HOUSTON – As the flood pattern continues in the Houston area, especially in our northern counties, Mayor John Whitmire reminded residents in Kingwood that the City is stepping in to keep residents protected.
Heavy thunderstorms pounded the Houston area Thursday and made their presence known with gusty winds, lots of lightning, and very heavy rainfall. According to KPRC 2 digital content producer, Christian Terry, some of the hardest-hit areas include Lake Livingston, Huntsville, Lake Conroe, and the areas we’ve been watching all week along the East Fork of the San Jacinto River.
Several videos from Kingwood illustrated just how severe the weather was in the early Thursday morning hours.
This prompted Mayor Whitmire to visit Fire Station 102 in Kingwood, where he was joined by several first responders and city officials including District E Council Member Fred Flickinger to discuss the weather situation.
During his remarks, Mayor Whitmire noted that things don’t expect to improve as chaotic weather and flooding are expected as we enter the weekend.
“It appears the worst is yet to come,” he said. “Everyone has to be on alert.”
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This includes the City of Houston, Mayor Whitmire reassured the public.
“The City of Houston is doing everything it can, its first responders and its leadership to be prepared, and will not hesitate to work with any agency that has resources that we can use,” Whitmire added. “And I’ll be monitoring around the clock...at this point we’re kind of at the mercy of the weather, but we’re doing everything we can possible.”
Houston Fire Chief Samuel Pena said the flooding across Kingwood has been mostly limited to streets up to this point, but people in homes on lower floodplains should prepare for flooding.
“Six inches to a foot is what they’re anticipating,” he explained.
BACKGROUND: Very high rain totals north of Houston from Thursday’s storms. Here’s a look at who saw the most
Roadways in the area are blocked off due to the intense flooding. The video also shows extremely high water near St. Martha Catholic School just off North Park Dr. and Woodland Hills Dr.
That school, like a lot of places in the area, flooded during Hurricane Harvey, and driving in these conditions has several Kingwood residents feeling uneasy.
Some parents tell KPRC 2 Reporter Amy Davis they are stranded because they were dropping off their children at school when the water started rising. So getting back to some neighborhoods is difficult as roads are impassable.
KPRC 2 FLOOD TRACKER: Get alerted if flooding is occurring in your immediate area
KPRC 2 Photojournalist Cesar Espinoza also captured video of a highwater rescue in Kingwood, where a vehicle was stranded in the middle of the street.
Many homeowners are also walking away from their homes are flood waters continue to creep up from the San Jacinto River.
Here, water rose with Thursday morning’s rainfall. Now the fear is how high the water will continue to rise with increased outflow from Lake Conroe.
“You can’t get in and out of your house,” said Jill Sales. “And then once you go down the street here there’s a little bridge. And once that floods you can’t get out your trap.”
She’s not alone. Down the street, her neighbors already have to boat to their home as their pickup truck can’t make it through the flood waters.
“Typically it comes up about an inch an hour. I’d probably say this came up over a foot and a half in an hour,” the homeowner said.
KPRC 2′s Gage Goulding spoke to a homeowner in the area.
Gage: “How long are you prepared not to be at your house?”
Homeowner: “Never really had a look at it from that perspective, because we always have access to the house. And typically we’ll stay here and we have decided if we are not going to stay here.”
It’s not just homes that are bracing for the rush of water from Lake Conroe. Nearby, the popular bar The Cove is also getting ready to get wet.
“Anytime the river starts releasing water or the up upstream and stuff, we’re always worried about flooding down here,” said The Cove owner Shawn Geiser. “We’re just going to get all the electronics that we can out of the way and, you know, go from there.”