There Have Been 18 Major Flood Events in Texas, Louisiana, Oklahoma, and Arkansas Since March 2015
In August of this year, massive flooding took over parts of the south including southern and eastern Louisiana. The Weather Channel reported: “Over a 12-month period ending Aug. 14, 2016, Baton Rouge, Louisiana (98.83 inches), and Bergstrom Airport near Austin, Texas (67.86 inches) had their wettest Aug. 15-Aug. 14 12-month period on record, according to the Southeast Regional Climate Center.” Last year the number of flood deaths was the most dating back to 1995 with 176 killed in 26 states.
In Texas, the number of flood related deaths continues to rise. In June, The Los Angeles Times shared, “The death toll from this spring’s unprecedented flooding in Texas reached 15 last month, the wettest in state history with up to 20 inches falling in some places. Gov. Greg Abbott declared a state of disaster in 31 flooded counties, including Richmond’s Fort Bend County.”
The Houston Chronicle said Texas is leading the nation in the number of flood fatalities. “Unfortunately, this is not the first time Texas takes the number one spot: Data from the National Weather Service reveals Texas has lead the nation in flood-related deaths for the past 50 years. As a result, flooding is the number one cause of weather-related deaths in Texas.” Texas received more than $45M in disaster aid for flood recovery from the Department of Housing and Urban Development to aid housing redevelopment, business assistance and infrastructure repair.
It’s of utmost importance to utilize the technology we currently have available to work together to try and prevent future flood-related fatalities as well as continue to evolve technology to better serve future purposes. That’s where we step in — allowing real-time monitoring of potentially dangerous roadways during storms. With Beholder, you don’t have to have feet on the ground to determine whether a situation is life-threatening. Additionally, our flood camera technology is accessible to the press and public — they can visually see potential dangers and share them with their communities. As severe weather continues to increase around the country, the need for remote-surveillance on potential road hazards will increase and Beholder allows you to save lives without risking them.
