HOUSTON – Hello and welcome back to the wild weather blog! This week we’re talking about hail and flooding, both extreme weather we saw here in the Houston area recently. In the sunshine state, Miami has been seeing only clouds and rainfall, and the downpours have been relentless leading to flooding. Last week, we saw some wild hail up to two inches wide in the Katy area, and this week we’re talking about hail in Lubbock.
Flooding in Miami:
I visited Miami earlier this month when my fiancé proposed, and the weather was AMAZING! It was warm and sunny, the perfect beach weather. This week...not so much. Strong thunderstorms brought gusty winds and torrential downpours. Across southeast Florida they saw three to five inches of rainfall yesterday, which quickly flooded roadways leaving drivers stranded. Unfortunately, even more is on the way today. There is still a flood watch in place for southern Florida until 8 p.m. this evening. The concern is one we are familiar with here in Texas. Right now the ground is saturated so any additional heavy downpours could lead to even more flooding.
Yesterday the Florida Floodplain Managers Association held their annual conference in downtown Miami and ironically several attendees could not reach the hotel due to flooding.
Hail storm in Lubbock:
On Sunday, portions of the Lubbock, Texas, metro saw a torrential downpour of rain and hailstones. Experts warned the severe thunderstorm could bring ping pong ball-sized hail (1.50″). However, most of the hail was smaller. Although the hail was not especially large, the nickel- to quarter-size hail covered the ground in white, which looked more like snow than ice.
Something Good:
So typically I show something rare, but this week our video is just gorgeous (not rare). Check out this rainbow at Niagara Falls. Typically rainbows form when sunlight is reflected off rainfall in the air. At Niagara, there is a constant flow of water falling, which leads to mist and water droplets suspended in the air making rainbows a common sighting at Niagara Falls on sunny days. Regardless if it’s common, I don’t think many people know this!
Stay safe always,
Caroline