Tracking the rain

WeatherMap Imelda update: The storm went easy on us last night, but we are only at halftime

WeatherMap Imelda update: The storm went easy on us last night, but we are only at halftime
College of DuPage

Good morning everyone. By and large the Houston metro area made it through last night unscathed. While I know people are already starting to label this storm a bust, we are really only at halftime here. Last night the storm progressed further inland than originally expected which is what raised my concern for heavy rain last night. Thankfully that did not develop over the city and most spots ended the day yesterday with very manageable rainfall totals in the 2-4 inch range. Further south though coastal areas of Brazoria and Matagorda counties got absolutely hammered. Spots near Freeport for example picked up 15-20 inches of rain yesterday. So with the first half in the books lets take a look at where things go from here.

From the time concern really began to rise regarding this storm back on Monday the Wednesday afternoon through Thursday morning period was really the period we were most worried about. This morning the center of the storm has broadened as it "unwinds" now that it is over land, however this does not mean the rainfall potential decreases. On radar we can see that the center is near The Woodlands and strong bands of storms extend well to the south along the coast and curve back up into the Beaumont area.


10 AM radarCollege of DuPage

Over the course of the day today and into tonight I expect coverage of heavy rain to move further inland as the center continues pulling off to the north. Two of the high resolution short range models we use have continued to show an intense band of storms developing along the I-10 corridor between Houston and Beaumont late this afternoon and into tonight. We will have to watch how this develops as the afternoon commute could be impacted.

One model's simulated radar Wednesday morning thru Thursday lunch time.Weathermodels.com


Another model's simulated radar for Wednesday morning thru Thursday evening.


Foretasted accumulations through Thursday evening from the model in the image above


If this band does indeed develop and parks itself over the wrong place flooding will be a concern. With these models try not to focus on pinpoint locations, rather look at the general idea that another round of heavy rain is still in the cards. While it does appear that the most likely location for for bombs of very high accumulations has shifted a bit to the east, say east of HWY 59, it is not time to let or guard down yet.

I know people are itching to say this storm amounted to nothing but hype, but it would be unwise to declare it dead yet. This area has a history of storms that bring a light first punch only to return with a knockout blow a day or two later. While I am in no way comparing the impacts of this storm to Harvey or Allison it is important to remember that both of those storms had people declaring them busts halfway through before the second round came. If by Thursday night all is well, I will personally declare Imelda a bust, but we are not there yet.


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The Astros beat the Padres, 6-4. Photo by Alex Slitz/Getty Images.

Rookie Cam Smith homered on his first two at-bats and had a career-best four RBIs to power the Houston Astros to a 6-4 win over the San Diego Padres on Friday night.

Smith connected off Kyle Hart (2-1) on a three-run homer in the second inning to put the Astros on top and added a solo shot off the lefty in the fourth that made it 5-2.

San Diego's Luis Arraez, who had three hits, sent a high fastball from Bryan King into the first row in right field for a two-run homer that cut the lead to 5-4 in the seventh.

Jake Meyers tied a season high with three hits for the Astros, capped by a run-scoring single in the eighth to give them some insurance.

Houston starter Ryan Gusto (2-1) gave up nine hits and two runs in five innings. Josh Hader pitched a perfect ninth for his fifth save.

The Padres went 2 for 10 with runners in scoring position.

The Astros trailed by 1 with two on and two outs in the second inning when Smith sent his first home run into the seats in left field to make it 3-1.

An RBI single by Yainer Diaz extended the lead to 4-1 in the third.

Oscar Gonzalez cut the lead to 4-2 with an RBI single on a ground ball with one out in the fourth.

Smith’s second home run came on a full count in the fourth inning to extend the lead to 5-2.

Hart yielded 10 hits and five runs in five innings for his first loss this season after the team won each of his first three starts.

Key Moment

Smith's first home run that put the Astros on top for good.

Key Stat

Smith was 1 for 10 in Houston’s three-game series against St. Louis this week before breaking out Friday night.

Up Next

Houston RHP Hayden Wesneski (1-1, 4.00 ERA) opposes RHP Michael King (3-0, 2.42) when the series continues Saturday night.

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