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Would rep

Not really. There are two challenges, the volume of water and the geography.

It's going to be 50-60 inches of rain in a week. That's 5 feet of water falling from the sky in a week. (1524mm for those of you of a metric persuasion)

The city is not that high above sea level, it's a coastal plain, and gravity can't exert enough force on the water to get it to move back to the sea fast enough. Also, the news chat about the "river" in Houston is jokes. There are Bayous, but no rivers. A Bayou, using the wikipedia definition, "is a body of water typically found in a flat, low-lying area, and can be either an extremely slow-moving stream or river (often with a poorly defined shoreline)." This not what you think of as a river by any stretch of the imagination.

Speaking to friends in Galveston, they have been ok because it's an island and drainage is pretty good. Water will stand for a while but drain relatively quickly because the distance to the ocean is so short.

My ancestors left Galveston for Houston in 1900 due to this hurricane which killed between 6,000-12,000 people.

For perspective there have been 9 deaths reported so far for Harvey in a metropolitan area with 6 million people. The 1900 Galveston Hurricane killed an estimated 20% of the city's population.

Do they think there'll be more deaths? Could be people trapped in houses, and then longer term, possible water based illnesses?

Was that picture of a shark swimming up a freeway real?

(Seeing as you're the expert).

there was some chap on the radio referring to the "water event" being more severe than the "wind event".

y u do dis?

Probably. Although most deaths tends to be from people trying to cross deep water without being aware of currents/obstacles. They encourage people to stay put and await rescue for that precise reason.

The other main causes of death tend to be the seriously ill who cannot make it to hospital.

FWIW - I spent most of the 1990s working for a news/information broadcast organisation in Houston. I covered essentially every single tropical storm in that decade often pulling 12-14 hour shifts listening to police and emergency scanners to glean information for broadcast.

I have seen and heard some shit.

Link pls?

there was some chap on the radio referring to the "water event" being more severe than the "wind event".

y u do dis?

The 130+ mph winds didn't fuck things up nearly as much as the heavy rain.

Was this Dr. Joe Sobel from Accuweather? He used to follow me after my reports on the weekend and during drive time shows. /csb

https://twitter.com/jsguofo/status/902272946512605184

I'm 99.99% sure it's fake.

Deffo fake. That far inland the water will be all fresh water from rain. Sharks are saltwater animals.

Bull sharks like brackish water so that would be conceivable closer to the coast, although still highly unlikely.

you are the expert!

it's that superfluous "event" that has me scratching my head. or is he referring to the rain / flooding and wind / blowing shit over as a combined forces of awfulness?

fair enough...

it's the same shark that made an appearance after the New Orleans floods. gets about.

Yeah, Snopes already debunked it:

https://twitter.com/snopes/status/902238628440666113

#sharknado

there was no bridge and no helicopter so it was clearly a fake.

#memerevival

Fire ants form islands to escape flooding. I remember this being reported before somewhere, and it's always fascinated me. It's being reported again in Houston (yes, I know this link is from 2015, but it's the best explanation):

http://www.chron.com/neighborhood/champions-klein/news/article/Beware-of-fire-ants-following-a-flood-9696650.php

Not just fire ants, quite a few varieties of ants in the UK do it too. We had a ping pong ball sized orb of ants rolling about on top of the flood water from a ruptured water meter in our old place in Putney. Amazing but slightly creepy thing to see!

It was a bit like this but broke apart when I tried to pick it up https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0nzBaljEHj8

Needs moar quo.

I've just a text from my mate who stores one of his 3 Porsches in Houston to say it's safe as it's up on a ramp. Phew. Disaster averted.

It's ok. Trump is about to board Marine One to come and help.

If you want to 'get the look' the caps are on sale for $40.

About to get on the plane

i think Mrs Trump's choice of footwear says a lot about how involved she intends to get in this mess.

Yeah but check her sweet bomber jacket