Updated draft FEMA floodplain maps show that thousands of Harris County residents are now mapped out of high-risk floodplain areas because of completed flood risk reduction projects.
During a recent Harris County Commissioners Court meeting, Harris County Flood Control District leadership highlighted an important milestone: Updated draft FEMA floodplain maps now reflect the real impact…
Community
Most people enjoy the occasional slow-paced rainy day. In Harris County, we typically see about 106 days with rainfall each year. Understanding how those rainfall totals add up over time and how stormwater moves throughout Harris County is key to understanding flood risk.
A few inches of rain might not seem like much at first.…
Yesterday, the Harris County Flood Control District provided an update to the Harris County Commissioners Court on newly released Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) draft floodplain maps. This morning, the conversation continued on local television.
On February 13, 2026, Emily Woodell, Chief External Affairs Officer for the Flood Control District, joined FOX 26 Houston to…
Draft floodplain maps for Harris County have officially been released, marking a major milestone in the MAAPNext mapping effort. During today’s Harris County Commissioners Court meeting, Dr. Tina Petersen, Executive Director of the Harris County Flood Control District, emphasized that while the maps are early in the process, the community will have time, access, and…
Last week, FEMA released draft floodplain mapping information to the 34 floodplain administrators in Harris County as part of the MAAPNext effort. MAAPNext is a FEMA-led initiative, supported by the Harris County Flood Control District to provide local expertise. These maps reflect changing conditions in Harris County, including a more than 30% increase in rainfall rates, updated topography and advanced modeling. These updates are…
Strong partnerships are essential to building long-term resilience in Harris County. Through the Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) program, the Flood Control District can design and build projects that meaningfully reduce flood risk. These projects improve channel conveyance, create stormwater storage, and preserve floodplains that help mitigate flooding during major rain events.
Many communities with…
The Flood That Built the Flood Control District
The Great Houston Flood of 1935 was the worst flood event in Houston’s history up to that time. An intense 42-hour period of rainfall occurred from December 6 through December 8. While the City of Houston received 5.5 inches of rain, areas to the northwest saw far…
The Harris County Flood Control District recently wrapped up the first round of listening meetings for the Solutions for Advancing Floodplain Evaluation and Resilience Study (SAFER) Study. These meetings gave residents a chance to share experiences, ask questions, and talk about ideas for reducing the impacts of flooding. The SAFER Study is a major effort…
On October 15, 1989, as most of the Gulf Coast was easing into fall, Hurricane Jerry made a surprise landfall near Jamaica Beach on Galveston Island. With sustained winds of 85 miles per hour, Jerry wasn’t the strongest storm to hit Texas, but it was one of the latest.
In fact, Jerry was the latest…
Thirty-one years ago this week, relentless rain fell over southeast Texas and changed lives forever. Between October 15 and October 18, 1994, a slow-moving weather system combined with tropical moisture from the Gulf of Mexico and remnants of Hurricane Rosa in the eastern Pacific to unleash catastrophic flooding across southeast Texas, including portions of…
