Well TS Edouard has come and gone without really leaving any marks. We did get a good bit of much needed rain but there really wasn't much damage around here. The folks to the east of us may have a different story though as the storms effects were most felt just west of the state border.
My only complaint about the coverage and response is that there were very credible sources who said 36 hours ago, that the storm would fall where it did with tropical storm intensity. Yet the weather channel had the storm hitting Galveston right up until it came ashore somewhere else. I have questions about motives of course but I guess its better to be prepared than not.
Jules and I pretty much have a routine as far as preparations go. Its based on a handfull of factors that don't have much to do with any one news agency. I think we've found that its best to get varied reports in attempt to put together our own "forecast". So far. so good.
This will be my last post here until we see another chance for severe weather here on the gulf coast. One of us will resend the link to the blog when that happens. Good night all!
Tuesday, August 5, 2008
TS Edouard making landfall East of Houston
We haven't seen much in the way of wind associated with this storm yet. Its just been kind of a slow and steady rain. Looks like we might get more of the storm within the next couple of hours but it really doesn't look very threatening right now.
Of course the local news is reporting this as the storm of the century. Its kind of funny to see them standing by the bay in their full rain suits with a light rain falling. We get storms associated with fall/winter cold fronts that are much worse than this. I guess the danger is in the duration as storms like this can park over an area and dump several inches of rain. Best case scenario for us would see the storm moving slowly to the north throughout the next couple of days. We're in desperate need of rain around here.
Only threat now seems to be some localized flooding. The news is reporting that "brunt" of the storm will hit Houston at 11:00am this morning.
Of course the local news is reporting this as the storm of the century. Its kind of funny to see them standing by the bay in their full rain suits with a light rain falling. We get storms associated with fall/winter cold fronts that are much worse than this. I guess the danger is in the duration as storms like this can park over an area and dump several inches of rain. Best case scenario for us would see the storm moving slowly to the north throughout the next couple of days. We're in desperate need of rain around here.
Only threat now seems to be some localized flooding. The news is reporting that "brunt" of the storm will hit Houston at 11:00am this morning.
Monday, August 4, 2008
TS Edouard to Strengthen, possible turning to the north
The SciGuy blog at the Houston Chronicle and Dr. Jeff Masters at Weather Underground outline the possibility of TS Edouard turning to the north of Houston and hitting the Texas-Louisiana border.
What this means for us in Houston is a little bit of rain and wind. Nothing like what would happen if the TS hit Galveston directly and came ashore to Houston (as earlier predictions stated). All of the computer models and the weather channel still have the storm on a direct path for Galveston.
I tend to think that the storm will turn North and hit the border. This means a pretty messy storm for Michael, Becky, Abby and Evan.
Either way, Jules, myself and the kids will be at home tomorrow just in case the storm holds its course. We're not really worried about any wind but Houston can flood pretty quickly.
The official predictions have the eye of the storm hitting Galveston around noon tomorrow. This means that we would probably start to see some of the early rain bands right around dawn.
All in all I think we're pretty "underwhelmed" by this one. We've done all the stuff you're supposed to do when there is a storm in the gulf but I really don't think this thing will amount to much around here.
If the storm turns north, Jules and I will call Michael and post any updates here. I'll post another update around dawn tomorrow.
What this means for us in Houston is a little bit of rain and wind. Nothing like what would happen if the TS hit Galveston directly and came ashore to Houston (as earlier predictions stated). All of the computer models and the weather channel still have the storm on a direct path for Galveston.
I tend to think that the storm will turn North and hit the border. This means a pretty messy storm for Michael, Becky, Abby and Evan.
Either way, Jules, myself and the kids will be at home tomorrow just in case the storm holds its course. We're not really worried about any wind but Houston can flood pretty quickly.
The official predictions have the eye of the storm hitting Galveston around noon tomorrow. This means that we would probably start to see some of the early rain bands right around dawn.
All in all I think we're pretty "underwhelmed" by this one. We've done all the stuff you're supposed to do when there is a storm in the gulf but I really don't think this thing will amount to much around here.
If the storm turns north, Jules and I will call Michael and post any updates here. I'll post another update around dawn tomorrow.
Looks like TS Edouard might be headed our way
Latest info on Weather Underground has strongest winds from Hurricane Edouard (60-70) hitting around the Texas/Louisiana border. Computer models show the storms path as coming ashore somewhere between Port O'Conner and Galveston. Looks like sometime late morning Tues.
Looks like both Orange and Northwest Houston are under a Hurricane watch. KUHT Radio this morning reported the likelihood of cat 1 conditions at landfall. Winds may get kind of rough but I think they are primarily worried about flooding around here. Our house fared pretty well during the last few flood events and the neighborhood has completed a whole bunch of flood projects since the last one. Shouldn't be a problem if we stay put.
Our plans
Jules and I put gas in the cars and did some other small preparation steps yesterday afternoon. I'll be stopping by the store today to stock up on water and other things. Probably won't worry with fortifying the house until we hear more late tonight. We have plywood shutters and a small gas generator in case the power goes out so we should be okay.
After seeing first hand how bad the evacuations went during Rita (thousands of cars parked on 290 for 36 hours) I think the safest course for us would be stay. The house is pretty sturdy and we have pretty much everything we would need for a few days.
We'll keep our cell phones charged and if the power goes out, I can probably still use the computer to update this blog. So check here for updates throughout the next 48 hours.
Looks like both Orange and Northwest Houston are under a Hurricane watch. KUHT Radio this morning reported the likelihood of cat 1 conditions at landfall. Winds may get kind of rough but I think they are primarily worried about flooding around here. Our house fared pretty well during the last few flood events and the neighborhood has completed a whole bunch of flood projects since the last one. Shouldn't be a problem if we stay put.
Our plans
Jules and I put gas in the cars and did some other small preparation steps yesterday afternoon. I'll be stopping by the store today to stock up on water and other things. Probably won't worry with fortifying the house until we hear more late tonight. We have plywood shutters and a small gas generator in case the power goes out so we should be okay.
After seeing first hand how bad the evacuations went during Rita (thousands of cars parked on 290 for 36 hours) I think the safest course for us would be stay. The house is pretty sturdy and we have pretty much everything we would need for a few days.
We'll keep our cell phones charged and if the power goes out, I can probably still use the computer to update this blog. So check here for updates throughout the next 48 hours.
Sunday, August 3, 2008
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