Tropical Storm Beta Takes Aim At Texas Coast

Discussion in 'Weather & Natural Disasters' started by Beth Gallagher, Sep 21, 2020.

  1. Beth Gallagher

    Beth Gallagher Supreme Member
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    Looks like it might be a weak hurricane before it comes ashore, very slow moving so we will get lots of rain for the next few days. They are showing the beach at Galveston on local news; water is very choppy and the surf is up to the seawall. Lots of flooding along the coast already.
     
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  2. Beth Gallagher

    Beth Gallagher Supreme Member
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    Galveston, earlier...

     
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  3. Von Jones

    Von Jones Supreme Member
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    One of my favorite actors. I see Hurricane Beta found it.

     
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  4. Ed Wilson

    Ed Wilson Veteran Member
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    Have you had many Beth and were you ever seriously affected?
     
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  5. Beth Gallagher

    Beth Gallagher Supreme Member
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    Yes, hurricanes have been a part of my life since I was a kid, Ed. I have lived on the Texas Coast most of my life. The two worst storms in recent memory were Harvey in 2017 (50" of rain and the entire Houston area under water) and Ike in 2008 (power out for over 2 weeks in September.) This latest one seems mild by comparison but we are keeping an eye on the weather report.
     
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  6. Thomas Stearn

    Thomas Stearn Veteran Member
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    Wanted to ask you how bad it was, Beth?
     
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  7. Beth Gallagher

    Beth Gallagher Supreme Member
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    Pretty much a non-event, Thomas. We got about 5" of rain but no wind; the storm came ashore south of us and lost strength rapidly. Thanks for asking.
     
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  8. Terry Coywin

    Terry Coywin Veteran Member
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    Have you ever read Erik Larson's Isaac's Storm, Beth? A killer hurricane in 1900 that destroyed the city of Galveston, TX. It was named for a man, Isaac Cline who claimed that it was preposterous to think a hurricane could actually wipe out any city. Well, it is an excellent account not only of the storm and its aftermath, but the year of 1900 killed scores during a terrible heat wave, locusts descended upon the earth in droves and a tsunami hit the west coast of Africa. A giant glacier began melting big time. Sounds familiar, eh? History recycling itself every so often.
     
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  9. Beth Gallagher

    Beth Gallagher Supreme Member
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    Actually, I have read Isaac's Storm, Terry. (And just about everything written about the devastating Galveston storm.) My ex-husband's grandfather was about 1o years old when that storm hit, living in Freeport TX.
     
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  10. Thomas Stearn

    Thomas Stearn Veteran Member
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    Have you ever been affected by a hurricane, Beth? How were you doing when Katrina hit the country?
     
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  11. Beth Gallagher

    Beth Gallagher Supreme Member
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    Yes, I have been affected by several hurricanes over the years. The worst in recent memory were Hurricane Harvey in 2017 and Ike in 2008. During Harvey the Houston area got over 50" of rain and a large portion of the area was under water. Since we live on the San Jacinto River we were very nervous about the flooding. During Ike, we lost electrical power for over 2 weeks in September...ugh.

    We get tropical storms almost every year, some definitely much worse than others. We have never experienced a flooded house or wind damage beyond losing a wood fence, tree limbs and a few shingles, though. We were not affected by Katrina since it was far enough away and the "dirty" side of a hurricane is to the east. So southern Louisiana and Mississippi suffered terribly from that storm. We have been very lucky.
     
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  12. Thomas Stearn

    Thomas Stearn Veteran Member
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    Thanks, Beth. It's good to know that you haven't been severely hit but, then again, it's amazing if you think of all the devastation shown. As for flooding, it doesn't take a hurricane to get flooded. My previous house was situated on the topographically lowest point of a housing area. When there is a storm rainfall the sewer system gets temporarily overloaded and on one occasion the surplus water poured into our garage in the basement filling it and the adjacent rooms up to 60cm despite the antiflooding shutter we had.

    While torrential rain was a problem then, storms are an issue now. In any storm, and they have been on the increase, the wind gusts hit our house unhindered by any houses or natural obstacles. This photo shows Sari, the "real killer" as you said :D, being completely stressed due to the raging storm outside and a lack of understanding of what is going on.
    Sari-Stress.jpg

    I wish things would be back to normal but...
     
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  13. Beth Gallagher

    Beth Gallagher Supreme Member
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    Sari is so precious, @Thomas Stearn. My little Harry was terrified of thunder and fireworks, so I know how hard it is to see them stressed.

    Sorry you have to deal with flooding and high winds. We live on the "coastal plain," so flooding in this area is very common. I'd guess that some parts of the Houston area experience street/bayou flooding several times a year because we get a lot of rain. Thankfully, we live on the high side of the river so the people living on the other side are not as lucky. Also the man-made Lake Houston with a dam and spillway provide a great deal of flood control.

    There are no basements in this area; homes are mostly build on slabs. Across the river from here and close to the gulf, homes are built on high piers similar to this...

    [​IMG]
     
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  14. Thomas Stearn

    Thomas Stearn Veteran Member
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    Oh, that's interesting. I didn't know that houses are built on piers but it makes sense, of course. Functionally, they remind me of prehistoric lake dwellings in the Neolithic period. But even today our houses are not that posh.(see below);)
    Over here almost any house is built on slabs even if it has a basement like mine.

    Trautes Heim - Kopie.jpg
     
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  15. Beth Gallagher

    Beth Gallagher Supreme Member
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    I'm trying to figure out how a house on a slab can have a basement?? :D Here, a "slab" is a solid concrete with plumbing running through it. Older homes were built on short piers with a crawlspace, or "pier and beam" construction. There are still plenty of those around as well.
     
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