Final Hurricane Harvey Stats Quite Mind-Boggling: By The Numbers

HOUSTON, TX — The images from the aftermath of Hurricane Harvey last summer tell the heartbreaking story of the powerful storm that ravaged Texas. The data compiled by the National Hurricane Center explain the historical significance of the system that dumped rain in half the United States.

The NHC released a report Thursday detailing the tropical system from its origin in Western Africa, its rather nondescript journey across the Atlantic and into the Caribbean, across Mexico's Yucatan Peninsula and into the Gulf of Mexico as a weak tropical depression. It traces the storm's crazy elevating status into a Category 1 storm and even quicker rise into a Cat 4 before slamming the Texas Coastal Bend just east of Rockport.

The 76-page report accompanied by a multi-faceted spreadsheet of national rainfall details the widespread impact of this storm. The numbers in the NHC report are staggering:

68 — Direct deaths from Harvey in Texas alone

36 — Direct deaths in Harris County

125 million — Dollars in damage by the storm

300,000 — Structures flooded in the region

500,000 — Cars flooded in the region

60.58 — Inches of rain that fell in Nederland

2 — New colors added to the NWS rainfall chart because of the epic rainfall

336,000 — Customers who lost power during the hurricane

30,000 — Water rescues during and after the storm

57 — Tornadoes reported during Harvey, most in the Houston region

40,000 — Evacuees sent for shelter or refuge between Texas and Louisiana

"The exceptional rainfall fell over some of the most densely populated areas of the U.S. Gulf Coast," the report read. "Widespread flooding of homes and businesses occurred from the Houston metroarea southward, and the floodwaters inundated major roads such as I-10, I-45, and US-59. Record water levels were observed on Buffalo Bayou, Clear Creek, Dickinson Bayou and CypressCreek."

Some of the hardest hit areas from flooding in the Houston metro area extended from Humble to Lake Houston, including the neighborhoods of Northshore, Bellaeu Woods, Riviera, Treasure Cove, Kings Lake Estates, Kings River, Kings Crown Estates, Kings River Estates, Atascocita Shores, Atascocita West, Ramblewood, Walden Subdivisions, and along the West Lake Houston Parkway, North Houston Ave., Thelma Road, Hamblen Road and Aqua Vista Drive.

The report gives rainfall totals in specific areas from Texas to Florida, up to Missouri and Michigan and every state across the Midwest and Northeast up through Vermont, New Hampshire and Maine. It gave more specific damage through the Texas region, including:

Near the initial landfall location in Texas, wind damage was extreme in Aransas County, Nueces County, Refugio County and the eastern part of San Patricio County. Approximately 15,000 homes were destroyed in these areas, with another 25,000 damaged, and extensive tree damage was noted. Generally, the damage was most severe in the areas adjacent to Aransas Bay and Copano Bay, with the city of Rockport hit particularly hard. Coastal areas of the counties above and Calhoun County were inundated with storm surge, and many marinas reported serious damage or destruction of boats, docks and piers. This includes State Highway 361 which was inundated along the entire stretch of MustangIsland. The surge also damaged or destroyed many coastal structures in Port Aransas, Holiday Beach, Copano Village, Lamar, Seadrift, North Padre Island and Mustang Island. Erosion from surge near the Packery Channel caused an interruption to the primary water supply to Port Aransas for six days. Corpus Christi was spared the worst of the hurricane’s effects, with widespread but mostly minor damage reported. At the peak, roughly 220,000 customers lost power.

In Fort Bend County, major flooding occurred with both the Brazos and San Bernard Rivers experiencing record floods. Major-to-record flooding occurred along the Brazos River from Richmond to Rosharon. Significant home flooding occurred in areas of Simonton, Richmond, Rosenburg, and Thompsons. Nearly 200,000 people were evacuated due to levee concerns and restrictions. Major-to-record flooding also occurred on the San Bernard River at both East Bernard and Boling, with the hardest hit area being Tierra Grande. At least 8,500 homes in this county were damaged by Harvey.

In Brazoria County, the Brazos and San Bernard Rivers experienced record water levels, which caused widespread floods across the county. The hardest hit communities were in Baileys Prairie, Richard and West Columbia. Widespread major flooding on the Brazos River and Oyster Creek led to numerous roads and homes flooding in Columbia Lakes, Mallard Lakes, Great Lakes, Riverside Estates and the Bar X Ranch subdivisions, as well as homes on CR 39. Flooding damaged the bridge over Cow Creek at CR 25, making it impassable. Major flooding also occurred along the San Bernard River at Sweeny with widespread inundation of the west floodplain. The Phillips 66 refinery took on water near Little Linville Bayou. Hanson Riverside Park was inundated, and water overtopped the Phillips Terminal, halting all vessel traffic. High flows from the Brazos and San Bernard Rivers caused navigation problems for several weeks. Over 9,000 homes experienced flood damage from the storm.

In Wharton County, widespread catastrophic flooding occurred from both the Colorado and San Bernard Rivers, causing Highway 59 to close between Hungerford and El Campo. The flooding inundated areas of Wharton, with hundreds of homes and businesses under water in many communities including Hobben Oaks, Bear Bottom, Elm Grove, River Valley and Pecan Valley. Other areas such as Glenflora, Peach Acres and the Orchard were hard hit. Major-to- record flooding also occurred on the San Bernard River at both East Bernard and Boling, with the hardest hits areas being El Lobo and New Gulf. Major lowland flooding occurred with many homes (including some on the second-story) and businesses being inundated, and the cotton crop was decimated. An estimated 2,000 homes were damaged or destroyed in the county.

Major lowland flooding occurred in Matagorda County along the Tres Palacios River. Many roadways were under water, and homes in the El Dorado Country, Oak Grove, and Tres Palacios Oaks subdivisions flooded. Major flooding also occurred on the Colorado River at Bay City as levees were overtopped by 2 ft of water. High flows from the Colorado and Tres Palacios Rivers impacted river navigation for several weeks. Roughly 2,900 homes were damaged in the county.

In San Jacinto County, major lowland flooding occurred on the Trinity River near Goodrich with damage and debris noted near the boat ramp and channel in proximity to the river gauge. Major flooding occurred upstream near Lake Livingston, with roads and many homes south of the lake being inundated. About 3,300 homes were damaged in the county.

Major-to-record flooding occurred in Liberty County along the Trinity River with numerous roads inundated including FM 787. Many homes and subdivisions were either cut off or inundated, specifically north of the city of Liberty and in the Grenada Lakes Estates subdivision. Significant damage occurred along the banks of the river due to high flows and several utility lines were severed due to the loss of poles in the vicinity of the Romayor gauge. Record river levels were also observed on the east fork of the San Jacinto River causing significant flooding in Cleveland, Williams and Plum Grove. High flows caused significant scouring of the state 105 (business) road; other roads were washed out as well, with bridge washouts or closures observed in many parts of the county. At least 1,000 homes were damaged in the county.

In Chambers County, record floods over the lowlands occurred along the Trinity River. Cedar Bayou was out of its banks in many locations, with significant flooding observed in Baytown. Numerous roads and homes were inundated across the county, including extensive flooding in the Milam Bend subdivision. High flows from the Trinity River impacted the navigation community for several weeks. An estimated 3,000 homes were damaged, and numerous businesses had significant damage.

Top image: Volunteers and officers from the neighborhood security patrol help to rescue residents and their dogs in the upscale River Oaks neighborhood after it was inundated with flooding from Hurricane Harvey on August 27, 2017 in Houston, Texas. Harvey, which made landfall north of Corpus Christi late Friday evening, is expected to dump upwards to 40 inches of rain in Texas over the next couple of days. (Photo by Scott Olson/Getty Images)