Expected names for 2017 hurricanes and storms were: Arlene, Bret, Cindy, Don, Emily, Franklin, Gert, Harvey, Irma, Jose, Katia, Lee, Maria, Nate, Ophelia, Philippe, Rina, Sean, Tammy, Vince, Whitney. Now, it’s about tropical storm Harvey to generate warnings about its developing. It initially formed just east of the Windward Islands, in the Caribbean Sea. It reached tropical storm status from August 17-19.
A few days ago, forecast models largely showed the remnants of Harvey moving into Mexico and redeveloping. With the expected slow trajectory across the Gulf of Mexico, Harvey shouldn’t reach the coast until Friday or perhaps even early Saturday. If Harvey become a hurricane and make landfall in Texas, it would be the first hurricane to do so since Ike in 2008. Flooding is the big concern. Rainfall amounts increase exponentially when the storm moves at a slower speed. The National Hurricane Center is already saying “the system is likely to slow down once it reaches the coast, increasing the threat of a prolonged period of heavy rain and flooding across portions of Texas, southwest Louisiana, and northeastern Mexico into early next week.” The potential for widespread areas is for six inches of rainfall but the specific locations of extreme rainfall and flooding are impossible to project before the storm even develops. In 2001, Tropical Storm Allison was a multibillion dollar disaster for the state, specifically Houston.
