Eric Berger

For Houston storms possible mid-week, and heavy rains may return by the weekend

After some rather nasty storms on Sunday afternoon and early evening, which brought as much as 3 inches of rain to Friendswood and sparked some tornado warnings, we’ll see quieter weather—for a bit.

TODAY and TUESDAY

We’ll see partly sunny and warm days, with highs rising into the mid-80s today and Tuesday. Over the course of the next two days we’ll see an increasingly strong southerly wind, which will help amp moisture levels back up over the area. On Tuesday we’ll hear a lot about the potential for multiple tornadoes and heavy rain over northern Texas and Oklahoma as a storm system crosses the central United States. It could get pretty bad for Dallas and points north. Houston appears likely to be on the southern periphery of this system. And as it moves eastward it could begin to affect the Houston region.

NOAA severe storm outlook for Wednesday.
NOAA severe storm outlook for Wednesday.

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Thunderstorms to depart Houston this evening, but more concerns later this week

Unfortunately some of the showers moving over Houston today did develop into moderately heavy thunderstorms. Additionally, these storms moved over the western half of the metro region hard hit by rains six days ago, bringing as much as 1 inch of rain to some areas.

Rain accumulations today through 4:15pm CT on Sunday. (Harris County Flood Warning System)
Rain accumulations today through 4:15pm CT on Sunday. (Harris County Flood Warning System)

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Scattered thunderstorms possible today, and more concerns later this week in Houston

Good morning. It’s pleasantly cool for this late April morning, with temperatures around 60 degrees for most of the Houston area. In contrast to our lovely, sunny Saturday however, clouds will return to the area today and that possibly could mean some rain.

Scattered, light rain is possible later this morning, with spotty heavier rain and thunderstorms potentially this afternoon. (We could also see nothing but gray skies.) Additionally, although the probability of this is low, I’m not ready to rule out some isolated, locally heavy rainfall. If that seems likely I will update later today.

After that Monday and Tuesday look fairly warm, low- to mid-80s, with partly sunny skies. Nothing to worry about then but the AC bills. However there are two things to look out for in the coming week.

TUESDAY NIGHT/WEDNESDAY

Forecasters have been warning for several days about ideal conditions for severe weather, including tornadoes, for northern Texas and Oklahoma during the day Tuesday. This still seems likely and will very likely be a major weather story this week.

Area of severe storm likelihood on Tuesday. (NOAA)
Area of severe storm likelihood on Tuesday. (NOAA)

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Site Update: Space City Weather seeks a sponsor, and more

It’s been quite a week for Space City Weather, which Matt and I have now been publishing for nearly six months. Without any advertising we’ve grown to more than 100,000 monthly page views, have nearly 21,000 “likes” on Facebook, and are continuing to see significant growth. This is due entirely to word of mouth from readers who share the site on Facebook, spread the word on Twitter and submit posts and upvote on reddit. We deeply appreciate this support.

To really cover weather in the greater Houston area the right way, the site requires a lot of work, especially when active weather occurs (I worked about 18 hours on Monday, for example). Matt and I are developing plans for even more coverage, especially with hurricane season looming. At the same time, because this is essentially a hobby that takes time away from our families, Matt and I need to find a way to compensate for our time and server expenses. We have no intention of charging users to access the site—our foremost purpose is to provide a service, and making blocking access goes entirely against this—but we do think the site has value to a sponsor. We believe readers value the site, and would value the sponsor bringing it to them.

So we are seeking a monthly sponsor. For more details, go here.

We also will continue to appreciate you sharing the site on social media, and telling friends and family about us. I’d also like to remind you that, given Facebook’s algorithms, the surest way to not miss a new report on Space City Weather is to enter your e-mail in the “subscribe via e-mail” box on the right-hand side of this page. You only get e-mails when we make new posts. That’s it.

So thank you for all your support, and here’s to better weather ahead!