Results tagged “lightning”

Houstonist has an active and amazing Flickr photo group. We receive many, many photos of Houston and the surrounding areas every day and unless you are an active visitor to our photo pool many of these photos go unnoticed. So in a weekly effort to bring you more amazing photos from Houstonist readers and photographers, we are going to feature a block of photos submitted to our Flickr photo group. The images will be dug...

Ghostland Observatory’s Thomas Turner and Aaron Behrens just might be the hardest working men in the electronic/funk-glam/rock music biz. In less than two years, the Austin, TX duo have released two records and have toured from coast to coast, all while running their own music label, Trashy Moped. The band’s latest CD, Paparazzi Lightning, is a high-voltage rocking dance record that the Dallas Observer says would “do Daft Punk, Giorgio Moroder and Freddie Mercury...

Come back ISP! We neeeeeed you! What happen you today? Things were gone so good buscept you screwed it up. Did you not like the freakfast in bed? That's never happened to us before. For real and stuff - we gotta have you. Please andser our call Need u bad longing for your connection, honeybaby Houstonist Time for our weekly look at Houston's Missed Connections on Craigslist. Hate yellow gummi bears? Love oragel [sic]?...

A bullet was fired through a window at KPFT world headquarters in Montrose around 1 a.m. this morning, narrowly missing a woman's head. Fortunately, no one was actually injured in the incident. Pictures of the window were posted on the KPFT blog within hours. In the same blog post, station manager Duane Bradley indicated what seems to be the consensus, that he believes the station was expressly targeted by the unidentified shooter: Security considerations will...

So we're all familiar with the Emergency Alert System, right? It's the thing that breaks into television and radio broadcasts to let us know about emergency situations, from explosions or terrorist attacks down to severe weather. Well, the local EAS system is on the blink right now — and, ironically enough, it was taken out by severe weather. The antenna for the radio-based alert system is atop the 31-story Five Greenway Plaza, and it seems...

Today’s Photo of the Day comes from flickr user and Houstonist photo contributor Michael. This storm system moved through town this past Wednesday morning and provided quite a spectacular light show. Michael was brave enough to snap some amazing lightning shots. Honestly, Houstonist hunkers down during these type of storms and hopes that our computers don't get zapped, even after we unplug them. Thanks for the photo Michael, Houstonist salutes your bravery. If you...

When we were little, Mama Houstonist always told us not to take shelter under a tree during a lightning storm. And though we followed her advice, we were always a little skeptical: People don't really get hit by lightning if they're standing under a tree, do they? Actually, yes, they do — just ask the four guys who were struck yesterday at Bear Creek Park. The men were playing soccer at the park when a...

Good morning, Houston. Blah blah blah, et cetera. (Yeah, you can tell it's Friday again.) >> BP: Managers to blame for 2005 blast: An internal BP report on the deadly 2005 explosion at its Texas City refinery recommends that four top managers be fired for bad judgment and failing to do their jobs. The report — completed in February but kept confidential until it was released under court order Thursday — named Pat Gower,...

A SWAT standoff between police and a sex offender at a southwest Houston apartment complex yesterday ended when police forced their way into an apartment and found the suspect dead, apparently of a self-inflicted gunshot wound to the head. It all started around 1 p.m. when police followed Michael Lightning, 43, through the gates of the Victoria Condos near Gessner and Beltway 8 intending to arrest him in connection with a June 1994 sexual assault...

Ah ... Spring is in the air. With spring comes festival season! The International Festival begins its two-weekend stint on Saturday, bringing a wide range of musicians. This weekend, George Clinton headlines, but you can also catch Ruthie Foster, Grupo Fantasma, and more. Another annual tradition (well, a 14 year tradition) is Buzzfest sponsored by 94.5 KTBZ. This year's line-up for the rock station (notice that we didn't say "alternative?" -- there's a reason...

Good morning, Houston. If anyone out there's looking for a show idea to pitch to MTV, may we suggest The Real World: Monsatery? Based on the statements of Hugh Brian Fallon, a monk from Blanco, The Christ of the Hills monastery would fit right in with the Real World drama: Fallon told authorities that fellow monk Samuel Greene encouraged sex among the monks, offered people marijuana when they were having problems and faked tears...

Good morning, Houston. If you're a smoker who's not a fan of the citywide smoking ban set to take effect this fall, here's something to be happy about: At least you don't live in Abilene, where a man was arrested on a warrant for smoking in public. Brian Wayne Hendrix was cited for smoking in public, a violation of Abilene's smoking ban, in late February; when he failed to show up in court, a...

Today’s Photo of the Day comes from flickr user and Houstonist photo contributor portseye. If this photo doesn't deserve to be Photo of the Day, may lightning strike Houstonist down... On second thought maybe not. If you have a passion for Houston and photography, consider joining over 200 of Houston's best photographers in the Houstonist Flickr Photo Group. If Houstonist uses your photo for Photo Of The Day, submit it here. For more great...

Another night, another series of strong storms: This time, we had isolated reports of 50 mph winds and hail, with a possible tornado reported near Bush Intercontinental Airport. Otherwise, though, things weren't nearly as bad as they could have been except for a couple of incidents: In north Harris County, several cars were stalled on a North Freeway feeder road around 10 p.m. when as much as four inches of rain fell in a short...

Anyone notice the rain this morning? It crashed through the area with thunder, lightning, wind and hail, slowing morning rush-hour traffic and leading to reports of possible tornadoes. According to KHOU, a twister might have headed through Needville, where the carport was blown off City Hall (now where will the mayor park?) and the roof was blown off the cotton gin (now where will the ... oh, never mind). The line of heavy rain has...

From Missouri City comes the story of a woman who shouldn't be alive this morning: She's Ann Patterson Smith, and her house exploded just after midnight. And we mean exploded — according to reports, the chimney was the only thing left standing. Well, the chimney and Smith, of course. No one's sure yet why Smith's house at 3404 Covey Trail blew up, but the blast was apparently really something. "A noise that sounded much bigger...

Houstonist had a pretty nice weekend, enjoying the weather (did you catch the amazing heat lightning on Saturday?), ice skating at the Gallaria, eating cake at Empire Cafe, and having other assorted fun, but one particular piece of exciting news warmed our sleep-deprived soul. The 59 Diner (3801 Farnharm, at Greenbriar/Shepherd and 59) is going to be open 24 hours a day starting today. Long-term readers will know us as big proponents of latenight food,...

If you live anywhere close to downtown and happened to be outside looking around last night, chances are you saw the glow from Friendship Baptist Church — the old church in Freedmen's Town burned last night after members say lightning struck the building. The Rev. Floyd N. Williams II and a handful of other people were in the building for a Bible study around 7 p.m. when they heard what sounded like a lightning strike...

So the cold front passed through last night without causing the heavy rain, high wind and tornadoes forecasters warned about — though there was flooding in some parts of the area, especially to the north and east. In Tomball, Spring Creek is out of its banks and is expected to crest this afternoon, with about 60 homes reported flooded. Splendora schools are closed today because of a flooded Peach Creek, and flooding has been reported...

Well, those storms we mentioned yesterday morning ended up blowing through the area — and though Houstonist didn't notice much aside from gray skies and the occasional burst of rain, the weather did impact a lot of people. In Waller, winds that gusted up to 60 mph knocked some trees over and sheared others off halfway up their trunks; nearby, a barn under construction was destroyed. And in La Marque, a rogue lightning strike...

OK, thunder gang: another weekend, another football battle. If last week, Houstonist reminded you that Philadelphia had a team of some note, this installment should come as a surprise to none. The Indianapolis Colts are on the short list for NFL’s best teams, and with good reason. They’ve got an absolutely lethal offense, a defense custom-built by Tony Dungy, and oh yeah, possibly the most technically proficient quarterback in pigskin history. Did we mention that they made a serious run at the 1972 Dolphins’ perfect record last year? So, fair readers, it’s mighty unlikely that this Sunday’s trip to Coltdome will yield a Texans’ victory. But that’s not to say it won’t be a game well worth watching, mostly because of the Six Things You Must Know About Indy’s Colts.

Sean Brown and Matt McCombs, both 18, were indicted today, charged with the early July murder of 16-year-old Ashton Glover Juan Garza, 27, is in jail in Pasadena as a suspect in the stabbing death of his 61-year-old mother, who police said he killed and robbed to support a drug habit Witnesses said lightning caused a two-alarm fire at a north Houston apartment complex this afternoon Police are still searching for Kollett Cooper, a Fort...

In one of the more bizarre things to happen over the weekend, several apartments in a Conroe complex were damaged Saturday when they were struck by a random bolt of lightning. What makes it odd is that there wasn't a storm at the time: It's possible for lightning to hit up to 10 miles away from a rain source, but an unexpected bolt (especially one that damages something) isn't something you hear about all...

Jurors began deliberating this afternoon in the capital murder retrial of Andrea Yates Three people were injured today in an accident during routine maintenance at the Chevron Phillips chemical plant in Baytown Christine Marie Paolilla, accused of a quadruple murder in Clear Lake three years ago, made her first court appearance today A friend of a young woman believed to be the latest victim of a local serial killer says she came face-to-face with the...

Well, the good news is that it probably won't flood tomorrow, so it looks like we may be home free when it comes to barbecuing, swimming and setting off explosive devices in celebration of our freedom. The bad news is that it could flood today. But, you know, what can you do? An upper-level low over West Texas is expected to combine with tropical moisture in the Gulf today to create a band of storms...

With all the coverage of the rain yesterday, you might have missed another big local story: A warehouse full of supplies for humanitarian aid burned in Pearland, destroying millions of dollars' worth of food and other items intended for hungry families in Houston and around the world. A warehouse worker and a volunteer for the Christian Alliance for Humanitarian Aid arrived at the warehouse Monday morning and found that the power was out in the...

There's some debate on how the Margarita originated — one theory is that a Texas bartender made the first one by mistake. Sounds like a good explanation to us. Whatever the story, one thing everyone can agree on is that this heat is ridiculous, and we have about three months more of it ahead. It's the perfect time of year to cool down with (what might be) a real Texas drink. Frozen or on the...

The two teens accused of beating and sodomozing a Hispanic teen in April pleaded not guilty during a court hearing today Gov. Rick Perry announced a plan today to put surveillance cameras on ranches along the Texas-Mexico border to watch for illegal immigrants A jury convicted Juan Solis today of raping a woman in a Galleria-area parking garage three years ago Fire crews fought a naphtha tank fire in Pasadena today; the tank caught fire...

By now, we've all heard a lot (and a lot of the same) about yesterday's Enron verdict — and all this, of course, is only the beginning as we enter four months of speculation about Ken Lay and Jeff Skilling's sentencing and the appeals the ex-execs are certain to file. But in the meantime, there's still some wrapping up to do from yesterday, beginning with Lay and Skilling's reaction to their convictions on charges of...

A band of fierce storms that ripped through North Texas last night could produce some bad weather in Houton tonight. The storms are traveling with a cool front that should lower the temperatures just a bit Thursday. "As this front approaches southeast Texas, I think it will be getting into our far northern counties," [KHOU meterologist David] Paul said. He said the severe weather would possibly start around 2 p.m. or 3 p.m. and would...