We’ve got a tropical storm on the way. No reason to get complacent, just because it isn’t a category 5 hurricane. Just thought I’d post this little blast from the past, courtesy of the National Weather Service:
5 and 2 day rainfall totals:
INSIDE HARRIS COUNTY:
GREENS BAYOU AT WEST MT. HOUSTON . . . . . . 35.67 INCHES . . 26.54 INCHES
WESTHEIMER AND KIRBY . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33.00 INCHES . . 23.40 INCHES
HUNTING BAYOU AT I-10 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32.91 INCHES . . 22.13 INCHES
COWART CREEK AT BAKER (FRIENDSWOOD) . . 25.98 INCHES . . 13.50 INCHES
VINCE BAYOU AT WEST ELLAINE . . . . . . . . . . . 25.31 INCHES . . 12.68 INCHES
GARNERS BAYOU AT BELTWAY 8 (SOUTH) . . . . . 24.61 INCHES . . 17.91 INCHES
GREENS BAYOU AT US HIGHWAY 59 . . . . . . . . 23.58 INCHES . . 14.96 INCHES
BUFFALO BAYOU AT TURNING BASIN . . . . . . . . 23.54 INCHES . . 14.45 INCHES
CLEAR CREEK AT TELEPHONE ROAD . . . . . . . . 20.04 INCHES . . 10.12 INCHES
BRAYS BAYOU AT STELLA LINK . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19.72 INCHES . . 12.80 INCHES
WHITE OAK BAYOU AT ELLA . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18.19 INCHES . . 12.72 INCHES
INCREDIBLE AS THESE RAIN TOTALS ARE...THEY STILL PALE IN COMPARISON
TO THE RAINFALL TOTALS PRODUCED BY TROPICAL STORM CLAUDETTE IN 1979.
THE U.S. 24 HOUR RECORD RAINFALL TOTAL OCCURRED IN ALVIN TEXAS ON
JULY 24 1979. 43 INCHES OF RAIN FELL ON ALVIN DURING THAT 24 HOUR
PERIOD. IT IS PLAUSIBLE THAT SOME OF THE VOLUNTEER CO-OP SITES
ACROSS SOUTHEAST TEXAS WILL YIELD SOME EVEN HIGHER RAINFALL TOTALS
THAN WHAT IS LISTED HERE. KHGX-88D RADAR HAS ESTIMATED THAT 30 TO 40
INCHES OF RAIN HAS FALLEN OVER PARTS OF LIBERTY...CHAMBERS AND
HARRIS COUNTIES SINCE JUNE 1ST.
One of the things that made Allison so bad was that it rained heavily for three days prior to the main storm, which mean that the ground was already saturated. Bear in mind that the normal rainfall total for Houston in a year is only 46 inches….
I’ll be getting ready now, thank you.
Update: All three vehicles topped off, some extra gas in cans for the generator, a few gallons of water bought and set aside (plus several more empty jugs ready to be filled). We’d just bought groceries so we’re set there. Might pick up some extra batteries tomorrow; we’d gotten some ten days ago, just in case. But here’s why this storm worries me a bit, per the Weather Nerd:
. . . the National Hurricane Center designated Tropical Depression Five at 5:00 PM EDT, and then at 6:00 PM, upgraded it to Tropical Storm Edouard in a special advisory, noting in the discussion:
WHEN THE RECONNAISSANCE AIRCRAFT PASSED THROUGH THE CONVECTION TO THE SOUTHEAST OF THE CENTER A SHORT TIME AGO…IT FOUND MAXIMUM FLIGHT LEVEL WINDS OF 54 KT AND A SURFACE PRESSURE OF 1002 MB…A DROP OF 5 MB IN AN HOUR AND A HALF. THESE DATA INDICATE THAT THE DEPRESSION HAS STRENGTHENED INTO THE FIFTH TROPICAL STORM OF THE SEASON. … EDOUARD IS NOW EXPECTED TO BE NEAR HURRICANE INTENSITY AT LANDFALL.
If this rate of intensification continues, Edouard could be stronger than that. But for now, the official forecast falls for the storm’s intensity to max out at 70 mph. Tropical Storm Watches and Warnings are up for much of the Louisiana and Texas coasts.
The pressure drops strengthen the wind speed and total power of the storm. Last measurement had it at 1002mb. Below about 990 it’s getting close to hurricane status — pressure at the nominal hurricane point is around 980mb. In other words, if it kept intensifying at the same rate (not at all likely, I admit) it’s becoming a hurricane right now as I type this. And it’s already raining. Not part of Edouard, but it’s part of the same conditions that spawned the storm. That suggests a wet storm…
10pm update: It has not grown any stronger, and the track has been shifted slightly north. Both are promising signs… for me. One of those is less so for folks to the east.