Flash Flood — Harris, Texas

2007-08-16 · near Houston, Harris, Texas

Event narrative

Numerous roads flooded and impassable across the eastern half of Harris County from the Houston area to the La Porte, Pasadena, and Deer Park areas. Flooding in Deer Park included homes off of Hender, Martha, and Eight Streets, as well as Harvard Avenue, with two feet of water reported over portions of East Boulevard. Pasadena area flooding included Strawberry Park, Southmore, Red Bluff, and Burke Streets, as well as Beltway 8 exits being closed due to high water. House flooding also occurred in Pasadena. At least a dozen schools, majority of these being in East Houston, received water damage. There were reports of Vince Bayou exceeding its banks at Shaw Street. Homes and businesses were also flooded in the La Porte area where some structures were inundated with more than a foot of water. Heavy rainfall collapsed a warehouse roof in Houston on Harrisburg Boulevard. There were three fatalities. Two men died (one at the scene, the other several hours later in a hospital) when heavy rainfall collapsed the roof of a grocery store in Clear Lake. A third fatality occurred when an eighteen wheeler was accidentally driven into a 26 foot deep flooded retention pond in La Porte. The driver drowned.

Wider weather episode

Tropical Storm Erin made landfall along the middle Texas coast around the Port Aransas area as a minimal tropical storm early on the 16th. A southeast to northwest feeder band developed around 10:00 AM CDT from Katy to the western end of Galveston Island and moved slowly eastward to a line from Clear Lake to Humble by 5:00 PM CDT. Training of the cells along this southeast to northwest line combined with rainfall rates upwards of 4 to 5 inches per hour resulting in major street flooding and minor flooding of several bayous in Harris County. Widespread major street flooding occurred throughout the afternoon across the eastern half of Harris county with SH 288 impassable near the 610 south loop, I-10 east closed at Wayside, and numerous secondary roads closed along I-45 S, SH 225, and I-10 E. Flooding of homes and businesses occurred in the La Porte area where some structures were inundated with more than a foot of water. House flooding also occurred in the Pasadena area. There were also at least a dozen schools that received water damage. Minor street flooding also occurred across portions of Galveston County in and around the League City area. There were three deaths from Erin. Two fatalities were from a supermarket roof collapse under the weight of the heavy rainfall, and the third fatality was from a vehicle that drove into a flooded detention pond.

View location on OpenStreetMap → (29.7300, -95.3700)

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 58491. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.