Eric Berger

Another stormy day possible for the Houston area Monday

Sunday produced widespread, heavy rain across the Houston area, with generally 1 to 5 inches. Accumulations were greatest near Galveston, and just to the southeast of the Houston area. Some of the storms were quite ominous, such as the clouds depicted in this photo from the Galveston-Port Bolivar Ferry System. Others, such as a large system that moved through downtown during the afternoon hours, produced a lot of lightning.

Boats in the Galveston-Port Bolivar Ferry system sheltered briefly during Sunday’s storms. (Twitter)

The conditions that produced these storms, particularly a moist atmosphere and slow-moving upper-level low pressure system will remain in place today, so we can expect another wet day before we begin transitioning to drier weather later in the week.

Today

As the upper-level system slowly moves from west to east across the region, we’ll see another wet day—especially later this morning and into the afternoon hours as daytime temperatures move into the mid- to upper-80s. Some regions could see another 1 to 3 inches, with greater localized amounts, especially to the east-southeast of Houston, from Galveston to Baytown. Given the already wet soils, we’ll have to be more concerned about the potential for flash flooding today. We’ll keep an eye on things.

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Flood advisory issued for western half of Houston area

The National Weather Service has issued a flood advisory for much of the western half of the Houston area this afternoon. The warning comes as a large area of thunderstorms moves into the region from central Texas, and is in effect until 4:30pm CT. I’m especially concerned about the potential for lots of lightning.

Area of flood advisory through 4:30pm CT. (National Weather ServicF

The region’s moist atmosphere has already produced heavy rains and some flooding overnight near College Station, and this morning along the coast with some areas getting as much as 6 inches.

Would expect minor flooding from the system moving through on Sunday afternoon—rather than major flooding—but if you’re planning to be out and about this afternoon and evening in the Houston area, please take an umbrella and check the radar. Some parts of Houston may see 2 to 4 inches from these storms today and this evening.

Rain chances will remain on Monday and Tuesday before a cool front (yes, really) dries us out for the second half of the work week.

Hurricane season starts, but no concerns for Houston yet

We have reached June 1, which marks the official beginning of hurricane season. You’ve probably seen lots of coverage about how this seems likely to be an “active” season for the Atlantic—however if you actually read NOAA’s forecast it calls for a 55 percent chance of near normal or below normal activity, with a 45 percent chance of above normal. Essentially, that’s 50-50, and not really worth worrying about any more than any other year. Truthfully, if you live near the Gulf coast you should have a plan for when a hurricane threatens (evacuate? where? pets? documents? supplies?), and then put it into place when a storm develops. You can rest assured that we’ll provide comprehensive coverage of any tropical weather that potentially threatens Texas. To that end, we’ll be unveiling a site sponsor for the entirety of the season soon.

(NOAA)

Now, onto the forecast.

Thursday

Scattered showers and thunderstorms moved through Houston during the overnight hours dropping from less than a tenth of an inch to more than one inch of rain over western parts of Harris County. These showers have scoured some of the moisture from the air, and we’re likely to see a reprieve from rain through the morning hours. Whether we see some additional rain showers this afternoon will depend upon the extent to which our skies clear out after noon—sunnier skies will lead to warmer temperatures, and this would increase the likelihood of showers later in the afternoon and early evening. Look for highs in the mid-80s.

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On again, off again rainy days likely until early next week in Houston

On the last day of May conditions are warm this morning, with almost summer-like readings in the 70s. A few rainy days could keep the low-90s heat away from us for the next week or so, however.

Today

It will be another warm day, with highs likely reaching into the upper 80s this afternoon. This daytime heat should combine with moisture to produce a decent chance of showers and thunderstorms this afternoon. I’m not anticipating widespread coverage, but for areas that do see rain, that rain could briefly be quite heavy.

Thursday

This should be a wetter day for the region, as moisture surges into the area from the south. We should expect widespread showers and thunderstorms, again, with some localized deluges possible. Mostly cloudy skies should help keep highs in the mid-80s, and most areas probably will see on the order of 1 inch of rain, or slightly less.

(Space City Weather is sponsored this month by Jetco Delivery)

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