Strong storms overnight could impact your morning commute
HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) -- Rounds of showers and storms continue through Tuesday morning until a cold front swings through on Election Day. Strong to severe storms are even possible overnight, and we've got you on an ABC13 Weather Watch.
While the overall threat for severe weather is low, you still might consider having your smartphone weather alerts turned on overnight. The meat of the storms will impact Houston and Harris County in the 4 a.m. to 8 a.m. window. Strong wind gusts over 40 mph, heavy rainfall, thunder and lightning are the main concerns. Pockets of street flooding could impact your morning commute and any plans to head to the voting polls when they open at 7 a.m. By 9 a.m. the main line should be near the coast with only isolated lingering showers left by the noon hour. Temperatures will drop from the upper 70s to the mid 60s immediately behind the front, then hover in the 60s most of the day. Once the sun pokes out during the afternoon, temperatures will briefly warm back above 70. It'd be a good idea to have an umbrella and a light jacket on hand throughout Election Day.
A Coastal Flooding Advisory is also in effect along the Southeast Texas coast until 6 a.m. Tuesday. A stronger southeast breeze could lead to coastal, street and area flooding especially during times of high tide.
When can we expect temperatures to really cool off again?
There is another Pacific front coming through Texas this weekend, but we might have to wait until after the weekend to get a more significant dose of cooler air back in Southeast Texas.
What are you tracking in the tropics?
Tropical Storm Rafael has developed in the southern Caribbean and is expected to strengthen into a Cat. 2 hurricane before making landfall in western Cuba on Wednesday. From there, the storm will track north making it into the Gulf of Mexico as a hurricane Wednesday evening. There is a lot of uncertainty to where the storm could track and how strong it could be, but the entire gulf Coast should continue monitoring the situation. It does look like conditions will be a bit more hostile for Rafael in the Gulf, so we antiicipate weakening as it tracks through the Gulf. No hurricane on record has ever made landfall in Texas during the month of November, and even if Rafael were to track toward Texas, it would likely get shredded by wind shear into a low-end tropical storm or tropical depression. Head to our daily Tropical Update page for a complete look at what we're covering in the tropics.
13 ALERT RADAR MAPS:
Montgomery/Walker/San Jacinto/Polk/Grimes Counties
Fort Bend/Wharton/Colorado Counties
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