Imelda Threat: 6 Things To Do Now

Our neighborhood lake during Harvey

Well, Imelda has turned out to be a real bitch. It's been 3 days of rain, and it's still hanging around.

In fact, Imelda is flooding areas that didn't flood in Harvey. The lake that's the centerpiece of our community rose higher than I'd ever seen it. (Photo at left.) But, it's got a huge drain that takes overflow so we never had a problem.

I discovered during Harvey that we have one of the highest elevations in Houston: 57 feet. Don't laugh! That 57 feet has kept us flood-free during every flood event.

The problem is that Imelda slowed after moving slightly north of Houston and then reversed direction.

Instead of continuing north, the storm moved east, keeping southeast Texas under an umbrella of rain that just won't go away.

This is what happened in 1989 (I think that was the year) when a tropical storm parked itself off the coast and gave us 30 days of rain. Then Tropical Storm Allison in 2000 did pretty much the same thing.

I had hoped after Harvey that I'd never see this again, but the weather will do what it will do, and there's nothing you can do about it.

In case you're in the affected area, and you have not flooded, here are...

6 Things To Do During A Rain Event

1. Take a walk around your house. Wait for the rain to slow to a drizzle and make sure the lightning has abated. See where you might want to improve the drainage of your lot. Sometimes people install decking or landscaping that keeps rain from draining properly. Make sure this isn't the case with your property.

2. Be sure to check your chimney. Check inside the house. See if the brick is damp and/or if there's water dripping down inside the chimney.

During Hurricane Harvey, rain started dripping down the inside of our chimney. Long story short: the cap on top of the chimney had been damaged by the man who power-washed the mildew from the chimney brick the month before the hurricane.

So check around your fireplace where it's visible inside the room or rooms as well as checking the attic too. If you see any moisture, make a note to call a qualified chimney inspection company to check it before another storm rolls in.

3. Check the windows in every room. See if any rain water is leaking inside. When we bought our house in 2013, we replaced all the windows with insulated storm windows. We got a good deal since it was in the fall, but they were still expensive AND worth every penny.

4. Check your exterior doors. See if they're insulated well or if they're letting rain water in.

Make a plan for dealing with events like this.

5. Remember to check your garage. Most people overlook the garage and any storage closets in it, but pooled rain water could be seeping through the weep holes there. Make sure everything is dry.

6. Always keep your communication devices charged up. You need your cell phone, laptop, etc. to keep abreast of a changing situation so if you can't plug it in to charge it, stay off it to conserve its charge. If you have power, keep them plugged in.

When this rain event is over, put Backup Power Bank on your shopping list. The embedded link takes you to just one of them on Amazon so you can read about it and know what it is. You can find others on Amazon that might fit your needs or budget.

A power bank is a device that's sold under a lot of different names. It can quickly charge your cell phone, tablet, or laptop. You can get it for Apple devices or Android.

Takeaway Truth

Now is the time to take stock of your home's situation and make a plan for dealing with another event like Imelda.