The Brazos River in Richmond is currently at Gage Elevation 18.09 feet and peaking from the widespread rainfall that occurred last week in the upper portions of the watershed. The forecast is showing that levels should begin to fall Monday afternoon. Based on the 7-day extended forecast, no flooding along the Brazos River through Fort Bend County is anticipated.
This Week
After a warm, sunny weekend, we will start the week cloudy as we wait for our next cold front to arrive toward the middle of the week. High temperatures through Wednesday will hit in the upper 70s to low 80s, before the cold front drops our highs into the mid to upper 50s. Monday’s rain chances remain low; however, those rain chances increase Tuesday through Thursday.
Based on the forecasts, portions of the lower Brazos River watershed, upstream of Hempstead, could see 1 to 1.5 in inches through Thursday. Further downstream through Austin, Waller, and Fort Bend Counties, we could see between 0.5 to 1.0 inches.
Depending on the actual rainfall amounts, this could cause another minor rise or delay the rate of fall through Fort Bend County, but the majority of the impacts will be to our northeast in the Sabine, Neches, and Trinity River watersheds as they are still elevated from last week’s rain.
Once the cold front pushes through the region, sunny to partly cloudy skies should return Friday and Saturday.
Flooding causes more damage in the United States than any other severe weather related event, an average of $5 billion a year. Flooding can occur in any of the 50 states or U.S. territories at any time of the year. We never know when the next flood will occur so plan ahead and start your preparations now. For more information, please visit NWS Flood Safety, Ready.gov, and FloodSmart.gov.
Flood Risk on the Bend 