Houston begins cleaning up after torrential rains

Parts of Southeast Texas received up to 23 inches of precipitation. Hundreds of people had to be rescued from the floods and at least one death was reported, a five-year-old boy who was caught in a car swept away by the floodwaters.

Incessant rains last week and weekend gave way to a period of dry weather starting Monday, but the start of May 2024 is the wettest on record for the city. Areas near Lake Livingston, northeast of Houston, received 23 inches of rain. Huntsville, a half-hour north of Houston, saw 17 inches. And the city of Conroe, 15 minutes north of Houston, received 7.5 inches.

Sunday’s storms brought up to nine inches of rain to some areas in just six to eight hours, washing out roads and causing rivers to flood.

But the rain will be replaced by Texas heat this week. Temperatures are expected to exceed 90 degrees – and with Earth saturation and humidity, that could push the heat index above 100 degrees.

Forecasters had warned that last summer’s extreme weather was not an isolated weather event. A report released last month by Texas State Climatologist at Texas A&M University Dr. John Nielsen-Gammon predicted more extreme events this year, including excessive precipitation, noting that clouds produce about 4% more precipitation for each degree Fahrenheit increase in average temperature. This can change weather conditions and increase the number of dangerous storms.

Last summer, Texas experienced temperatures in some areas higher than 99 percent of the planet, according to some meteorologists. In July, a forecast called for the northern part of the state to reach 112 degrees.

By 2036, according to the Texas A&M report, the chances of a day over 100 degrees will be four times what they were in the 1970s and 1980s.