Rounds of scattered thunderstorms expected next few days

HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) — Rain chances are climbing up to 70% on Thursday as multiple rain-making disturbances track over Southeast Texas.

Scattered thunderstorms are expected as the first disturbance arrives. This wave of rain should begin clearing out of Houston around midday, but another round of storms is possible in the late afternoon and for the evening commute. Where it does rain, a quick inch or two is possible along with frequent lightning and minor street flooding.

While there’s a great chance you’ll get rain, there’s still a 30% chance the storms will miss you. Regardless, all the rain-cooled air should keep afternoon temperatures in the 80s for most of us. It’s even possible many could enjoy temperatures in the 70s for most of the day if the rain starts early and is as widespread as it looks like it could be.

The radar should quiet down Thursday night, then the atmosphere will reload for another chance of storms on Friday.

How much rain can we expect?

Totals will vary widely over Southeast Texas because each round of rain will bring scattered showers and thunderstorms. That means some of you may get very little rain while others get multiple rounds and inches of precipitation. Most of us that do get rain will end up with an inch or two, but some will get far less.

With all these rain chances, will flooding be possible?

Believe it or not, localized street flooding is a small possibility despite how extreme the drought is at this time. Bayous, creeks, and rivers are low, so they should be able to handle whatever rain falls, but if more than 2″ of rain falls in an hour, streets will flood.

Are there any other tropical threats on the horizon for the Gulf of Mexico?

At this time, there are no immediate threats to the Gulf of Mexico, and we expect wind shear to remain high over the Gulf for the next couple of weeks. We are monitoring category 2 Hurricane Lee in the Atlantic for impacts to the U.S. East Coast this week. For a full overview of what’s happening in the tropics, head to our tropical webpage. Tropical Update page.