Flooding

Outdated and inaccurate, FEMA flood maps fail to fully capture risk

New risk models show nearly twice as many properties are at risk from a 100-year flood today than the government's flood maps indicate. Analysis of damage from Hurricane Harvey shows Black and Hispanic residents disproportionately experienced flooding in areas beyond FEMA’s 100-year flood zones.

Texas Flood Registry 2020 Report

This report includes updates on Harvey’s long-term impact and recent findings about the health and housing effects of the May 2019 storms and Tropical Storm Imelda.

Measuring Flooding with the Houston Fire Department

Bob Stein and Rick Wilson conducted two studies about flooding and local knowledge/perspective.

Scalable and Robust Prototype of Sensor Network for Real-Time Street Level Flood Measurement

Gary Woods and team from the civil and environmental engineering department created low-cost flood sensors that were tested on Rice’s campus in spring 2019.

Harris County Receives Initial Harvey Buyout Funds

But it's not enough to cover the properties identified by the flood control district or those who submitted applications after Hurricane Harvey.

Mitigating Flooding Requires Multiple Strategies

Engineering, green infrastructure and land protections must all be part of the flooding solution.

Houston-Area Officials, Experts Push For Action on Flooding

Six months out from the one-year anniversary of Hurricane Harvey, officials push for more.

As Harris County Considers Buyouts, Experts Offer Advice

Buyouts are just one of the options on the table in Houston.

After Harvey, How Can Houston Improve the Buyout Process?

Buyouts are a popular hazard mitigation but examples from across the country offer innovative ways to improve the process.

Do You Know Your Watershed? And Other Important Questions for Houston

A new report pushes for the creation of flood-literate residents and politicians.

Map: 211 Calls During and After Harvey

51,596 unique callers requested service referrals via 211 due to the effects of the storm.

Houston Solutions Lab Pairs Academics with City

Three projects were selected in the first round of funding, including two for flood research.

Harvey Reflections: A Tech Community Comes of Age

"We were prepared. We were ready to work for 48 hours."

FEMA Applications Show Need in the Wake of Harvey

More than 436,000 valid individual assistance FEMA applications were submitted in Harris County.

Harvey Reflections: Fifth Ward Weathers the Storm, Wary of Gentrification

Revitalization or gentrification? In Fifth Ward, Harvey raised the stakes.