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Finally Cold Fronts We Can Believe In

Finally Cold Fronts We Can Believe In

Summer to Finally GTFO This Weekend, Experts Say

Summer to Finally GTFO This Weekend, Experts Say

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Is Houston’s Air Quality Triggering Crazy Thunderstorms?

By Dianna Wray
Oct 1, 2021

It’s not exactly a shock to most Houstonians to note that the Bayou City has a rep for notoriously less-than-ideal air quality and for towering thunderstorms that roll through town almost year-round. But scientists are now investigating whether these two things might actually be connected. In fact, a team of...
Cooler Weather Should Mean an End to Hurricane Season for Texas

By Jeff Balke
Sep 20, 2021

Some people love it when the holiday decorations hit stores and when houses are decked out for Halloween...in September. They crave pumpkin everything and stare at the weather forecast for any sign of the area's first cold front of the year. Good news, fall fans, you will get your wish...
Over 80,000 in the Houston Area Still Lack Electricity Post-Nicholas

By Schaefer Edwards
Sep 15, 2021

Nicholas may have weakened into a Tropical Depression and hightailed it out of Texas for Louisiana already, but for the tens of thousands of Houston area residents who still haven’t had their power restored, the storm's impact is still far from a memory. CenterPoint Energy reported that 83,878 of its...
Nicholas Exits Stage Right, But Plenty of Residents Remain Powerless

By Schaefer Edwards
Sep 14, 2021

Tropical Storm Nicholas continued its eastward path out of the Houston area throughout Tuesday, leaving most of inland Harris County relatively dry but still struggling with widespread power outages and scattered debris. While the more southeastern reaches of Harris County saw significant rain totals and a healthy storm surge early...
Power Outages From Nicholas Likely To Last As It's Still Too Windy For Crews To Start Work

By Schaefer Edwards
Sep 14, 2021

In brief remarks updating the public on Harris County’s response to Tropical Storm Nicholas, Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo on Tuesday warned residents without power that they may not have their electricity restored any time soon, as CenterPoint crews will not be sent out into the field until the strong...
Hundreds of Thousands Without Power This Morning Thanks to Nicholas

By Margaret Downing
Sep 14, 2021

As Nicholas skipped around Monday night, it briefly settled into hurricane status before hitting the Gulf Coast and knocking out power to hundreds of thousands of people in Houston and surrounding areas south and east of the city. As of 6:30 a.m. Tuesday, CenterPoint Energy was still reporting 413,179 customers...
Hidalgo Asks Harris County Residents To Stay Put Monday Night Due To Nicholas

By Schaefer Edwards
Sep 13, 2021

As the first bands of rain from the edges of Tropical Storm Nicholas continued to drop water across greater Houston, Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo spoke Monday afternoon about the county’s response to the fast-approaching storm. “We could get 10 to 15 inches of rain over the next 24 hours...
Worst Rainfall from Nicholas Likely to Be South and East of Houston

By Jeff Balke
Sep 13, 2021

As of writing this, Tropical Storm Nicholas was nearing landfall north of Corpus Christi on a path north-northwest. Houston has already begun to feel the effects with rain and occasional downpours around the city. While the worst of it will come for the metro area tonight after midnight, it appears...
Houston Area Leaders and Schools React As Tropical Storm Nicholas Zooms Toward Texas

By Schaefer Edwards
Sep 13, 2021

As Tropical Storm Nicholas barrels toward the Gulf Coast, Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner gave a brief update on the city’s preparations for what’s expected to be a heavy rain event that could cause significant flash flooding in parts of the greater Houston area. Meanwhile, several local school districts responded quickly...
Tropical Storm Nicholas Picking Up Speed, Flooding Still Serious Threat

By Jeff Balke
Sep 13, 2021

Since last night, Tropical Storm Nicholas has organized just a bit around a center of circulation just a bit closer to the coastline than originally thought. But, despite its attempts to strengthen, the storm is clearly being inhibited by dry air and wind shear, a fight that will likely continue...
Tropical Storm Nicholas Will Be a Rainmaker: Four Thoughts

By Jeff Balke
Sep 13, 2021

On Sunday, Tropical Storm Nicholas formed in the southern Gulf of Mexico. To say forecasting Nicholas has been difficult is an understatement. Despite being a tropical storm, as of writing this, it looks more like a giant blob of rain, and it mostly is. The good news is that because...
New Orleans: Houston is Here for You

By Jeff Balke
Aug 30, 2021

We saw the scenes of chaos after Hurricane Katrina. Shots from helicopters of people stranded on rooftops, the horrifying spectacle of the Superdome crowded with people, some dead, covered and left in wheelchairs. It was an unimaginable sight in America in 2005. Hours away in the middle of the night,...
Tropical Storm Ida on a B-Line for Louisiana

By Jeff Balke
Aug 27, 2021

The tropical depression we discussed yesterday is now Tropical Storm Ida churning away in the Caribbean on its way to the Gulf of Mexico. The National Hurricane Center now believes Ida will reach major hurricane strength (category 3 or higher) before making landfall somewhere along the Louisiana coastline Sunday evening...
Tropical Depression Takes Aim at Louisiana: 5 Questions Answered

By Jeff Balke
Aug 26, 2021

The tropical disturbance just south of Jamaica has strengthened into a tropical depression on Thursday morning (and could be a storm by Friday morning). The track that had shows a swath that included northern Mexico to central Louisiana (with the Houston area square in the middle) shifted significantly over the...
Tropics Ramp Up to Peak That Includes Gulf Activity

By Jeff Balke
Aug 25, 2021

We are now in the heart of the peak of hurricane season. The full season, which runs from June 1 through November 30, peaks in the second week of September, but begins its most active phase in mid August. This is especially true for states along the Gulf of Mexico...
Los Lobos Pay Tribute to Hometown Music on Native Sons

By Bob Ruggiero
Jul 23, 2021

Though they’ve long billed themselves since their 1978 record debut as “just another band from East L.A.,” Los Lobos is anything but that common. Their inventive and groundbreaking mix of rock, soul, blues, R&B and surf—all wrapped in traditional Mexican, mariachi and norteña music—have garnered them fans not just in...
ERCOT Warns Texans May Hit the Limit on Power Use Today & Surges Prices

By Schaefer Edwards
Jun 15, 2021

After begging Texans to conserve power Monday, the Electric Reliability Council of Texas on Tuesday is still asking folks to limit their electricity usage amid a statewide heatwave and an unusually high number of offline power generators, a combination that could lead to power outages if conditions don’t improve. According...
Tropical Depression or Storm Could Form in the Gulf This Week

By Jeff Balke
Jun 15, 2021

Hurricane season officially opened on June 1 and we've already had one named tropical storm (Ana) with two more possibly on the way. A depression, possibly soon to be named Tropical Storm Bill, is off the North Carolina coast and is little threat to land. But, Claudette could be next,...
ERCOT Warns Power Outages Possible This Week If Folks Don’t Conserve Energy Pronto

By Schaefer Edwards
Jun 14, 2021

It turns out that arctic winter storms aren’t the only times Texans have to worry about the state’s power grid crapping out. The Electric Reliability Council of Texas asked state residents on Monday to cut down on their electricity usage through Friday to prevent possible power outages across the state,...
Flooding Threat to Continue Into Early Next Week

By Jeff Balke
Jun 4, 2021

On Thursday afternoon, another round of thunderstorms rumbled through the Houston area bringing upwards of two inches or rain per hour amidst a flurry of downpours that stretched from south Texas to western Louisiana. All we can tell you is, get used to it. A slow moving disturbance in the...