Hurricane Danger In The Katy Area

[Zapata]

Hello Team and pardon my ignorance.

Can the Katy area be hit by a Cat-5 Hurricane...???

I know the Pearland, Friendswood and surrounding areas are more prone to a disaster than Katy, but what's the possibility..???

Do we really need "storm shutters" in the Katy area houses...????

Last year with the Hurricane, we stayed put but most of the neighbors evacuate and at the end nothing happened. Most people put masking tape in the windows but I read that is useless if you are hit by Hurricane winds.

Thanks

[ricco67]

Hello Team and pardon my ignorance.

Can the Katy area be hit by a Cat-5 Hurricane...???

I know the Pearland, Friendswood and surrounding areas are more prone to a disaster than Katy, but what's the possibility..???

Do we really need "storm shutters" in the Katy area houses...????

Last year with the Hurricane, we stayed put but most of the neighbors evacuate and at the end nothing happened. Most people put masking tape in the windows but I read that is useless if you are hit by Hurricane winds.

Thanks

well, by the time it reaches Katy, it wouldn't be a Cat-5. Frankly, anyone west of downtown don't have flooding to really worry about and the further west you go the less will wind damage becomes a factor.

I do, however, recommend that you put in storm shutters for any other severe storms that may come through.

There is another thread that covers this, I believe. You might want to do a search, it will have more information on it.

[TheNiche]

Hello Team and pardon my ignorance.

Can the Katy area be hit by a Cat-5 Hurricane...???

I know the Pearland, Friendswood and surrounding areas are more prone to a disaster than Katy, but what's the possibility..???

Do we really need "storm shutters" in the Katy area houses...????

Last year with the Hurricane, we stayed put but most of the neighbors evacuate and at the end nothing happened. Most people put masking tape in the windows but I read that is useless if you are hit by Hurricane winds.

Thanks

It can, but like ricco said, with much diminished force. Cat 3 is still nothing to take lightly, but most folks won't get too damaged. The big problems are 1) falling trees and 2) tornadoes. Beyond that, you're pretty well free and clear...although power may be out for a good long while and navigating streets will be difficult for a long time. Nothing much you can do about that, though.

[Trae]

Wind may be a problem. Some house in Katy can't stand to muhc wind. The first forecast of Rita had the eye coming right over Katy. Falling trees would be a problem, too, because Katy has a lot of tall mature pine trees. Flooding is not a problem, and there has rarely been some kind of major flood in Katy. Tornadoes are the only other thing. If a hurricane was as strong as Rita was, and went the path it had with the eye crossing over Katy, Katy could have a strong Cat-3 on its hands. Cat-3's is not a storm to be taken lightly (Wilma).

[TJones]

If a Cat-5 hit southwest of Galveston, say down by Matagorda Bay, it could be a problem, northeast of Galveston, not such a big deal. You have to worry about getting hit by the "dirty side" of the hurricane. That is where the strength is, it is not as powerful as it swirls around to go back out to sea, so winds from the north are not as threatening as winds coming off the ocean from the south. I still boarded up even though it was gonna hit Beaumont last year.

Edited April 26, 2007 by TJones

[TAK]

if you live north of i-10 and west of downtown, you shouldn't have to do anything. again, i'd expect trees and branches to be the biggest problem... and anything unsecured outside.

i live in the inwood forest area. i'm not leaving or boarding up for any hurricanes.

[ricco67]

I agree with you, TAK, but building in storm shutters for those harsh storms that go through now and again wouldn't necessarily be a bad idea, though.

We get your hail and Wind damage occasionally and the shutters would provide some protection if you're aware of the weather for the day.

If they're designed right, they can look really purdy.

[TJones]

One of the "must haves" in my family's new search for a house is that the architecture allow for Bermuda shutters, and be aesthetically pleasing. I grew a great fondness for these shutters as we had them on our house in Florida, and they work fabulous.

Edited July 26, 2006 by TJones

[Zapata]

One of the "must haves" in my family's new search for a house is that the architecture allow for Bermuda shutters, and be aesthetically pleasing. I grew a great fondness for these shutters as we had them on our house in Florida, and they work fabulous.

Yeah...!! Those Bermuda shutters look very nice but out of my budget. I'm planning to buy some plywood this weekend and start doing my shutters following the instructions in this web page:

http://www.stormsurvival.homestead.com/Hur...m_Shutters.html

They also talk about Garage door bracing but I'm not sure if that will be really necesary living in Katy, We live in a new sub-division (3 years old) in the area of Clay & Fry Rd. so no trees around. Last year I only forgot to buy batteries but power never went out. For this year I already got a Gasoline Generator, camping stove and enough water, still pending food and other supplies.

[2fatcats]

They also talk about Garage door bracing but I'm not sure if that will be really necesary living in Katy, We live in a new sub-division (3 years old) in the area of Clay & Fry Rd. so no trees around. Last year I only forgot to buy batteries but power never went out. For this year I already got a Gasoline Generator, camping stove and enough water, still pending food and other supplies.

The problem with hurricanes depends on where they make landfall. If a Cat5 storm comes in at Matagorda then there is a good chance the eye might pass over the Katy area. With Rita we boarded up because the original forecast was for it to make landfall at Matagorda and frankly having been through Alicia back in the 80s, (was living in town then) I developed a healthy respect for those storms. Katy is a bit of a tornado spot anyway, the first year I moved out here in the early 90s a Tornado hit about a half mile from my house, made a path down Highland Knolls and smacked into a couple of houses on Fry road. Having supplies is a real good idea, and you can precut your plywood for the windows. The wood only saves your windows anyway, if its a big enough blow you can forget the house. If you have a brick house, they make these clips that hold the plywood, no nailing to do. You just store the stuff in your garage and don't have to run around at the last minute trying to find things at home depot which will be swamped with people. Remember when Rita hit and you couldn't even buy a bag of ice out here? or gas? Best to be prepared if you plan to stay.

[FalconRanch]

They also talk about Garage door bracing but I'm not sure if that will be really necesary living in Katy, We live in a new sub-division (3 years old) in the area of Clay & Fry Rd. so no trees around. Last year I only forgot to buy batteries but power never went out. For this year I already got a Gasoline Generator, camping stove and enough water, still pending food and other supplies.

The problem with hurricanes depends on where they make landfall. If a Cat5 storm comes in at Matagorda then there is a good chance the eye might pass over the Katy area. With Rita we boarded up because the original forecast was for it to make landfall at Matagorda and frankly having been through Alicia back in the 80s, (was living in town then) I developed a healthy respect for those storms. Katy is a bit of a tornado spot anyway, the first year I moved out here in the early 90s a Tornado hit about a half mile from my house, made a path down Highland Knolls and smacked into a couple of houses on Fry road. Having supplies is a real good idea, and you can precut your plywood for the windows. The wood only saves your windows anyway, if its a big enough blow you can forget the house. If you have a brick house, they make these clips that hold the plywood, no nailing to do. You just store the stuff in your garage and don't have to run around at the last minute trying to find things at home depot which will be swamped with people. Remember when Rita hit and you couldn't even buy a bag of ice out here? or gas? Best to be prepared if you plan to stay.

do you think a tornado can develop on the same area as the one you described in the early 90's? Now that there is more homes and what not?

[TheNiche]

do you think a tornado can develop on the same area as the one you described in the early 90's? Now that there is more homes and what not?

Tornadoes are very odd. Did anybody see the aftermath of Lancaster? It was so strange--one side of the street existed, completely intact, the other side was rubble.

[2fatcats]

do you think a tornado can develop on the same area as the one you described in the early 90's? Now that there is more homes and what not?

Sure it could. Tornados are sometimes unpredictable and if they can level whole towns with dense building, I don't see why they couldn't wipe out a subdivision here just as easily. In fact I am kind of surprised we haven't had another one out here. But if you notice Houston weather, there seems to be this imaginary line where the worse storms are often north of us, or at least it seems that way to me.

[returner]

do you think a tornado can develop on the same area as the one you described in the early 90's? Now that there is more homes and what not?

My family used to live in the part of Tornado Alley that runs through TX. In one day they had seven Tornados touch down. The one that did the most damage to the house, skipped around. So toronados are very unpredictable, you can never tell where one will or will not touch down.

When it comes to hurricanes, the worst thing to do is to tape up the windows because then if the windows do blow out you now have a large pane of glass instead of little peices. Im praying for no hurricanes because with my job I have to stay at our office and work through landfall.

[Vertigo58]

Tough question due to the fact that every hurricane is unique in its own way just like people.

I would strongly urge anyone to listen to the old timers and those before us that went through the ones like Camille, Carla and Beulah. Carla was so huge in width it covered a vast part of Texas and lingered all the way up to Canada. That one spawned numerous twisters that did worse damage than the storm itself. The there is the stall factor to consider. The ones that blow me away are the ones that come onshore turn back gain more strength then return with more power. Always unpredictable. Best thing I would do is always have plywood ready in the garage for quick protection. Rushing to the hardware store with the others is nightmarish. Be sure to search for a past topic in Historic Houston on Hurricane Carla. Again, our parents know what they are talking about when they tell of past storms. They deserve credit big time.

[desirous]

Is there flood danger in Katy? There's more to flooding than just the storm surge -- for example, northwest Houston is very prone to flooding from rainfall.

[ricco67]

Then what I would recommend is simply look at the flood maps and then see if the subdivision has a good flood plan. By that I mean Retention ponds for excess flood water as well raised lots over the streets.

Any part of town can be prone to flooding if the water falls in certain strength and with the proper duration ("Training is a major cause of flooding during certain types of storms) and other factors.

It's at this point where you have to take some responsibility in preserving your own property. Being aware of the weather and being proactive as well as knowing what to do and trying to be a bit ambivalent about the whole thing.

Floods in Houston generally go down rather quickly and only last for a few hours and with a properly designed it shouldn't be a problem.

[Gary]

Is there flood danger in Katy? There's more to flooding than just the storm surge -- for example, northwest Houston is very prone to flooding from rainfall.

Much of West Houston is protected from severe flooding via the Addicks dam and reservoir system, not to mention a decent Bayou system. I've lived in the area since 91 and haven't seen any real flooding, at least not like you see in other area's of town.

[Trae]

The only part of the West Houston area that floods is actually in the Addicks and Barker Reservoirs. I remember a couple of times when Westheimer Parkway was like a small strip of land running through a large lake.

[Gary]

The only part of the West Houston area that floods is actually in the Addicks and Barker Reservoirs. I remember a couple of times when Westheimer Parkway was like a small strip of land running through a large lake.

True Trae, they flood by design so that the populated areas stay relatively free from flood waters.

[Trae]

If these areas were populated, would they still flood?