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Posts published in “Day: November 5, 2015”

TORNADO HITS HIGHLANDS, FLOODING IN CROSBY

November 5, 2015

HIGHLANDS – Last Saturday, some homes near the river were flooded and the river could be measured to have reached about 8 feet higher than normal before cresting.

Harris County Flood Control District says the San Jacinto River reached six feet higher.

An EF-0 tornado somewhere above 75 miles per hour and below 85 m.p.h. struck the northern perimeters of the area at about 5:00 a.m. Saturday. The twister downed power lines and closed FM 2100. One of the locations that it touched down was Sterling-White Cemetery and Funeral Home.

Jeff Moore, Managing Partner, of the local cemetery stated early Sunday, “We have close to 50 trees down, damage to the grounds, several monuments knocked over and the cemetery pavilion was destroyed. Thankfully the funeral home and main office had only surface damage to some posts. We have a tree service starting to work on Monday along with our maintenance crew to get the roads clear and then they will begin section by section clearing debris and re-setting monuments. Due to all the rain this is going to take some time to fix. We have to be careful because the trees weigh a lot, monuments weigh a lot, and the equipment used is extremely heavy. We don’t want to create a bigger mess and tear up the grounds worse than what they already are. For safety reasons, we have closed the cemetery until the tree service can get in because there are several limbs just barely hanging on and monuments that are leaning. We appreciate all the concern and we will have everything fixed and cleaned up as soon as possible.”

It appeared some damage was done to the bell tower.

BARRETT STATION – Just south of the Barrett Grocery, a Harris County Sheriff’s barricade was erected on FM 2100. Getting to Highlands would be a challenge.

CROSBY – The thirteen inches of rain measured by the Harris County Flood Control District here on Saturday was manifest in the Weingarten’s Shopping Center with more than four inches of water on the floors of local shops. Monday, many stores were still recovering and shop vacuums running were a common sound.

There have been reports of structural damages due to high winds from tornadoes that touched down in areas including Pasadena, La Porte, Highlands and Friendswood.

Damage assessment teams from Harris County (for unincorporated areas of the county), the City of Houston, and City of La Porte went into hard-hit areas after heavy rainfall subsided Saturday, and will continue to meet with residents who were affected by heavy rain and winds.

REPORT FLOODING/DAMAGES

It is not too late to report damages to your home or property. Below are resources and contact information for residents affected by flooding and wind damage.

•Affected Harris County residents are urged to report house flooding by completing a Flood Survey as soon as possible at the Harris County Office of Homeland Security and Emergency Management’s website at www.readyharris .org/go/survey/1829/11787/

•The Harris County Flood Control District is also available to take4 flooding reports at 713-684-4000 from 7:30 am – 4:30 pm.

•East-side residents who live in unincorporated Harris County who need assistance can also contact Harris County Precinct 2 Commissioner Jack Morman’s office at 713-455-8104 (regular operating hours) or 713-274-2050 (after hours). Precinct 2’s website is www.hcp2.com

The Flood Control District has a “Storm Center” at www.hcfcd.org/storm-center with helpful, printable resources, including a guide on how to create and implement a family flood preparedness plan and a family emergency kit checklist.

REMINDER: When faced with a flooding situation: STAY PUT wherever you are, unless your life is threatened or you are ordered to evacuate and do not drive or walk into high water areas.

The Flood Control District urges all residents to monitor rainfall and bayou water levels on its Harris County Regional Flood Warning System website (desktop and mobile versions) at www.harriscounty fws.org.

Voters pass props & water bonds; HERO dead, mayor in runoff

November 5, 2015

HARRIS COUNTY – Local voters showed support for their elected officials and passed every proposition in the state, county, and City of Baytown on Tuesday.

The City of Baytown had 24 Propositions and passed every one as they tackle their Charter issues.

Crosby’s water district HCMUD#1 passed their proposition 351 to 164 or 68% to 31%.

The Highlands Water District, HCWCID No. 1 passed their bond proposition 203 to 144. $16 M. will be spent on making the water and sewer service in Highlands better over the next 8 years.

In Harris County Propositions all seven passed. Proposition 1 for road improvements at about $700 M. passed by 73% to 27%.

Proposition 2 about funding improvements to parks passed 64% to 36%.

Proposition #3 for an improved animal shelter passed 62% to 38%, the lowest of all county percentages.

Proposition 4 for flood control work passed 74% to 26%. So the county can spend $64 M. to drain the areas.

One Proposition that did not pass was the City of Houston, Proposition 1, the HERO proposition was down 39 to 61% all election day.

For Mayor of Houston, Sylvester Turner had 32% and Bill King had 25% while Adrian Garcia had 15%. Turner and King will face each other again in a run-off election.

AUSTIN – According to Lieutenant Governor Dan Patrick, “Texans have spoken loud and clear by voting all seven propositions into law today from property tax relief to transportation.

“Rest assured, today’s vote on property tax relief is only the first step in providing property owners real tax relief. I wanted a huge margin victory to give us the clout to do more property tax relief next session. I think today’s win should end the opposition by some who opposed reducing property taxes last session.

“Texans have also spoken to significantly improving transportation funding for Texas’ roads and highways. Government transparency will be increased as well as veteran benefits and our right to hunt and fish will be placed in our constitution. These are all steps in the right direction. However, we’re still not done.

“All seven constitutional amendments are important and affect us all. Thanks to everyone who voted today: as a result, Texas is a better place.”

Many initiatives were predicated upon property taxes and keeping them low. The county tax rate remains the same but as the county population grows the demand is higher so the evaluations will grow as properties sell for higher amounts. The valuations will also grow so by that factor taxes may also grow. Nobody talked about that.