Month: November 2017

Post-Harvey week in review: November 27, 2017

Welcome to our week in review of news and stories about Harvey recovery and flooding issues you may have missed over the last few days. If you weren’t able to check out last week’s edition, you can find it here. Feel free to share any links we may have missed in the comments. On to the news.

Reads of the week

What bond investors weren’t told about a threat facing Cinco Ranch (Houston Chronicle): Ten municipal utility districts (MUDs) in the Cinco Ranch area have had over 70 bonds sold since 1992 and only one of those disclosed a flooding risk to those neighborhoods.

Harvey was three months ago. These displaced families are still in limbo (Texas Tribune): A pair of Houston families grapple with the same decisions and problems that many thousands in our area are going through a few months after Harvey.

Houston housing

Harris County proposing dramatic overhaul of floodplain regulations (Houston Chronicle): Harris County (not Houston, for now) may require developers to use the 500-year floodplain for new development, as opposed to the 100-year floodplain as it is now.

A House’s Flood History Can Be Hard To Find (Houston Public Media): Trying to find out if a home you’re considering buying or renting has flooded is often pretty difficult to do.

Rental market tightens, but it may not last (Houston Chronicle): Houston’s apartment occupancy has experienced a heck of a reversal over the last few months. More volatility may be in the future.

How Much Damage Did Harvey Do To Texas Homes? There May Never Be An Exact Answer (Texas Tribune): With a substantial amount of money coming in and numerous government agencies involved in the recovery effort, some things may fall through the cracks when assessing the scale of the disaster, concerning advocates.

We may never know precisely how much damage Harvey did to Houston neighborhoods. (Texas National Guard)

Displaced by storm still yearn for home (Houston Chronicle): 47,000 flood victims are still displaced in hotels all over the country. The housing aspect of the recovery usually moves slowly, and in a post-Harvey world, it’s no different.

See full post

Historically, Houston’s coldest 90-day period begins now

Houston just enjoyed a splendid week of weather, and truth be told there’s more great fall-like weather to come for the region—nothing too hot or too cold. However, winter is not too far off. And as this graphic published on Twitter by climate scientist Brian Brettschneider shows, we are entering the historically coolest period of weather for the region:

When does the 90-day period of coldest weather begin? (Brian Brettschneider)

This indicates that the coolest 90-day period for Houston (and most of the Gulf Coast outside of Florida) runs from the end of November through the end of February. And indeed, there are some signs of more winter-like weather in the extended forecast, as I’ll discuss below.

Monday and Tuesday

After a cool start to the work week, highs will jump up into the mid-70s on Monday, and upper 70s on Tuesday. With relatively dry air (especially on Monday) and sunny skies, both days should feel quite pleasant, and nights will be mild with lows in the upper 50s to 60 degrees. As moisture levels begin to rise Monday night, we could see some fog on Tuesday morning.

See full post

Houston a bit dry, but don’t let that spoil our fantastic run of weather

Skies are already clearing this morning across the Houston region on Wednesday morning, setting the stage for a splendid holiday weekend—and as discussed Tuesday our weather looks really fine for quite awhile. We have only one small concern, which surprisingly after a year in which Hurricane Harvey hit Houston, is a lack of rain. Over the last two months a large part of the region has received just two to three inches of rainfall. As the US Drought Monitor map shown below indicates, the region is not yet in a drought. We are not yet even “abnormally dry,” but conditions now represent a mild concern as we enter a La Nina winter that is likely to be drier than normal. For now, it’s just something to watch.

Drought map for Texas as of Wednesday. (US Drought Monitor)

Wednesday and Thursday

What you see this morning is what you get. Wednesday will be breezy, as cool northerly winds blow in, but these should die down this evening. Both days will be sunny, with highs in the 60s, and chilly nights. For Thanksgiving morning, we should see temperatures as cool as the mid-30s for far northern reaches of the Houston metro area, with low 40s in the city, and around 50 degrees right on the coast. Thursday night will be a few degrees warmer.

See full post

Umm, Houston’s weather looks shockingly nice for quite awhile

Houston will see some spotty rain chances today before a cold front blows into the area tonight and brings chilly, holiday-like weather to the region for Thanksgiving. This will provide a nice contrast to the holiday’s weather the last two years, which has been muggier, with high temperatures in the 70s.

Tuesday

Some showers popped up near the coast this morning, and we will probably see additional showers and perhaps a few isolated thunderstorms to the south and east of the city today. A majority of the city will probably see little or no rain at all, however, as mostly cloudy skies limit high temperatures to the mid-70s. I expect a warmish evening before the front pushes through the region between midnight and sunrise on Wednesday morning. A broken line of storms may accompany the front.

Wednesday and Thursday

Expect breezy conditions when you wake up on Wednesday, as cooler and drier air will be blowing in from the north. We could see wind gusts in the upper teens to lower 20s of mph, and highs should only warm into the mid-60s under sunny skies.

Low temperature forecast for Thanksgiving morning. (NOAA)

Wednesday night and Thanksgiving morning will be a cold one, with lows in the mid- to upper 30s for inland areas, and lower 50s right along the coast. After a clear and cold start to Thanksgiving, expect light winds, sunny skies, and a high of around 65 degrees during the afternoon.

See full post