuesday after flooding brought on by Harvey submerged backup generators and created the risk of a fire or chemical explosion.
Officials with Arkema say the situation at the facility has become serious, according to a release. It has been closed since Friday, but a small crew of 11 had been riding out the storm over the past few days. The plant has been without electricity since Sunday.
The company manufactures organic peroxides that need to be stored at low temperatures, which has been a challenge due to the lack of power, states the release. The products have been moved to diesel-powered refrigerated containers that are being monitored by officials.
A Houston police officer who drowned while on his way to work has been confirmed as the latest victim of Harvey. Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner identified the fallen officer as 60-year-old Sergeant Steve Perez.
(MORE: Why Houston Didn't Order Evacuations)
Perez, who had been with the department for more than 30 years, was in his patrol car Sunday morning when he got trapped in high water at I-45 and the Hardy Toll Road, the Houston Chronicle reports.

The photo above shows Sergeant Steve Perez of the Houston Police Department, who died when his patrol car became trapped in floodwaters brought on by Harvey.
(Houston Police Department)

"Sometimes you find a way to make it happen, or you die in trying," Turner told the Chronicle. "Sgt. Perez lost his life because he tried to make it happen, he tried to get at his post...that's the ultimate sacrifice."

Two flood control reservoirs have overtopped their banks in Houston, sending floodwaters over spillways, despite Army Corps of Engineers officials releasing water from both. Elsewhere in the city, a bridge over Greens Bayou has collapsed near the Cloverleaf area, according to emergency management officials.
Jeff Lindner, with the Harris County Flood Control District, said Tuesday that he's certain that more homes and streets will flood as a result of the reservoirs filling. Lindner says the county is trying to determine where the water will go, specifically from the north end of the Addicks reservoir, but that some homes will be inundated for up to a month.

Mayor Sylvester Turner said in a press conference Tuesday that there would be uncontrolled releases from Addicks for at least that long.
Brazoria County emergency management officials are reporting that the Brazos levee near Columbia Lakes has breached. Flash flooding is already occurring, and all residents have been urged to evacuate now.
The reservoir flooding is just adding to the misery in Houston, where more than 6,000 people have been rescued since flooding from Tropical Storm Harvey began, officials said Tuesday.
Mayor Sylvester Turner told The Associated Press Tuesday that police had rescued more than 3,000, and the Coast Guard said it also had rescued more than 3,000 by boat and air. Coast Guard officials said they were more than 1,000 calls per hour.
Despite thousands of rescues, city officials worry that the death toll could jump dramatically.
"We know in these kind of events that, sadly, the death toll goes up historically," Houston police Chief Art Acevedo told The Associated Press. "I'm really worried about how many bodies we're going to find."
The storm has contributed to at least nine deaths so far.
Alexander Kwoksum Sung, 64, drowned at his workplace in South Houston no Sunday. A 33-year-old man drove around a barricade and drowned in Montgomery County on Tuesday. A woman died in in the same county Monday after a tree collapsed on top of her home while she slept, according to the Montgomery County Sheriff's Office.
In Harris County, the medical examiner's office confirmed a woman was killed in flooding Saturday, according to AP. She appeared to have exited her vehicle in high water and was found 30 yards away by neighbors. The Houston Fire Department said a man died in floodwaters overnight Saturday into Sunday. Two people reportedly died in Galveston County Sunday.
A Rockport man was killed when his house caught fire at the height of the storm, according to media reports.
Friendswood Police spokeswoman Lisa Price said Tuesday that a boater helping rescue people from Harvey floodwaters discovered a deceased man, AP reports. Authorities are not yet sure how the man died and have not yet confirmed his identity.
One Houston woman said Monday that she presumes six members of a family, including four of her grandchildren, died after their van sank into Greens Bayou in East Houston.
Virginia Saldivar told The Associated Press her brother-in-law was driving the van Sunday when a strong current took the vehicle over a bridge and into the bayou. The driver was able to get out and urged the children to escape through the back door, Saldivar said, but they could not.
"I'm just hoping we find the bodies," Saldivar said.

Tuesday officials in Dallas opened the Kay Bailey Hutchinson Convention Center Tuesday as a mega shelter for 5,000 Hurricane Harvey evacuees, WFAA.com reports. Mayor Mike Rawlings says the center will operate as a "mini city," with a pharmacy area provided by Walmart and amenities such as phone charging stations.
“They [evacuees] can’t get out of town… all the major arteries going in and out are flooding," Rawlings said in a statement obtained by CBS DFW. "We want them to be safe. They’re safe in that convention center. It will be better when they can get up here and there will be more space and we can help them.”
Tuesday Turner announced that the Toyota Center is open as an additional shelter for evacuees. The facility was opened to alleviate crowding at the George R. Brown Convention Center, which exceeded its expected capacity of 5,000.
American Red Cross spokesman Lloyd Ziel told AP that 9,000 evacuees have entered the George R. Brown Convention Center as of Monday and more are still arriving. Unless volunteers can find more cots, some people will have to sleep in chairs or on the floor. The Red Cross said on Tuesday that there are more than 17,000 people in Texas seeking refuge in shelters.
Houston officials will open two or three more mega-shelters to accommodate people who continue to arrive at the overflowing George R. Brown Convention Center seeking refuge from Harvey’s record-breaking flooding, Mayor Sylvester Turner told the AP Tuesday.
(MORE: President Trump Unleashes Harvey Tweet Storm)
"We are not turning anyone away," Turner said. "But it does mean we need to expand our capabilities and our capacity," Turner said. "Relief is coming."
City officials have made a formal request with the Federal Emergency Management Agency for more supplies, including cots and food, for additional 10,000 people, which he hopes arrive no later than Wednesday, the mayor said.
The military's role in Harvey rescue and recovery efforts has been limited by weather and flooding but could soon expand by tenfold or more, a senior National Guard officer said Tuesday.
Air Force Maj. Gen. James Witham told reporters there currently are about 3,500 National Guard troops involved, including about 3,000 from the Texas National Guard. He estimated that the Texas guard number could rise to 8,000 to 10,000 in coming days, possibly joined by 20,000 to 30,000 from other states.
Officials announced mandatory evacuations Monday afternoon for the entire town of Dickinson, Texas – a town of 20,000 located 30 miles southeast of Houston.
Swollen waterways are prompting evacuations in surrounding areas. New mandatory and voluntary evacuations were ordered Monday morning in Fort Bend County, Texas, southwest of downtown Houston, over fears and expectations that water levels in the Brazos River will reach record levels, threatening to overtop local levees and inundate homes and businesses.
"A 59-foot river level threatens to overtop many of the levees in our area," said Fort Bend County Judge Robert Hebert. "If you are in a mandatory evacuation zone, please leave. If you do not, you may be in danger and we may not be able to help."

More evacuations could come with record-breaking flooding bursting the banks of waterways further downstream. Five waterways have already crested to their highest levels ever, according to weather.com senior meteorologist Jon Erdman, and five more, including the Brazos, are forecast to crest above their all-time record.
North of Houston, mandatory evacuations were also ordered in the town of Conroe, according to the Courier. The evacuations were for the McDade Estates community, some 200 homes along the West Fork of the San Jacinto River, the report added.
Authorities feared flooding in the community was imminent because of a record rate of release from Lake Conroe, the Courier also said.
"The heaviest rain early Monday morning extended from near Beaumont/Port Arthur, Texas, into far southwestern Louisiana, with radar rain rates estimated over 4 inches per hour over in some spots," said Erdman. "Rain is still falling over parts of the Houston metro area, mainly in Fort Bend and southern Harris Counties, but is much less intense than we saw during the weekend."

(MORE: The Latest Forecast for Hurricane Harvey)

In a Monday morning press conference, FEMA Administrator William "Brock" Long said more than 30,000 people will be placed into shelters and at least 450,000 will need disaster assistance in the wake of the catastrophe.
"This is a landmark event for Texas," Long told reporters. "Texas has never seen an event like this."

Harris County Flood Control issued a mandatory evacuation for residents in the Inverness Forest Subdivision Monday, the National Weather Service reports (NWS).
The Northgate Subdivision was also placed under mandatory evacuation, Chron.com reports. The orders were issued due to high and rising water levels in Cypress Creek.

Wind and Rain Forecast

Dr. Greg Postel, hurricane specialist for The Weather Channel, said the flooding in the Houston area "could be the worst flooding disaster in U.S. history." Gov. Abbott, appearing on Fox News Sunday, said: "We're measuring rain these days not in inches but in feet."

Monday President Donald Trump said the recovery from the storm would be "a long and difficult road," but added that he believes Congress will act quickly to provide disaster relief funding to the impacted areas, CNN reports.

The runway at Houston's Hobby Airport was completely flooded Sunday, according to a tweet from the airport. Officials closed the airport Sunday morning due to the storm, and it will remain closed until at least Wednesday. The George Bush Intercontinental Airport is also closed until further notice.

Tropical Storm Harvey Brings Flood, Tornado Threats to Louisiana, Including Baton Rouge, Lake Charles and New Orleans

Chris Dolce
Published: August 29,2017
Tropical Storm Harvey will continue to soak much of Louisiana into midweek, raising the risk of additional flooding, while also spawning a few tornadoes.
Localized street flooding has already occurred in the state since Sunday from Harvey's bands of rain sweeping across the lower Mississippi Valley. A few locations in southwest Louisiana have now registered more than a foot of rain.
(HURRICANE CENTRAL: Full Coverage on Harvey)

Current Radar, Watches and Warnings

Harvey's circulation center will crawl northeastward just offshore from the upper Texas coast before making a final landfall on either side of the Texas and Louisiana border Wednesday. Later this week, Harvey's center will then track through central Louisiana as it accelerates.
That places Louisiana, including Baton Rouge, Lake Charles and New Orleans, in a firehose of moisture from southerly winds on the east side of the circulation for the next couple of days.
Of course, the concern for New Orleans is whether any slow-moving bands of rain will stall over the city as repairs continue on pumps that help protect it from flooding.
(FORECASTS: Baton Rouge | Lake Charles | New Orleans)
Heavy rain will also affect northern Louisiana, particularly Wednesday and Thursday, including Shreveport and Monore.

Projected Path

The National Weather Service has posted flash flood watches for all of Louisiana.
Additional rainfall totals of 5 inches or more are possible throughout northern and western Louisiana during the next couple of days. Storm totals, including the rain that has already fallen, may range from 10 to 20 inches in much of southwest Louisiana.

Rainfall Forecast Through Thursday

A tornado or two cannot be ruled out across Louisiana on Wednesday, as well.
Although the flood threat is the greatest concern, a tropical storm warning has also been issued for the southwest Louisiana coast.
The tropical storm warning means sustained winds of 39-plus mph are likely in the warning area within 36 hours.
Tropical storm conditions are also possible in parts of southeastern Louisiana from east of Morgan City to Grand Isle. This does not include New Orleans.
Finally, a water rise of 2 to 4 feet is possible along the southwest Louisiana coast if the peak surge with Harvey's final landfall on Wednesday occurs at high tide.

Tropical Storm Alerts

Best Buy Apologizes for Selling $42 Packs of Water in Houston-Area Store

James Crugnale
Published: August 30,2017

Best Buy apologized after a Houston-area store was spotted selling $42 packs of Dasani water bottles.
(Ken Klippenstein/GritPost.com)

Best Buy apologized after one of their stores in the Houston-area was spotted selling Dasani 24-packs of bottled water for $42 while Harvey prepared to wreak havoc with catastrophic flooding.
"This was clearly a mistake on the part of a few employees at a single store on Friday, Aug. 25," a Best Buy spokesperson told weather.com in an email. "We feel terrible about this because, as a company, we are focused on helping, not hurting people affected by this terrible event."
The water bottle incident was reported to have taken place in the Houston suburb of Cypress.
News of the alleged price gouging was first reported by GritPost.com's Ken Klippenstein.
"It’s taking advantage of people in need to make easy money playing off fear. Best Buy doesn’t need to sell water at $43 a case. They don’t need the money," a local Houstonian told Kippenstein. "I understand the law of supply and demand and the cost and availability of goods being shipped to an area once a disaster hits. This was before there was a shortage. This is pure greed."
(MORE: Harvey Flooding Horror: Rescuers Find Shivering Toddler Clinging to Drowned Mother)
"We are all deeply sorry that we gave anyone even the momentary impression that we were trying to take advantage of the situation," the Best Buy spokesperson added. "By way of explanation, and not excuse: We don’t typically sell cases of water and don’t have pricing for it in our computer system. The mistake was made when employees at this one store priced a case of water by multiplying the cost of one bottle by the number of bottles in a case – arriving at a number that is far, far higher than a normal price for a case of water."
In addition to the Best Buy incident, hundreds of other consumer complaints have been submitted to the Texas attorney general in the wake of the storm.

'So Obsolete It's ... Unbelievable': Experts Decry Houston's Depression-Era Drainage System

Associated Press
Published: August 30,2017
Houston's Depression-era system of bayous and reservoirs was built to drain a tabletop-flat city prone to heavy rains. But in an age of explosive weather development and ever-wetter storms, experts say the system is "so obsolete it's just unbelievable."
Nearly any city would be overwhelmed by the more than 4 feet of rain that Hurricane Harvey has dumped since Friday, but Houston is unique in its regular massive floods and inability to cope with them. This is the third 100-year-or-more type of flood in three years.
Experts blame too many people, too much concrete, insufficient upstream storage, not enough green space for water drainage and, especially, too little regulation.
"Houston is the most flood-prone city in the United States," said Rice University environmental engineering professor Phil Bedient. "No one is even a close second — not even New Orleans, because at least they have pumps there."
(FORECAST: Tropical Storm Harvey Makes Final Landfall; Major Flooding Swamps East Texas)
The entire system is designed to clear out only 12 to 13 inches of rain per 24-hour period, said Jim Blackburn, an environmental law professor at Rice University: "That's so obsolete it's just unbelievable."
Also, Houston's Harris County has the loosest, least-regulated drainage policy and system in the entire country, Bedient said.
Here's how the system is supposed to work: The county that encompasses Houston has 2,500 miles of bayous and channels and more than 300 storm-water holding basins, which are designed to fill up during intense downpours and drain slowly as high waters recede.
Water is supposed to flow west to east through bayous, which are tidal creeks that often have concrete improvements to make water flow and are connected to the Galveston Bay.
When big rains come, officials also activate two normally dry reservoirs, closing the floodgates to collect the water and keep it from overwhelming the downtown area.
But the main bayou through downtown Houston, Buffalo Bayou, "is pretty much still a dirt mud channel like you would have seen 100 years ago, just a little cleaned out," said U.S. Geological Survey hydrologist Jeff East, who is based in Houston.
And because the coastal plain is so flat, only sloping about a foot per mile, the water doesn't flow out of the bayous fast, Bedient said.
Also, some of the bayous, such as Brays, can only handle 10-year storms, he said. Harris County didn't leave enough right-of-way space to expand its bayous, Bedient said. And widening projects have been slow and inadequate.
Because of big early 20th-century floods, Houston designed two dry emergency reservoirs that are only activated in heavy rain, Addicks and Barker, both formed by earthen dams. Addicks is 11.7 miles long (18.8 kilometers) with a maximum elevation of nearly 123 feet (37 meters). Barker is 13.6 miles long (22 kilometers) and has a maximum elevation of 114 feet (34 meters).
Normally the floodgates are open and the two areas are dry parkland with sports fields and biking paths. They were essentially dry on Aug. 25, the day Harvey struck, East said. By the middle of the next day, the floodgates were closed and water levels were starting to rise, East said.
Now the reservoirs are overflowing. Officials are being forced to release some of the water pressing against the 70-year-old dams and backing up into wealthy subdivisions. But those releases could worsen the extreme flooding downstream in Houston.
(MORE: Port Arthur Tweets Plea for Boats as Harvey Floods Evacuees in Shelter)
More reservoirs are needed, Blackburn and Bedient said. In fact, another reservoir had been planned for Houston's western prairies, but development killed that, they said.
Blackburn said studies show those prairies can absorb as much as 11 inches of rain per hour. But he said elected officials allowed subdivision after subdivision to expand outward.
Houston's storm drain and pipe system is minimal compared with that of other cities and at most can take 1½ inches of rain, Bedient said.

But mostly the problem comes down to helter-skelter development in a county with no zoning, leaving lots of concrete where water doesn't drain, and little green space to absorb it, Bedient said.
Local politicians are simply unwilling to insist in the local code that developers, who are among their biggest campaign donors, create no adverse effects, said Ed Browne, chairman of the nonprofit Residents Against Flooding.
"In general, developers run this city and whatever developers want they get," Browne said. His group sued Houston last year in federal court, demanding more holding ponds and better drainage.
There are also more people. Since the previous record flood, inflicted by Tropical Storm Allison in 2001, Houston's population has grown more than 23 percent, said Sam Brody, a Texas A&M professor in Galveston who studies coastal flooding.
If that's not bad enough, Houston is getting heavier rains with global warming because warmer air holds more water. Since 1986, extreme downpours — the type measured in double-digit inches — have occurred twice as often as in the previous 30 years, an Associated Press weather data analysis showed in 2016.
Add everything up and "it's a perfect mix for the perfect storm," Bedient said. "And that's why we flood so often."

Tropical Storm Harvey: What We Know Today

Jon Erdman
Published: August 30,2017
Harvey's long journey will finally come to an end in the days ahead, but not before bringing more heavy to other parts of the U.S.
(MORE: Hurricane Central | How You Can Help Victims)
Here are the key things we know right know about Harvey.

1. Final Landfall Has Occurred

Harvey made its final landfall near Cameron, Louisiana, early Wednesday morning.
That said, rainfall from the storm will continue as it moves farther inland.

Harvey's final landfall and radar at that time.

2. More heavy rain is ahead.

The center of Harvey is forecast to move northeastward through the lower Mississippi Valley and into the Tennessee Valley during the next few days.
Heavy rain will affect a swath from the lower Mississippi Valley into the Ohio Valley through Friday. Flooding is possible in some areas, though nothing like we've seen in southeast Texas.

Additional Rainfall Outlook

4. Dry days for Texas, finally.

As Harvey moves farther to the northeast, dry conditions will return to southeast Texas by Thursday and continue into the weekend.
Some rain and thunderstorms may return to the Texas coast by Sunday or early next week, but details are uncertain.

Projected Path

5. River flooding will last for days, perhaps weeks.

Although the rainfall will have ended in southeast Texas to close the week, river levels will remain high.
This massive volume of water draining toward the Gulf of Mexico will leave mainstem rivers such as the Brazos, Colorado and Guadalupe above flood stage into the Labor Day weekend, possibly beyond.
(MORE: River Flood Tracker Page | NWS River Flood Forecasts)
Flood levels along stretches of these rivers will be catastrophic, well above any past documented records.
Check back with weather.com for updates on Harvey.

Invest 93L to Become Tropical Storm Irma in the Eastern Atlantic Ocean on Wednesday

Chris Dolce
Published: August 30,2017
As we continue to track Harvey's devastating flooding, a new area of low pressure in the eastern Atlantic Ocean will develop into Tropical Storm Irma on Wednesday.
(HURRICANE CENTRAL: The Latest Coverage on Harvey)
The National Hurricane Center (NHC) has been tracking this system as Invest 93L the last couple of days, which is a naming convention used to identify features that could form into a tropical cyclone. However, the NHC says they will initiate advisories on Tropical Storm Irma for this system on Wednesday morning.
(MORE: What is an Invest?)
In the near-term, future Irma will bring locally heavy rain and gusty winds to the Cabo Verde Islands through Wednesday.

Invest 93L Potential Development Area

The area of low pressure is embedded in a generally moist region of the eastern Atlantic, though dry air lurks to its north and west. In addition, it should move through a portion of the Atlantic Ocean where upper-level winds are mostly favorable for development the next few days.

Water Vapor Satellite Imagery

After passing near the Cabo Verde Islands, future Irma will then continue to move westward along the southern periphery of a North Atlantic high-pressure system, with no immediate threat to any land areas. In fact, future Irma may not reach the longitude of the Lesser Antilles (eastern Caribbean) until the early or middle portion of next week.
It's far too early to determine if this new system will pose any threat to the Lesser Antilles and if it will eventually ever pose a threat to other locations, including the U.S.
Suffice to say, there is plenty of time to watch this system.
We are in the heart of the hurricane season, so we monitor every potential Atlantic system closely for development.
Check back with weather.com for updates on this system through the weekend ahead for the very latest.

J.J. Watt, Kim Kardashian Among Celebrities Who Pledge Millions to Harvey Relief

August 30,2017
In the wake of Hurricane Harvey, a slew of celebrities and groups have pledged millions of dollars in aid, using their power to positively impact the response to the deadly storm. Many of those celebrities also challenged friends and other powerful people to match their large donations. Here's a list of notable celebrities and organizations to pledge sizable donations to Harvey victims.
J.J. Watt, Houston Texans defensive end: Watt challenged his fans to donate $1 million, but exceeded the $5 million mark on Wednesday. He has now set a goal of $6 million raised. $1 million of that donation came from Amy Adams Strunk, the owner of the Tennessee Titans.
Sandra Bullock: The actress donated $1 million to the American Red Cross relief efforts.

The Kardashians: Kim and her siblings have pledged $500,000 – $250,000 to the Red Cross and $250,000 to the Salvation Army.
(MORE: How You Can Help the Victims of Harvey)
Dikembe Mutombo: The former Houston Rockets center announced Wednesday that he is donating $50,000 to the Hurricane Harvey Relief Fund established by Mayor Sylvester Turner.
Houston Texans: The franchise has pledged an additional $1 million, in addition to whatever Watt raises.
Chris Young: The country singer said he will give $100,000.
Kevin Hart: The comedian pledged $25,000 and urged fellow celebrities like Jay-Z, Beyonce, Justin Timberlake and The Rock to match or exceed his donation.
Mike Trout, Los Angeles Angels center fielder: Trout said he will donate $27,000 (to match No. 27 on his jersey) and challenged other players to donate.
Lady Gaga: The famous singer has pledged an unspecified amount.
Drake: The performance artist said he will help "in any way we can and in the most immediate way possible."
Tampa Bay Rays: A Tuesday-through-Thursday series between the Houston Astros and Texas Rangers will instead be played at Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg, Florida, and the Rays announced all revenues from those games will be donated to Harvey relief efforts.
Jay Bruce, Cleveland Indians outfielder: Bruce, a Texas native, has pledged to match donations up to $100,000 to help victims. Donations can be made through Cleveland Indians Charities until Sept. 10.

Water Rescues Underway at Two Flooded Port Arthur Nursing Homes

August 30,2017
Water rescues are underway at two senior care facilities in Port Arthur – Cypress Glen and Lake Arthur Place – that took in water overnight.
Earlier Wednesday the nursing home posted on Facebook that residents were trapped as the buildings were "inaccessible."
"No one can get in and no one can get out," a staff member at Lake Arthur Place told weather.com. "We can't see the fire hydrants, and we can barely see our sign."
Video from KFDM Wednesday afternoon showed water at least ankle-deep in one of the homes, with residents standing or sitting in wheelchairs partially submerged but also showed residents being loaded into boats.
Senior Care Centers, which manages both of the homes, announced via Facebook that they are still in the process of evacuating patients and residents with help from the Coast Guard and other organizations.
The City of Port Arthur tweeted a plea for boats to help with evacuations Wednesday morning and followed up with another message asking those who needed rescue to "display a white towel, sheet, shirt or anything to let volunteer rescuers know."
"We need to get them out of here," a worker at Lake Arthur Place told KFDM.com. "They need health care. ... We don't have much food. We've got water but we need the right foods to feed them and medication administration."

Water started entering a shelter at the Bob Bower Civic Center Wednesday morning. Pictures posted on social media showed floodwaters surrounding sleeping evacuees. Cots and other emergency supplies bobbed in the water-logged Civic Center floor. Evacuees fled to the bleachers in the Civic Center to escape the water, 12News reported.
The evacuees are reportedly going to be evacuated to the Carl Parker Center about five miles south of the Civic Center. But as of Wednesday morning, the Carl Parker Center was not yet ready to receive an influx of evacuees. According to the Port Arthur Police, there are "no supplies at the facility at this time."
KHOU.com said the water started entering the Bower Civic Center shelter at around 8 p.m. local time and it took just 20 minutes for water to rise high enough in the civic center to flood the floor.
Harvey battered Port Arthur Tuesday, dumping more than 26 inches of rain in 24 hours, an all-time daily record for rainfall. More than three and a half feet of rain has fallen on Port Arthur since Saturday.
Widespread, disastrous flooding is ongoing in Port Arthur and nearby Beaumont.
The largest oil refinery in the country, located in Port Arthur, began operations to shut down on Wednesday "in response to increasing local flood conditions," CNN reported. Parent company Motiva had been steadily reducing production at the plant for days. Late Tuesday it was running at only 40 percent capacity.
"Our whole city is underwater right now," Port Arthur Mayor Derrick Freeman said. Freeman urged residents to get to higher ground and stay out of attics while emergency officials struggled to reach them.
Jefferson County Sherriff Zena Stephens told KFDM that they couldn't get into Port Arthur to rescue people due to the severity of the flooding.
Numerous house fires were reported, feet of water was entering homes and most roads were "impassable," according to the Jefferson County Sherriff's Department.
Emergency officials were so overloaded with 911 calls that the Jefferson County Emergency Management Office said they couldn't answer them all.
The EOM said they had to suspend water rescue operations until daylight, even while water continued to rise.
Jefferson County Commissioner and Port Arthur representative Michael Sinegal told KFDM that with so many residents in need of rescue and emergency responders overloaded, residents were entering "survival mode."

"We need boats. We need whatever it takes," Sinegal told the station. "I think we need to get into a crisis mode here and if we have to go get people at night, we got to go get people at night. I don't know how. We need air boats. We need any type of boat we can get and get people out of their house."

Labor Day Weekend Forecast: Stormy Weather Possible in East, South While West Remains Hot, Dry

Brian Donegan
Published: August 30,2017
The Labor Day holiday weekend will feature cool and stormy weather at times in the East, while much of the West remains dry with near-record high temperatures in some locations.
A southward dip in the jet stream will be the upper-level weather feature dominating most locations to the east of the Rockies this weekend, which should keep temperatures near or below average in the central and eastern U.S.

Brighter colors indicate warmer temperatures and darker colors indicate cooler temperatures.

Additionally, the remnants of Tropical Storm Harvey will track through parts of the Ohio Valley and mid-Atlantic states, bringing unsettled conditions to those regions Saturday.
At the same time, a northward bulge in the jet stream over the West Coast will keep much of that region very warm and precipitation-free.
With that in mind, here's what travelers can expect for the Labor Day holiday weekend.
(MORE: Cities With the Worst Traffic)
Saturday's Forecast

Wet Areas: Harvey's remnants will bring showers and thunderstorms to portions of the Ohio Valley and mid-Atlantic, though there will likely be rain-free periods at times. Wet weather will spread into parts of the Northeast overnight. Additional scattered thunderstorms are expected along the immediate Southeast coast into portions of Florida and along the northern Gulf Coast. Showers are also possible in the upper Great Lakes.
Dry Areas: Much of the Plains to the West Coast should enjoy a dry Saturday, with the exception of a few pop-up storms in the Rockies and Desert Southwest. Most of New England also looks dry during the day.
High Temperatures: Highs will be up to 15 degrees below average in much of the East, translating to 70s and lower 80s – a few spots in the Northeast may even hold in the mid- to upper 60s. Temperatures will range from 10 to 25 degrees above average in the West, with the core of the heat from California to Oregon where highs up to 110 degrees are possible, potentially threatening some record highs.

Saturday's Forecast

Sunday's Forecast

Wet Areas: A few showers are possible in the Northeast as the remnants of Harvey merge with another disturbance moving through the region. Scattered showers and storms are expected along the Gulf Coast from Texas to Florida, including parts of the Florida Peninsula. A couple showers also can't be ruled out in northern Minnesota and Upper Michigan.
Dry Areas: Other than the possibility of a pop-up storm in the Rockies or Desert Southwest, dry conditions are expected from the Midwest to the West Coast.
High Temperatures: Temperatures will be near average in much of the East, with highs in the 70s and 80s expected, except in northern New England where highs may hold in the mid-60s. Near-record heat will continue to sear the West, with 100-degree highs possible from the Pacific Northwest to southeastern California and the Desert Southwest.

Sunday's Forecast

Labor Day's Forecast

Wet Areas: Scattered thunderstorms will be possible along the Gulf Coast from South Texas to portions of the Florida Peninsula. An increase in tropical moisture will be a concern in parts of southern and eastern Texas, as well as southwestern Louisiana, due to an area of low pressure that may form in the Gulf of Mexico. Also, a few showers and thunderstorms are likely in portions of the Great Lakes region and the upper Midwest as another disturbance pushes into the region. A pop-up shower or thunderstorm is also possible in the Rockies.
Dry Areas: A broad swath of the U.S. will enjoy a dry Labor Day holiday, with the exception of the areas mentioned above.
High Temperatures: Highs are expected to be generally within 5 degrees of early-September averages to the east of the Rockies. Hot temperatures will persist in the West as many places rise above 100 degrees, once again.

Labor Day's Forecast

(MAPS: 10-Day Forecast High/Low Temperatures)

Another Tropical Storm May Develop in the Western Gulf of Mexico Next Week

Jon Erdman
Published: August 30,2017
Another tropical storm may form in the Gulf of Mexico next week, just one week after Hurricane Harvey left its siege of record rain, flooding and damage from storm surge and high winds in southeast Texas and Louisiana.
(FULL COVERAGE ON HARVEY: Hurricane Central)
For now, there isn't anything to be immediately concerned about.
A weak trough of surface low pressure extends over the western Gulf of Mexico, reinforced to some extent by the outer winds from Harvey.
A trough features winds that generally converge, but there's no low-pressure circulation. Furthermore, any showers near this trough aren't persisting or organized.
(MORE: How You Can Help Harvey Victims)

Latest Gulf of Mexico Infrared Satellite Image

Next week, however, an area of low pressure could form in this general area of the western Gulf of Mexico, off the eastern Mexican coast.
If thunderstorms can persist and cluster near this low-pressure center, taking advantage of deep, warmer-than-average Gulf of Mexico water undisturbed by Hurricane Harvey, we could get another tropical depression or tropical storm to form.
The next named Atlantic storm would be named Jose.

Potential setup next week.

Many Unknowns

Unfortunately, there are few details meteorologists can say with any certainty right now.
The range of possible outcomes with this system spans the gamut from a stronger tropical storm or hurricane with impacts somewhere along the Gulf Coast to a weaker system remaining stuck in the southwest Gulf of Mexico.
So it remains unclear if this system, assuming it develops, would ever affect any of the Harvey-ravaged areas of southeast Texas and Louisiana, much less other areas of the Gulf Coast.
(IMAGES: Before/After Harvey Aerials)
Check back with us at weather.com for the latest on this potential system, Harvey's forecast and aftermath, and newly-formed Irma in the eastern Atlantic Ocean.
It's always a good time before the storm to make sure you have a plan in case a hurricnae threatens. The non-profit Federal Alliance for Safe Homes has an excellent site to help you develop a plan.

Tropical Storm Harvey River Flooding Shatters Records and Could Last For Days

Jon Erdman
Published: August 30,2017
Tropical Storm Harvey's torrential rain has already pushed rivers and bayous to record levels in some locations, and rivers in parts of Texas and Louisiana may take days, if not weeks, to return within their banks.
(FULL COVERAGE ON HARVEY: Hurricane Central)
Record flooding has already been recorded at 17 different National Weather Service river forecast locations where the period extends to at least before 2000. Another two locations may set new record crests in the days ahead.
Parts of southeast Texas had received more than 40 inches of rain, with at least one location – Cedar Bayou gauge near Highlands, Texas – setting a new continental U.S. rainfall record for any tropical cyclone with 51.88 inches as of 3 p.m. CDT Tuesday.

Radar-estimated storm-total rainfall from Harvey through late Wednesday morning, Aug. 30.

The National Weather Service is forecasting major river flooding in dozens of locations in southeast Texas and southwest Louisiana.
(MORE: NWS River Flood Forecasts)

Rivers forecast to be above flood stage by the National Weather Service River Forecast Centers, as of Wednesday, Aug. 30. Locations in major flood are denoted by purple dots, moderate flood by red dots and minor flood by orange dots.
(NOAA/NWS)

(MORE: How You Can Help Victims)
Here is a rundown of notable current and forecast statuses of rivers and bayous, generally those in major flood, according to the National Weather Service. Locations in bold indicate those that have already set new record crests. Click on each link for the latest National Weather Service river stage forecast.

Near Houston Metro

Cypress Creek (northern Harris County):

Near Westfield: Already topped previous record from Oct. 8, 1949; should fall below flood stage by the Labor Day weekend
Near Cypress: Already topped previous record from Oct. 18, 1994; should fall below flood stage by the Labor Day weekend
Near Hockley: Crested at fourth-highest level, highest since Oct. 1998 flood; should fall below flood stage by the Labor Day weekend

Meteorologist Jeff Lindner at the Harris County Flood Control District noted the creek at Interstate 45 was almost 5 feet higher than it was during Allison in 2001, and water neared the second story of an apartment building at Grant Road Monday morning.
San Jacinto River:

East Fork at Cleveland: Already topped previous record from Oct. 18, 1994; will fall below flood stage soon
West Fork near Conroe: Already topped previous record from Oct. 18, 1994; will fall below flood stage by Thursday
East Fork near New Caney: Already topped previous record from Oct. 19, 1994; will fall slowly into the weekend
West Fork near Humble: Already topped previous record from Oct. 18, 1994; will fall slowly into the weekend
San Jacinto River near Sheldon: Highest crest since Nov. 16, 1940; to remain in major flood until early Sunday

Buffalo Bayou:

At West Belt Drive: Already topped previous record from Aug. 18, 1983; may remain in record flood into next week due to nearby earthen levee release
At Piney Point Village: Already topped previous record from Mar. 4, 1992; may remain in record flood into next week
At Shepherd Drive: Crested initially at highest level since Allison 2001

Trinity River:

Near Goodrich: Crested at third-highest level on record, highest since Oct. 18, 1994; many homes below Lake Livingston flooded; forecast to be in major flood into the weekend
Near Romayor: Cresting near the fifth highest crest on record, highest since May 1990
At Liberty: Already topped previous record from Oct. 12, 1994; several subdivisions above Liberty flood, as well as extensive flooding of much of Liberty County
Near Moss Bluff: Already topped previous record from June 3, 2016

The nearby Menard Creek near Rye also topped a previous record crest from October 1994.
Elsewhere near the immediate Houston metro:

Spring Creek near Spring: Crested just inches shy of the Oct. 18, 1994, record
Caney Creek near Splendora: Tied Allison 2001 for the second-highest crest; this is almost 7 feet higher than the Tax Day 2016 flood
Peach Creek near Splendora: Already topped previous record from Oct. 8, 1949; homes flooded in Splendora, Patton Village
Clear Creek at Friendswood: Already topped previous record from Allison in 2001

Brays Bayou on the city's southwest side crested over 3 feet higher than the Tax Day 2016 flood. Greens Bayou on the city's east side and near the Eastex Freeway crested initially well below Allison's 2001 levels.
(MORE: Three Reasons Slow-Moving Tropical Storms and Hurricanes Are the Worst)

Brazos River

The Brazos River is expected to crest nearly 2 feet above the previous record set just last June at Richmond, Texas. Mandatory evacuations have been ordered in Fort Bend County.

At Richmond: Forecast record crest by late Thursday or Friday topping June 2, 2016, crest; may stay above flood stage well into the following week
Near Rosharon: Cresting similar to June 4, 2016, crest; third highest on record; little fall in levels through the Labor Day weekend
Near West Columbia: Breach in levee near Columbia Lakes Tuesday makes forecast uncertain; not expected to crest until this weekend

Just to the west, record flooding has also occurred on the San Bernard River near Boling, shattering a previous record from June 1960, and downstream near Sweeny, crushing the previous October 1998 record crest.
(MORE: Your Vehicle Can Be the Biggest Danger in a Flood)

Above: Interactive map showing mandatory (red) and voluntary evacuation zones in Ft. Bend County, Texas (Credit: Ft. Bend County Office of Emergency Management)

Colorado River

Near Smithville: Crested at highest level since Oct. 18, 1998; has fallen quickly below flood
Above La Grange: Crested at third-highest level, and highest since Dec. 5, 1913; falling quickly
At Columbus: Crested at fourth-highest level, highest since July 26, 1938; will fall quickly the rest of this week
At Wharton: Cresting at second-highest level, highest since Dec. 13, 1913; drops below flood stage over the Labor Day weekend
Near Bay City: Crest Thursday or Friday at eighth-highest level, highest since June 1960; falling quickly into the Labor Day weekend

Much of the west and southwest sides of Wharton, Texas, are expected to be under water from the Colorado River. The river may overtop levees by several feet in Bay City.

Guadalupe River

The Guadalupe River is flooding parts of the city of Victoria. Upstream, the west side of the town of Cuero may experience disastrous flooding, potentially forcing all roads to be shut down into town except Highway 87. Near Thomaston, hundreds of homes may be flooded to over 10 feet, according to National Weather Service accounts of previous floods.

Near Cuero: Crested Tuesday among the top three crests on record, highest since Oct. 20, 1998; capable of disastrous flooding in the area
At Victoria: Forecast crest near second-highest level early Thursday, but about 2.6 feet lower than October 1998 crest, with only a slow fall into the Labor Day weekend
Near Bloomington: Forecast crest late this week topped only by Oct. 21, 1998, crest, with only a slow fall into next week

(MORE: Water, Not Wind, the Deadliest Factor in U.S. Tropical Storms, Hurricanes)

East Texas/Western Louisiana

Neches River at Beaumont: Forecast record-flood crest this weekend, several feet above the previous Oct. 22, 1994 record crest; will remain flooded into next week
Neches River near Town Bluff: Crest later this week at highest level since 1953; some homes flooded
Village Creek near Kountze: Already topped previous record crest from Aug. 1, 1915; may fall below flood stage Labor Day weekend
Pine Island Bayou near Sour Lake: Already topped previous record crest from Oct. 20, 1994; numerous homes in Bevil Oaks have at least 3 to 4 feet of water; slow fall into the Labor Day weekend
Sabine River near Deweyville: Forecast crest Thursday about 3 feet lower than record March 2016 crest; third highest on record; numerous homes may flood and the town of Deweyville may be isolated by floodwater
Sabine River at Orange: Forecast rise to a crest Labor Day weekend, potentially topped only by Hurricane Ike and the March 2016 flood
Calcasieu River northwest of Lake Charles (Sam Houston Jones State Park): Cresting near levels seen during Hurricane Rita; water up to a few homes; slow fall this weekend
Bundick Creek at Bundick Lake: Cresting now near April 2017 crest; numerous homes, camps flooded around the lake
Bayou Anacoco near Rosepine: Crest Thursday near or slightly above April 2017 and Allison 1989 crests; major flood damage along the bayou

It will be an arduously slow process to first get coastal water levels down, then drain the massive volume of floodwater upstream. This process will likely continue past Labor Day in some areas.
Check back with weather.com for updates on Harvey.

Tropical Storm Irma Intensifying in Eastern Atlantic; Expected to Become a Hurricane Thursday

Chris Dolce
Published: August 30,2017
Tropical Storm Irma is intensifying steadily in the eastern Atlantic Ocean where it's likely to grow into the fourth hurricane of the season on Thursday.
Irma presents no immediate threat to any land areas, but that could change as we look further into the future.
(HURRICANE CENTRAL: The Latest Coverage on Harvey)
The center of Irma is located about 545 miles to the west of the Cabo Verde Islands and is moving westward at 10 to 15 mph.

Current Storm Status

For the next five days, Irma will continue its general westward movement on the south side of a ridge of high pressure called the Bermuda High, which is centered in the central Atlantic.
Irma should move through a portion of the Atlantic Ocean where upper-level winds are mostly favorable for intensification the next few days. The only hindrance to Irma's organization is some dry air to its north and west.
The National Hurricane Center said Irma is expected to strengthen into a hurricane Thursday.

Projected Path and Intensity

Irma will not reach the longitude of the Lesser Antilles (eastern Caribbean) until the middle of next week.
It's far too early to determine if this new system will pose any threat to the Lesser Antilles and if it will eventually ever pose a threat to other locations, including the U.S.
Check back with weather.com for updates on Irma through the weekend ahead for the very latest. We will be updating our coverage of Irma frequently based on the latest forecast guidance for its future track and intensity.
This is the first time the name Irma has been used for an Atlantic tropical storm or hurricane. Irma replaced the name Irene after it was retired for the damage it caused in the Bahamas and the U.S. during the 2011 hurricane season.
(MORE: Retired Atlantic Tropical Storm and Hurricane Names)

Tropical Storm Lidia to Strike Los Cabos, Mexico, This Week; Could Become a Hurricane

Linda Lam
Published: August 30,2017
Tropical Storm Lidia is expected to bring portions of the Baja California Peninsula tropical storm and possibly hurricane conditions late this week.
(MORE: Hurricane Central)
Lidia is sitting in an area favorable for intensification in the eastern Pacific, just over 150 miles south-southeast of the southern tip of Baja California. Warm water temperatures and low vertical wind shear are in place and may assist this system in becoming a hurricane prior to landfall on Baja California.

Current Storm Status

A hurricane watch has been issued for Baja California Sur from Puerto Cortes to east of La Paz. A tropical storm watch is in effect for Baja California Sur from north of San Evaristo to Loreto and also from north of Puerto Cortes to Puerto San Andresito. A tropical storm warning has been issued for Baja California Sur from Puerto Cortes to San Evaristo and also for mainland Mexico from Bahia Tempehuaya to Huatabampito.
A tropical storm watch means that tropical storm conditions are possible within 48 hours, and a tropical storm warning indicates tropical storm conditions are expected within 36 hours. A hurricane watch means that hurricane conditions are possible within 48 hours.

Current Watches and Warnings

A track to the north-northwest is expected to continue into late this week. This path will take Lidia toward Los Cabos, Mexico, where gusty winds and heavy rain will likely begin by early Thursday. Hurricane conditions are possible late Thursday at the southern tip of Baja California Sur. Impacts may continue into Saturday before it moves away from land.

Projected Path and Intensity

Rainfall accumulations of 8 to 12 inches are expected across the Mexican states of Baja California Sur and western Jalisco, with locally higher amounts up to 20 inches possible. In the Mexican states of Sinaloa, Nayarit, Colima, southern Michoacan, southern Sonora and central Jalisco, rainfall amounts of 3 to 6 inches are possible.
This heavy rainfall may result in life-threatening flash flooding and mudslides.
In addition, a dangerous storm surge is expected to produce significant coastal flooding near and east of the center of this system over the southern portion of Baja California Sur.
High surf and dangerous rip currents are also anticipated.
There is a small chance some of the moisture associated with this system could enhance thunderstorm activity in parts of the Desert Southwest this weekend.
(MORE: How Eastern Pacific Storms Can Impact the U.S.)
By this weekend, Lidia will begin to weaken as it interacts with land and cooler water temperatures west of the Baja California Peninsula.

Is 2017 the wettest year on record for NYC area? Persistent wet,stormy weather pattern could mean wettest year on record for the NYC area if pattern persists for rest of 2017

Thanks to the persistent,unrelenting Jet Stream trough since mid-March 2017,the whole year of 2017 could end up being the wettest year on record for the New York City metro-area if this weather pattern not only continues through the rest of the 2017 Summer season,but into the fall/autumn and the 2017 holiday season (Labor Day through New Year's). Here's the daily rainfall tallies for the city of White Plains,NY for the whole year of 2017 so far,as of 11:30PM,EDT,August 30,2017 from accuweather.com

January 1: None (0.00 inches)
January 2:    0.05 inches
January 3: 0.53 inches
January 4:    None
January 5: None
January 6:    0.01 inches
January 7:    0.04 inches
January 8:    None
January 9: None
January 10: None
January 11: 0.42 inches
January 12: 0.11 inches
January 13: None
January 14: 0.02 inches
January 15: None
January 16: None
January 17: 0.34 inches
January 18: 0.09 inches
January 19: None
January 20: 0.04 inches
January 21: None
January 22: None
January 23: 0.61 inches
January 24: 0.76 inches
January 25: None
January 26: None
January 27: None
January 28: None
January 29: None
January 30: None
January 31: 0.16 inches
February 1: None
February 2: None
February 3: None
February 4: None
February 5: None
February 6: None
February 7: 0.19 inches
February 8: 0.03 inches
February 9: 0.60 inches
February 10: None
February 11: None
February 12: 0.51 inches
February 13: 0.01 inches
February 14: None
February 15: 0.08 inches
February 16: None
February 17: None
February 18: None
February 19: None
February 20: None
February 21: None
February 22: None
February 23: None
February 24: None
February 25: 0.53 inches
February 26: None
February 27: None
February 28: None
March 1:       0.35 inches
March 2:       0.01 inches
March 3: None
March 4: None
March 5: None
March 6: None
March 7: 0.04 inches
March 8: 0.04 inches
March 9: None
March 10: 0.11 inches
March 11: None
March 12: None
March 13: None
March 14: 0.98 inches
March 15: None
March 16: None
March 17: None
March 18: 0.01 inches
March 19: None
March 20: None
March 21: None
March 22: None
March 23: None
March 24: 0.01 inches
March 25: 0.03 inches
March 26: 0.07 inches
March 27: 0.42 inches
March 28: 0.67 inches
March 29: None
March 30: None
March 31: 1.01 inches
April 1:         0.02 inches
April 2:         None
April 3:       0.01 inches
April 4: 1.28 inches
April 5: None
April 6: 0.99 inches
April 7: 0.01 inches
April 8: None
April 9: None
April 10: None
April 11: None
April 12: 0.06 inches
April 13: None
April 14: None
April 15: None
April 16: 0.02 inches
April 17: None
April 18: None
April 19: 0.16 inches
April 20: 0.15 inches
April 21: 0.29 inches
April 22: 0.04 inches
April 23: None
April 24: None
April 25: 0.56 inches
April 26: 0.19 inches
April 27: 0.01 inches
April 28: 0.02 inches
April 29: 0.02 inches
April 30: None
May 1:          None
May 2:          None
May 3:          None
May 4:          None
May 5:          2.21 inches
May 6:          0.13 inches
May 7:          0.03 inches
May 8:          None
May 9:          None
May 10:        None
May 11:        None
May 12:        None
May 13:        1.60 inches
May 14:        None
May 15:        None
May 16:        None
May 17:        None
May 18:        None
May 19:        0.10 inches
May 20:        None
May 21:        None
May 22:        0.48 inches
May 23:        None
May 24:        0.02 inches
May 25:        0.72 inches
May 26:        0.74 inches
May 27:        None
May 28:        None
May 29:        0.15 inches
May 30:        0.04 inches
May 31:        0.27 inches
June 1:          None
June 2:          None
June 3:          None
June 4:          0.20 inches
June 5:          0.01 inches
June 6:          0.10 inches
June 7:          None
June 8:          None
June 9:          None
June 10:        None
June 11:        None
June 12:        None
June 13:        None
June 14:        None
June 15:        None
June 16:    0.28 inches
June 17:    0.15 inches
June 18:    None
June 19:    0.50 inches
June 20:    None
June 21:    None
June 22:    None
June 23:    0.06 inches
June 24:    0.45 inches
June 25:    None
June 26:    None
June 27:        0.16 inches
June 28:        None
June 29:        None
June 30:        0.08 inches
July 1:           0.15 inches
July 2:           None
July 3:           None
July 4:           None
July 5:           None
July 6:           None
July 7:           1.13 inches
July 8:           0.03 inches
July 9:           None
July 10:         0.02 inches
July 11:         0.23 inches
July 12:         None
July 13:       0.63 inches
July 14: 0.85 inches
July 15: None
July 16: None
July 17: None
July 18: None
July 19: None
July 20: None
July 21: None
July 22: None
July 23: 0.02 inches
July 24: 0.46 inches
July 25:         None
July 26:         None
July 27:         None
July 28:         None
July 29:         0.15 inches
July 30:         None
July 31:         None
August 1:      None
August 2:      0.19 inches
August 3:      None
August 4:      0.09 inches
August 5:      0.43 inches
August 6:      None
August 7:      0.45 inches
August 8:      None
August 9:      None
August 10:    None
August 11:    None
August 12:    0.47 inches
August 13:    None
August 14:    None
August 15:    0.07 inches
August 16:    None
August 17:    None
August 18:    0.58 inches
August 19:    None
August 20:    None
August 21:    None
August 22:    0.23 inches
August 23:    0.05 inches
August 24:    None
August 25:    None
August 26:    None
August 27:    None
August 28: None
August 29:   0.08 inches
August 30:    None

-Rainfall: 27.54 inches
-# of Days of Measurable Precipitation:        91 days
-# of Days of No Measurable Precipitation: 151 days
-Most Rainfall in one day so far this year: 2.21 inches on May 5