According to Harris County Judge Ed Emmett, “There’s no question that not enough has been done” to properly warn drivers about road flooding, especially after last week’s severe weather. The judge drives flood warning improvements after recent Houston driver deaths. Eight motorists drowned in their vehicles last week and Judge Harris, along with local leaders, believes it’s time to step up the area’s warning system.
According to Harris County Judge Ed Emmett, “There’s no question that not enough has been done” to properly warn drivers about road flooding, especially after last week’s severe weather. The judge drives flood warning improvements after recent Houston driver deaths. Eight motorists drowned in their vehicles last week and Judge Harris, along with local leaders, believes it’s time to step up the area’s warning system.
Last week, Houston and surrounding counties were slammed with over a foot of rain since Sunday the 17th. Thousands of residents were forced to evacuate due to flooding creeks and bayous. The road flooding caused six deaths in Houston and its suburbs and two other in nearby counties. Three of the six deaths in Houston occurred at the same underpass.
It was that last part that spurred Judge Emmett to take up the task of improving flooded road warnings. Of the three deaths at the underpass, one driver drove around a barricade, but there were no barricades at the sections of the underpass where the other two drivers died.
Judge Emmett said, “If it’s somebody who drives around a barricade and goes into the water, that’s problematic. I don’t know if any system can stop somebody like that. But the other two deaths were completely preventable.” This is especially true, he said, given that these were not the only drownings at that underpass. The most recent happened in May 2015.
The judge’s short-term plans include speaking with the Harris County Sheriff’s Office as well as those of local constables to ensure that deputies and officers are on location at flooded underpasses and other areas.
His long-term plans involve working with city officials and the state to explore other solutions, including barriers, for the underpass where the drownings happened as well as other flood-prone areas.
Raquelle Lewis, spokesperson for the Texas Department of Transportation, stated that the agency is committed to finding solutions in the joint effort with county and city officials.
She said, “There is always going to be the potential that people will make decisions that are not necessarily in their best interests or life-preserving. What we will do is to look at what can we feasibly do to minimize the potential for those instances.”
Houston is already working on installing early warning systems at 27 areas. The systems use high water sensors and flashing lights to warn drivers that the road ahead is flooded. Nineteen of the 27 early warning systems are in place currently.
Originally, the system also featured wooden gates like those at railroad crossings. The gates would drop down to block access to the flooded road ahead. This part of the system was abandoned due to drivers going around them and actually crashing into the first one installed.
Executive staff analyst with the Houston Public Works and Engineering Department, Gary Norman, made an email statement that, “We are constantly evaluating how best to protect and inform the public.”
For those familiar with my writing, I am not Willy Wonka, I do not suger coat anything. While I am deeply saddened by the loss of eight lives, no appointment, no meeting, nothing at all, is so important as to risk your life driving around barricades. Flooded roadways are dangerous with waters often much deeper than they appear.
Here’s a good piece of advice:
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