Who is really to blame for Houston?

[M.D. Holloway]

Originally Posted by Jrboulder

It seems to me that Houston doesn't have adequate infrastructure to deal with far more frequent rain events.

zoning or lack there of

[jamesnmlaw]

I blame George Bush. I blame George Bush for everything. My hemorrhoids, problems with misfires at 6,000 rpms, global warming, GMOs, 911, Katrina, Cubs winning the World Series, space aliens won't come here and fix the planet, everything. He's my go-to boogie man! Someone cuts me off on the road? Damn George Bush. Client doesn't show? Damn George Bush. Out of on-sale rib eye at Smiths? Damn George Bust.

[legion]

Originally Posted by M.D. Holloway

zoning or lack there of

How are things in Dallas? I'd assume some of the rain made it your way.

[bivenator]

Houston infrastructure does a fairly good job of handling large amounts of water. It has improved since the last flood caused by Allison about a decade ago.

The amount of water that fell both upstream and on Houston was the culprit. It was simply too much water. An 800 year flood event claimed by some tv guy said the other day.

My city did well in handling the flood. I have watched little of the national news coverage but what I did catch focused on finding blame, Joel Osteen, global warming and creating division where ever possible. On the ground it has been different.

People of all different types helping each other. It was pretty cool to see it actually with lots of incredible stories in the shelters

It will get tense in the coming weeks as nerves fray and frustrations mount.

I was not flooded. I live near the Addicks reservoir and end up being a few hundred yards out of the zone. I fear red-beard might not be so lucky. Fingers crossed for him.

Back to work.

[scottmandue]

Not sure why hurricanes in the south-east are so unexpected.

[pwd72s]

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Two small roof leaks but other than that all good. Quite a bit of Houston is still underwater, and the rivers are still rising. Pulled around 50 people out of their home with my boat. Unreal to drive the boat down residential streets and have people running out of their homes screaming and begging for rescue. Most do not have flood insurance. Sad.

[911_Dude]

Who is to blame? Is that a serious question? Feces happens. Got to deal with it and not expect anyone to help you but yourself.

[Scott Douglas]

Show of hands, how many have read the article I linked in my first post?

That's what I thought.

When gov't officials don't listen to guys like the TAMU prof that is when more people suffer than otherwise normally would.

[pwd72s]

Originally Posted by Scott Douglas

Show of hands, how many have read the article I linked in my first post?

That's what I thought.

When gov't officials don't listen to guys like the TAMU prof that is when more people suffer than otherwise normally would.

I read it. I got the impression you were lobbying for MORE land use restrictions. Was I wrong?

[Jolly Amaranto]

OK, I confess, it is all my fault. After developing properties along Greens Bayou, Spring Creek and behind the Addicts and Barker reservoir dams in their flood planes, I took the profits and bought up huge tracks of land on the Katy prairie and developed those. It is quite easy to get around any regulations for water retention reservoirs and ponds, when you spread around lots of money. Especially in the outlying unincorportated areas of west Harris County and Waller County. I have some dynamite property along the Trinity River that I could use some additional capital to develop. Anyone interested?

[aschen]

I read it, but it is not exactly what i would call revealing. A huge densely populated city, near the gulf, is at risk for flooding. Makes perfect sense, but what is the solution? Maybe ask every one to move to wyoming

Personally I blame Harvey, not the storm though....the actor Harvey Keitel

[M.D. Holloway]

Originally Posted by legion

How are things in Dallas? I'd assume some of the rain made it your way.

I think it drizzled on day last week...

[scottmandue]

Originally Posted by aschen

I read it, but it is not exactly what i would call revealing. A huge densely populated city, near the gulf, is at risk for flooding. Makes perfect sense, but what is the solution?

Well, Los Angeles was a huge, flat, porous desert landscape... millions of people moved here and they paved the desert and got massive flooding... so they enlarged storm drains, and added more porous land.

Yeah it still floods here... but not houses underwater flooding....

We also have earthquakes WAY less often than hurricanes, but all our buildings are build to earthquake standard and most of us keep water and food stored up 'just in case'.

I don't know but would guess it costs less to rebuild every 10-20 year than to build the infrastructure to deal with the hurricanes.

[Sooner or later]

Originally Posted by scottmandue

Well, Los Angeles was a huge, flat, porous desert landscape... millions of people moved here and they paved the desert and got massive flooding... so they enlarged storm drains, and added more porous land.

Yeah it still floods here... but not houses underwater flooding....

We also have earthquakes WAY less often than hurricanes, but all our buildings are build to earthquake standard and most of us keep water and food stored up 'just in case'.

I don't know but would guess it costs less to rebuild every 10-20 year than to build the infrastructure to deal with the hurricanes.

Some areas received 40" of rain. If you had 20": of rain you were lucky.

You can't build yourself out of this disaster.

You can try to minimize the impact.

[onewhippedpuppy]

Short of building the city on stilts, you can't effectively plan to deal with 50" of rain in a few day span. It's not realistic or practical. If LA gets an every 1000 year magnitude earthquake, you'll need far more than a few MREs and a case of bottled water. That is effectively what happened to Houston, a storm of unprecedented magnitude.

[jyl]

Maybe Houston can improve drainage and development so that it can avoid flooding in future rainfall events, perhaps at least in ones that are less extreme than this. Houston has severe floods every few years. 1994, 2001, 2006, 2008, 2015, 2016, 2017. 2001 was also called a 500 year flood event. The Gulf is getting warmer, warmer means more moisture, Houston is getting more developed . . . Have to do something to at least reduce the devastation in future.

[Por_sha911]

Originally Posted by Baz

They brought this on themselves for voting for Trump...

Yours is in green but now we've got a idiot celebrity that is saying it with a straight face:
http://www.foxnews.com/entertainment/2017/09/08/jennifer-lawrence-says-hurricanes-may-be-natures-wrath-for-trump-victory.html

How can you be that stupid and still be breathing?

[Jolly Amaranto]

We need to tow icebergs from the arctic and antarctic to the Gulf of Mexico each summer to keep it cooled off. Install refrigeration plants around the shore powered by politicians hot air. Cover the water with a giant aluminum foil hat.

[Danimal16]

Even in LA, if there was a magnitude 10, MOST structures would not survive. The objective is to save lives. You could not afford to build the type of facilities for a MAXIMUM event, yet one that is an anomaly.

[Borders Reivers]

Originally Posted by Baz

They brought this on themselves for voting for Trump...

Seeing as how Harris County voted 54 percent FOR Clinton I hope they did bring it on themselves.