Good evening from the Lake Houston area. There are no flood watches, warnings or advisories in effect for Harris, Montgomery or Liberty counties on Wednesday evening, September 23. Both Lake Houston and Lake Conroe are sitting near normal and easing down slowly. The only active advisory for Harris County is an air quality alert.
Lake Levels at a Glance
| Lake | Level | Percent Full | Reading |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lake Houston | 42.28 feet | 99.4 percent | 5:30 p.m. Central, Wednesday, September 23 |
| Lake Conroe | 199.71 feet | 94.0 percent | Daily value for Wednesday, September 23 |
Lake Houston
The USGS gauge at Lk Houston nr Sheldon, TX, site 08072000, read 42.28 feet at 5:30 p.m. Central on Wednesday, September 23. Over the past 48 hours the lake has moved between 42.27 feet, recorded at 2:45 p.m. Tuesday, and 42.37 feet, recorded at 11:30 a.m. Wednesday. That is a spread of about an inch and a quarter across two days.
Within Wednesday itself the gauge ticked up to 42.37 feet late in the morning and then settled back through the afternoon to 42.28 feet, which is the lowest evening reading of the week so far. Movement on that scale is routine on a lake this size and does not indicate a rise. The Texas Water Development Board lists Lake Houston at 99.4 percent full with a daily value of 42.31 feet, which agrees closely with the gauge.
Lake Conroe
The Texas Water Development Board daily value for Lake Conroe on Wednesday, September 23 is 199.71 feet and 94.0 percent full. That is down 0.02 feet from 199.73 feet on Tuesday and continues a steady, slow decline that has run all week: 199.76 feet on Sunday, 199.75 on Monday, 199.73 on Tuesday and 199.71 on Wednesday. This is a once-daily reading rather than an intraday one.
Lake Conroe matters here because San Jacinto River Authority releases from Conroe flow down the West Fork of the San Jacinto River and into Lake Houston. The upstream level is part of the local flooding picture in Kingwood, Humble and Atascocita, which is why this paper carries it alongside the Lake Houston gauge.
Weather
Tonight: Partly cloudy, with a low around 76 degrees. Heat index values as high as 101. East wind 0 to 5 mph. The gridded forecast puts the chance of precipitation at 4 percent.
Thursday: Mostly sunny, with a high near 95 degrees. Northeast wind around 5 mph. No chance of precipitation in the forecast.
Thursday night: Partly cloudy, with a low around 71 degrees. Northeast wind around 5 mph. No chance of precipitation in the forecast.
The forecast was issued by the National Weather Service Houston/Galveston office and last updated at 1:21 p.m. Central on Wednesday.
Active Alerts
There are no flood watches, warnings or advisories in effect for Harris, Montgomery or Liberty counties.
One alert does cover Harris County. The National Weather Service Houston/Galveston office issued an air quality alert at 2:52 p.m. Wednesday after the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality declared Thursday, September 24 an Ozone Action Day for the Houston, Galveston and Brazoria area. Atmospheric conditions are expected to favor high ozone levels on Thursday. The alert is in effect until 7 p.m. Thursday. A separate Ozone Action Day covering Wednesday expires at 7 p.m. Wednesday.
Of the seven active weather alerts in Texas this evening, four are flood alerts. All four are in the Panhandle, West Texas and near the New Mexico line, and none is anywhere near this coverage area.
Sources
Lake Houston elevation from the U.S. Geological Survey, site 08072000. Lake Conroe and Lake Houston percent full from the Texas Water Development Board. Forecast and alerts from the National Weather Service Houston/Galveston. Gauge readings are provisional and subject to revision by the USGS.
