Hurricanes In Katy (Houston, Galveston, Mason: how much, houses, neighborhood)

[buyacar]

when houston has to evaucate due to a hurricane warning, does katy texas have to evaucate also?...my son just moved to katy texas and he thinks katy texas is just too far from houston to be affected by a houston hurricane evacuation, is katy only about 30 miles away from houston? and it is the same as houston when it comes to hurricanes and weather in general? i just bought a house in rockdale texas and i hope it's safer than houston..

[Redrover]

Katy's proximity to Houston has nothing really to do with whether it is "safe." Hurricanes can come ashore anywhere and if it chooses to make landfall on the west side of Galveston/Houston then Katy would be more of a target than Houston. There are no large bodies of water near Katy so there is no issue of river flooding, only the accumulated rain in streets that can't get rid of it fast enough. There is always a flooding possibility but the other issue is wind damage and in some cases, tornado activity. There is no way to say whether Katy would evacuate except on a case-by-case basis, depending on landfall. As a broad statement I would say that the best course of action is to shelter in place. Take the suggested precautions (board up windows, have plenty of food and water on hand, pick up any loose objects outside etc.), watch the storm progress regularly and just hope for the best.

[JCOCO]

Hi, I live in Katy, TX and I have been here since Katrina. I had a home in new orleans when Katrina hit and this is why I think Katy would be ok if a hurricane came this way. First off I have to tell you my home in New Orelans was 6 blocks from lake ponchatrain, about 2 or 3 miles from the mississippi river and 5 blocks from the london ave canal (which breached and flooded my neighborhood) and my home was 55yrs old, even thought katrina was a cat 3 we had very strong wind. my house had lost some shingles, but no windows were broken and most of the trees were down. If the levee would have not breached my home would have just need a new roof for shingles thats all and new trees planted. so being that katy is 60 miles from the coast (i think) and its not in a floodzone and its not below sea level, I don't think water will be an issue. Now as far as wind, I would think with a cat 4 or 5 there would be some roof shingles missing but most of these houses are newly built with better roof structure then my house was in new orleans. I think the a tornado would be more of a threat. I also, think you might need to worry about the windows too. And my fear is how long would I be without power.
I think I would not evacuate in Katy. Thats my opinion. Like I said, I'm gonna protect my windows and I 'm going to have my supplies and wait it out hoping the power would not be out for weeks. If after the storm, the I see the power will be out for a long time, then I will get in my car and leave to go to family or friends house outside of texas to spend my weeks without power.

[JCOCO]

Correction, I meant to say since katy is not in a flood zone i think flooding will NOT be an issue

[grifsmom]

I would not evacuate, but I would take care of the windows and take all other shelter in place precautions. The last time a hurricane hit, Alicia in 83, we had trees ripped out of our yard (lived off Mason Rd at the time) and there was scattered but significant structural damage in the area from high winds.

[JCOCO]

what cat storm was alicia? what kind of structural damage was there in the mason area I live off grand parkway right now south of I 10? was there any flooding in this area? where windows out in this area? how long did power stay out for?

[Guerilla]

You shouldn't have a problem in Katy. Strong winds is a possibility though.

[JCOCO]

I just had my house built and I got a tile roof put on, I know they have to over support my roof stucture to support the tile roof. Do you think I would have anything to worry about as far as the roof flying off?
And what about the windows? I guess I have some internet research to do on how much wind can the roof and windows take.

[Poltracker]

Originally Posted by JCOCO

what cat storm was alicia? what kind of structural damage was there in the mason area I live off grand parkway right now south of I 10? was there any flooding in this area? where windows out in this area? how long did power stay out for?

Alicia was barely a Category 3 storm that hit Galveston directly, sustained winds in Katy were in the 60 mph range with higher gusts. Remember in addition to boarding your windows, brace the garage doors. They have a high failure rate and once the wind gets in well....

[grifsmom]

If I remember correctly Alicia was a Cat 3. I was a teenager so naturally I slept through the whole thing. The wind caused a lot of damage all over the city--DT was a mess--windows blown out of all the buildings. Damage in our neighborhood (Cimarron) was trees down, trees falling into houses, roofs getting ripped off, outbuildings getting pulled off their supports and thrown around. I don't remember any of our neighbors being rendered homeless, or anything, but lots of peple got new roofs that year. I think our power was out for a day or so.