Longtime Humble ISD teacher Jeff Wilson died in the floods, according to the school district. Elementary school students from Houston are among the children from Camp Mystic — a Christian all-girls summer camp in the Texas Hill Country — who remained unaccounted for Sunday.

Several groups have mobilized to offer assistance to people affected by the Guadalupe River floods.

Several Houston-area groups are organizing fundraisers and donation drives for victims of the deadly floods in Central Texas. Donations also can be made directly to those in the Hill Country.

Sheila Knievel!

I finally got the last season of Lower Decks. Here’s my ranking of it’s episodes Even the worst episodes, I really liked. I am kinda sad … I think The New Next Generation was a little glimpse of what a Season 6 could have been.

1. The Best Exotic Nannite Hotel
   • Mariner and Jennifer are still dating? Also: nannites? And: Boimler’s joins Ransom and Billups in a search of a missing admiral.
   • The A-side story is kinda meh. The thing that really makes this episode Mariner and Jennifer bickering the whole way.
   • I know others have said they didn’t like the way Jennifer got dumped originally – I personally didn’t have any strong feeling about it. But it’s great that they listened to fans and revisited it in a really cool way which has TOTALLY happened to me.
2. A Farewell to Farms
   • Boimler and Mariner help Ma’ah get back in space! The B-Side story is for the birds.
   • I love how excited Boimler is to be on Qo’noS and that it’s his stupid fanboy knowledge of Klingon culture that saves the day.
   • I really love this episode because it’s just one of those episodes that give you a peak into the average Klingon life. Kinda that world building that you don’t really get outside of maybe Deep Space 9.
3. Fissure Quest
   • Alt-Title: A Fist Full of Kims
   • Transporter-Accident Boimler commands a ensemble crew from around the mult-verse, including a ton of Kims, in trying to figure out who’s opening the space fishers.
   • One thing that Lower Decks does great is giving us these fan service episodes that don’t feel like fan service. We get caught up on T’Pol, find out what would happen if Kim got promoted, and ship Garak and Bashir.
4. Fully Dilated
   • It’s a fun-time planet! There’s a purple head (it’s Data’s!) T’Lyn and Tendi accidentally try to out-science each other. Mariner tries to have a fulfilling experience but winds up with just a soap flute.
   • I guess we should just be thankful that Boimler and Rutherford didn’t “Jim Henson’s The Lower Deck Babies” our team.
   • Number of Fully Functional Jokes Made: A disappointing 1.
5. Shades of Green
   • Tendi and Company are in a pirate race! B-Side: Boimler’s team is kidnapped by rich people upset about capitalism collapse.
   • While I don’t think they really explore it, what happens when a planet crosses the post-money/scarcity economy is kinda an interesting one and maybe one of the other Treks can cover sometime.
6. The New Next Generation
   • Previously on Star Trek Lower Decks: W. Boimler direct the crazy fissure to the Prime Universe. The Cerritos is dispatched to close it.
   • While I agree with Kimolu and Matt that Ma’ah is hot, I think Malor is hotter.
   • I’m not sure when they got the message that Lower Decks wasn’t getting renewed … but I get the feeling that Fissure Quest was supposed to be the last episode in the season with closing the fissure starting the sixth season. In that light, I think it’s a great episode. Having Boimler and Mariner competing for the Number 1 spot would have made a great Season 6. But as a close to a season, it kinda leave you wanting.
7. Dos Cerritos
   • Space Shenanigans results in the crew meeting an alt-Cerritos were Mariner is the captain. B-Side: Tendi does pirate stuff and finds out her sister is preggers!
   • A good start to the season that sets Boimler’s arch going.
8. Of Gods and Angles
   • Zeus’ … eh … Granddaughter? Cubes versus Spheres and a baby one that looks like something I made in shapez. You think you’d flip for the B-Side, but it just bites you in the ass.
   • I still laughed through this one but … it kinda felt … done before? I feel like TNG had the whole Romeo and Juliette thing a couple of times?
9. STARBASE 80?
   • Zombies and being tricked into repairing a starbase.
   • I have mixed feeling about this one. I do like Starbase 80 getting retcon as a “Place of Second Chances,” but it also makes me question Mariner’s judgement of the place. It doesn’t seem that bad. Did she even set foot on the base?
10. Upper Decks
    • Things Happen. The End.
    • I think out of all the episodes … this one just kinda felt … meh? Still laughed … but it just felt … ok?

 

#Kento #RoninWarriors

Wow! #CowboyWho

fuzzyghost:

This sliding door? Not up to code, won’t withstand an avalanche.

So lucky, one of the first DeLoreans!

In brief: Invest 92L became Tropical Depression 3 yesterday and is now Tropical Storm Chantal. It’s en route to the Carolinas. We take a detailed look at what occurred in Texas Thursday night and Friday morning.

Note: Most of the data in these posts originates from NOAA and NWS. Many of the taxpayer-funded forecasting tools described below come from NOAA-led research from research institutes that will have their funding eliminated in the current proposed 2026 budget. Access to these tools to inform and protect lives and property would not be possible without NOAA’s work and continuous research efforts.

Tropical Storm Chantal

Hot off the presses this morning, Tropical Depression 3 is now Tropical Storm Chantal, giving us a 3 for 3 conversion rate of depressions to storms so far this season.

Chantal’s forecast has not changed a whole heck of a lot since yesterday, as impacts will remain primarily heavy rain and localized flooding, as well as rip currents on the beaches. Please exercise caution, particularly on the Carolina coasts and a little farther north. Chantal will remain over fairly warm water for the next 18 to 24 hours, so it may try to strengthen a bit further. Tropical storm warnings include the upper South Carolina coast, including Myrtle Beach, as well as extreme southeast North Carolina.

Chantal will continue north and east after tomorrow dissipating before it gets to Delmarva.

Unraveling what happened in Texas

First, as someone based in Texas and with multiple members of our large but still close community still missing, I want to extend whatever sort of condolences are possible to friends and family that are dealing with what is truly an unspeakably horrific tragedy. On a holiday weekend that should be celebratory for kids and families no less, in the middle of the night when they’re at their most vulnerable. There truly are no words.

What we can do is take stock of what happened, explain why, explain what was known and what wasn’t know, and try to piece together how something like this happens in 2025.

The cause

As is often the case in interior Texas, one of the culprits involved last night was the remnant of a tropical system. Remember Tropical Storm Barry? It lasted all of 12 hours before coming ashore in Mexico. We can track Barry’s remnants from landfall last weekend through Thursday evening by looking at its “fingerprint” about 10,000 feet above the surface.

So you had the remnants of a tropical storm. Because of this, you had abundant moisture coming from that storm’s source region in the Gulf. You had strong moisture transport coming northward as well with a strong low-level jet stream (a common feature in Texas located about 5,000 feet above the surface). But the jet was oriented to allow for maximum upsloping, aimed right at Hill Country. You had plentiful instability in the atmosphere as well.

So, tallying all that together: A remnant tropical system, moisture levels in the 99th percentile or higher, forced upward motion due to geography and wind direction, and plentiful instability. That’s a recipe for flash flooding. So how do you go from flash flooding to catastrophic flash flooding, because the difference is clearly enormous. When you put those parameters in concert with a weather pattern that allows for maximum efficiency of rainfall, a monsoonal pattern, and slow movement, as well as geography that allows for rapid build up of water on dry ground and riverbeds that “funnel” that through an area, that’s when you flip from ordinary to potentially tragic.

The forecast

Beginning last Sunday morning, forecast discussions from the NWS office in San Antonio and Austin noted the potential for heavy rain through the week. By Monday morning, they also noted the potential for nighttime warm rain processes in the western part of their coverage area, which would probably include Kerrville. By Tuesday afternoon they had specifically mentioned the potential for flooding on Thursday. Nothing really changed messaging wise on Wednesday or Thursday morning. By the afternoon, flood watches had been hoisted as the potential for significant rain became more evident.

Modeling? Well, it was so-so. When it comes to heavy rain, the lower resolution global models can give you a sense of what may happen, but they’re generally unable to resolve where the heaviest rains will fall. I went back and looked at some of the model rainfall forecasts for the event this past week. While some of the global models did indicate heavy rainfall potential, none were really flagging a high-risk type event. Even on Thursday morning, the WPC Excessive Rain Outlook showed a slight risk (2/4) in the area. We could probably say that the catastrophic rains were isolated enough that this was still reasonable. But truth be told, this probably deserved a moderate.

Within their discussion, they did emphasize risks of 3 inches or more, which is a reasonable note to make.

The higher resolution models did do better and did lead everyone down the correct path. On Wednesday night, the 00z HRRR model had about 7-9″ in a few bullseyes between Mexico and Texas by Friday morning. By Thursday morning, the model showed as much as 10 to 13 inches in parts of Texas. By Thursday evening, that was as much as 20 inches. So the HRRR model upped the ante all day.

The HREF model on Thursday morning, a tool developed from NOAA research also indicated the risk of 10″ or more in spots, using the “probability matched mean” product which can identify higher risk areas for heavy rainfall. I’ve used this in Houston many times, often with considerable forecast success ahead of flooding events. It has a knack for cutting through some of these higher end events and highlighting those risks.

So the signals were there and got worse as Thursday progressed. Messaging and flood watches responded to this appropriately and expanded into Thursday evening.

The warnings

Flash flood warnings were issued for areas before midnight as radar rain totals began to inflate up and over 3 to 4 inches. A flash flood emergency was issued at 4 AM for the Kerrville storms and 4:15 AM for storms near San Angelo. Rain totals were estimated to be encroaching on 10 inches at that point. So there was warning. This NWS office is acutely aware of the threats to the area from flooding, and the history is there. So I am assuming they were timely warnings unless I hear otherwise.

EWX continues Flash Flood Emergency [flash flood: radar and gauge indicated, flash flood damage threat: catastrophic] for Bandera, Kerr [TX] till Jul 4, 7:00 AM CDT Link

— IEMBOT Emergency (@emergency.weather.im) 2025-07-04T09:03:48.353981+00:00

Issuing the warning is half the process. Were the warnings received and acted on? That’s another story. And that will also come out in the days ahead. More on that below.

Did budget cuts play a role?

No. In this particular case, we have seen absolutely nothing to suggest that current staffing or budget issues within NOAA and the NWS played any role at all in this event. Anyone using this event to claim that is being dishonest. There are many places you can go with expressing thoughts on the current and proposed cuts. We’ve been very vocal about them here. But this is not the right event for those takes.

In fact, weather balloon launches played a vital role in forecast messaging on Thursday night as the event was beginning to unfold. If you want to go that route, use this event as a symbol of the value NOAA and NWS bring to society, understanding that as horrific as this is, yes, it could always have been even worse.

What should we be asking about then?

Beyond the fact that this was truly a tragedy that is extremely difficult to disseminate warnings on, I think we need to focus our attention on how people in these types of locations receive warnings. This seems to be where the breakdown occurred.

It’s not as if catastrophic flash flooding is new in interior Texas. There are literal books written about the history. The region is actually referred to as “Flash Flood Alley.” But how we manage that risk is crucially important context here. Are there sirens in place? Do there need to be sirens in place? Would people even hear sirens in the middle of the night in cabins or RVs or wherever they were? Tornado sirens have traditionally been used in parts of the country for people outdoors to get warnings. Is that an appropriate method in this region for the middle of the night and indoors?

Do we need to start thinking of every risk of flooding in Texas as a potential high-end event we should pre-evacuate the highest risk people (like children and elderly in floodways) for? Is that even practical? We can critique the answer given by the Kerr County judge here all day, but he’s correct in that the reality is they deal with flooding a lot. What is actually practical? I don’t know the answers to these questions. But it’s been a little over 10 years since Wimberley, which was a wake up call in some ways too. It’s time for another, and we need to think much bigger than just the areas impacted this time and more about Flash Flood Alley as a whole. Flooding risk is high in Texas. People learn to live with it in some ways. But something like this absolutely cannot happen again. The Texas legislature meets for a special session beginning on July 21st. This may be an important topic to add to the agenda.

yodaprod:

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fuzzyghost:

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mst3kgifs:

It just so happens I’ve written a topical satirical revue that we call Supercalifragilisticexpialiwacky!

mst3kgifs:

And this is what used to be called a “salad bar.”

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The Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals ruling means that Senate Bill 4, which allows local police to arrest suspected undocumented immigrants, continues to be blocked.

Local officials said they have rescued or evacuated more than 200 people since the Guadalupe River flooded early Friday morning, but the fate of more than 20 girls missing from a camp remains unclear.

Emergency workers rescue more than 230 people after overnight flooding along the Guadalupe River.

Not yet identified are 19 adults and seven children. Five Camp Mystic campers and one counselor were still missing as of Tuesday morning.

SAN DIEGO—Following a surprise restaurant raid Friday in which dozens of employees were taken into custody, witnesses reported that on top of everything else, the Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents responsible for the violent arrests had the gall to leave a negative review. “It takes a lot of nerve to complain about slow service after kidnapping 75% of my staff,” said Benny Romero, the owner of Romero’s Bar and Grill, who described how the group of masked agents had burst into his establishment with weapons drawn, demanding an eight-top despite not calling ahead to notify the restaurant of their large party. “They left one star, claiming no one greeted them at the host stand with their immigration documents, but that’s only because they set off a flash bomb before walking in—in the middle of a lunch rush, mind you. I admit their food was a little cold by the time it got to the table, since all of the cooks had been forced into an unmarked van, but the servers would have gladly heated it up if someone had agreed to loosen their handcuffs. These entitled guests legitimately thought they didn’t have to pay just because one of the busboys resisted arrest.” At press time, an internal Homeland Security investigation had concluded the ICE agents followed the proper protocol for situations in which an order of enchiladas fails to arrive with sour cream.

The post ICE Has Gall To Leave Raided Restaurant Negative Review appeared first on The Onion.

New Zealand singer-songwriter Lorde has released Virgin, her fourth studio album. The Onion sat down with the artist to discuss identity, inspiration, and what’s next.

The Onion: How has your music evolved as you’ve gotten older?

Lorde: When I was younger I was really intimidated by the black keys on the piano, but now I can’t get enough of them.

The Onion: What inspired the X-ray album cover?

Lorde: It’s an homage to the TV show Bones.

The Onion: Are you touring soon?

Lorde: I hope not. I just signed up for a pizza-making class.

The Onion: What’s your writing process like?

Lorde: My secretary types up my thoughts and faxes them to Jack Antonoff.

The Onion: Who are some artists you’d like to collaborate with in the future?

Lorde: I’ve always wanted to work with one of those guys who paints themselves silver and pretends to be a statue.

The Onion: You’ve described yourself as “in the middle gender-wise.” What does this mean to you?

Lorde: Sitting on a horse in oversized Wranglers, no top. Alternatively, standing barefoot in the rain in a wedding dress. And in both of these scenarios it’s heavily implied that I’m a ghost.

The Onion: What are some things to consider when tying a bowline knot?

Lorde: The bowline is an extremely secure knot, but can be hard to adjust. It all comes down to context.

The Onion: What’s next for you?

Lorde: Disappearing into some tall grass. 

The post The Onion’s Exclusive Interview With Lorde  appeared first on The Onion.

Researchers in China claim that swarms of medical nano-robots the size of a speck of dust could someday be used to clean out infected human sinuses after successfully testing the technology in the nasal cavities of animals. What do you think?

The post Study Finds Tiny Nose Robots Can Be Used To Clean Sinuses appeared first on The Onion.

OTTAWA – In order to secure an economic agreement with Trump, PM Mark Carney has announced that, beginning in 2026, Canada will celebrate our national day of celebration on July 4th, just like the Americans do. The announcement came just hours after Trump posted on Truth Social “We have just been informed that Canada, a […]

The post As part of negotiations with Trump, Carney agrees to celebrate Canada Day on July 4th appeared first on The Beaverton.