A look back at a soggy weekend, and ahead at another one?

It’s a cool, gusty morning but the rains have finally ended.

LAST WEEKEND

Houston was a soggy mess, but for a region that generally received 6 to 11 inches of rain we came through the event remarkably well.

Two-day rain accumulations for Houston. (HCOEM)
Two-day rain accumulations for Houston. Click to enlarge. (HCOEM)

 

A combination of dry soils and relatively moderate rainfall rates, especially at the beginning of things on Saturday, helped the city’s bayous cope with all that rain quite well.

Although Sunday was not particularly hazardous after the early morning hours, it was nonetheless quite an unpleasant day with strong winds and steady rains. This image, which shows the immensity of Hurricane Patricia’s remnants stretching from Oaxaca, Mexico to Memphis, Tenn., shows why.

Satellite image taken on Sunday afternoon. (NOAA)
Satellite image taken on Sunday afternoon. (NOAA)

 

It was a huge storm, with huge winds, and now fortunately it’s gone.

TODAY

We’re going to be windy and cool today.

Winds are gusting into the 20s this morning across the region, but those levels should fall off through the day. We’ll remain mostly to partly cloudy, and as cooler air flows into the region highs should stay in the 70s.

THREE DAYS

Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday should be great fall days as we bask in drier, cooler air. Expect highs around 80, lows in the low 60s, with lots of sunshine.

This will allow the region to dry out, and good thing too because more rain is coming for this weekend.

AHEAD

By later on Friday an upper level low pressure system — or “trough” because of how it looks on maps of the mid-levels of the atmosphere — will approach Texas from New Mexico. This system will create conditions that pull moisture from the Gulf of Mexico into the state, as well as allowing air at the surface to rise.

An upper-level trough will create conditions favorable for rain this weekend. (Weather Bell)
An upper-level trough will create conditions favorable for rain this weekend. (Weather Bell)

 

That’s a recipe for rain, especially on Saturday, Saturday night, and Sunday. How much? Way too early to say for sure, but it’s a good bet there will be some amount of precipitation on Halloween day or night, and potentially several inches. I’ll be watching this closely as I know a lot of people, my family included, have outdoor plans for the Halloween weekend.

Posted at 6:50 a.m. on Monday

22 thoughts on “A look back at a soggy weekend, and ahead at another one?”

  2. You were spot on this weekend. I appreciate your efforts even into the late hours Saturday /Sunday.

  4. Another Chronicle defector like myself! I always read your blogs and will continue to do so on this site. Congrats on a great new site, I know all of your followers will follow you here and I will help spread the word.

  5. Clicked on the Chron link this morning to read your update. It’s going to take me a while to change my routine! Bookmarked this page and shared. Thank you for the amazing coverage this weekend!

  6. Another avid, yet non-posting, fan from your Chron days here. Glad to see you up and running so quickly. It also helps that you’re so much easier to find now. I’ve always hated how the Chron has progressively (?) made finding your blog from the main page harder over the years, bookmarking only works for a short while then they mess it up again.

    Kudos!

    • Yes. I always wished for (and pushed for) an easier way to find my blog on the chron’s site. No worries about that any more!

  7. Love the new site, Eric! No reason for me to visit the Chron any more. We appreciate you keeping us all informed.

  8. We thought we’d miss most of the heavy rain here in Orange County….but the bottom dropped out last evening….total rainfall, 7.24 inches.

  9. Never chimed in on Chronicle page but have always used you for weather planning. Now as soon as Leon Hale goes exclusively to other sites I can totally rid myself of that website. Thanks so much for your no hype and accurate forecasts.

  10. So glad your Facebook post led me here! I was worried I would have to get my weather from the HYPE-casters.

  11. I’m not going to lie. The only reason I went to the Chronicle website was for your blog. Occasionally I would see some article out of the corner of my eye that would catch my attention but it often. My wife says that I’m a weather nerd because I don’t just look to see if it’s raining, I look to see when the winds shift and the humidity levels drop. I don’t get to do it for a living so I will live vicariously through you. Keep up the good work!

  12. Eric,

    I am glad to still be able to find the best weather information available anywhere.

    While I am in Central TX, I do look to you for what will eventually make its way to Houston because it has to go through Austin first….and Katy, too.

    Thanks for the great work.

    Duke

  13. Let me just echo what everyone else is saying: we are thrilled that you are continuing to blog on Houston weather. I panicked when I looked for your Sciguy blog at the Chronicle Clickbait website and found that you had left but was delighted to be told of your new venture. Frankly I wouldn’t know what was going on without your expert analysis and experience.

  14. So glad you are still writing about the weather! I guess now I can stop going to the Chronicle for any reason at all. You were the only good thing about that site.

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