Hurricane Harvey -- not a hyperlocal weather post
conandrob240 said:
So, there is absolutely no thought given to, nor planning for potential future disasters? You just wait and then say, wow, we only have 2-3 days, sorry, can't come up with anything here that quickly. Sorry, doesn't sound quite right. While I am thrilled the death toll is low, it seems like a major clusterf$&* of incompetence there. We'll see how it looks in hindsight after people get through it right now.
There is plenty of thought and planning but it is highly unlikely that it is a priority for the Houston/Texas "powers that be" to be communicating and explaining all that to those of us in New Jersey.
There was a LOT of infrastructure work done after Tropical Storm Allison (2001) which wreaked flooding havoc there. And that work succeeded in many places. You don't see those places in the news because they aren't news. My old neighborhood used to get water almost to our doorstep rather frequently whenever we got more than an inch or two of rain, but it is high and dry this week after 20+ inches, according to the current resident of the property where I gew up. (same address/new house)
And "shelter in place" is the primary advice in most parts of Houston and it was and is good advice in most cases. We don't yet know what the total loss of life is for this storm, but so far the numbers seem very low. And the majority of those reported so far involve vehicles that drove into storm waters. I can tell you that there is constant warning against doing that so nobody should blame the emergency management folks in those cases.
No doubt some hindsight may yield evidence of decisions that were ill-advised, but I have little doubt that the officials DID plan and DID follow what seemed to be the best approach based on the information at hand. And remember that hindsight is 20-20. Every storm is different. And I'm sure that the debacle of the Rita evacuations weighed heavily on all of their minds. Over 100 people died and thousands were trapped in their cars for hours or even days in the hot sun on the highways while trying to evacuate from a storm that ultimately did almost nothing to the city because it turned eastward and went into Louisiana instead. My sister is a physician who lived near one of those highways and actually went out with volunteer crews to "doctor" people who were stuck there.
Yes, Houston does not have many regulations regarding zoning and development. It is a blessing and a curse for sure. It has certainly contributed to the vibrancy and economic success of the city, but at a cost. It will be interesting to see what changes, if any, may be proposed in the aftermath. But many characteristics of the city and surrounding areas are not likely to change so residents and city officials will continue to need to understand the consequences and consider that in their plans.
Yes, I'm biased. I was born and raised there. And, as a result, I did and do have some sense of how to prepare for a storm. Rarely, if ever, was evacuation a desirable strategy. More like a last resort in very limited cases.
Watching the almost super human efforts of both the professional first responders and the many many citizens from the area and afar who have turned out with their boats to help those in need....I think we can add another phrase to our vocabulary........"Houston Strong".
visual of how big the storm area was. with almost no real lead time. most of us here, in the soup, agree with the shelter-in-place strategy. even my friends with houses that flooded and had to be rescued in from their roofs feel that way. the 3 people I know who chose to evacuate are now stuck out of town because they can't get and are regretting leaving.
http://m.chron.com/news/local/article/Maps-show-what-Harvey-s-weekend-impact-would-look-12161601.php
mommyrock said:
visual of how big the storm area was. with almost no real lead time. most of us here, in the soup, agree with the shelter-in-place strategy. even my friends with houses that flooded and had to be rescued in from their roofs feel that way. the 3 people I know who chose to evacuate are now stuck out of town because they can't get and are regretting leaving.
http://m.chron.com/news/local/article/Maps-show-what-Harvey-s-weekend-impact-would-look-12161601.php
Glad to know you are ok.
Thinking about posters from days gone by, does anyone know what is happening with Peggy? She dropped out of sight after the switch and I for one miss her as she sort of filled the role of moral compass for MOL (to my mind at least).
@max_weisenfeld Any thoughts on where Irma might hit? The European and American models apparently show vastly different paths.
Klinker, PeggyC told me she's on the Facebook MOL...
She's well and busy; we chatted a few days ago.
joanne said:
Klinker, PeggyC told me she's on the Facebook MOL...
She's well and busy; we chatted a few days ago.
Glad to hear that.
And the garden's getting a new Spring look ... she sends best wishes to all!
spontaneous said:
@max_weisenfeld Any thoughts on where Irma might hit? The European and American models apparently show vastly different paths.
I have an Irma thread going, I'll post a link to it.
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Really hard to call this storm that far out, since it would be dissipating by that time after having run up the Mississippi and Ohio Valleys.
There are some runs of some models that show that the remnants of Harvey might pass by. By that time, you won't know it was Harvey. If it happens, and that is still quite the if, my best guess right now would be 1/2" over 24 hours, so a typical rainy day. But that is a guess based on a supposition. I wouldn't worry.