FEMA - Harvey Flood Depths Grid

This resource describes a dataset of gridded depth at horizontal resolution of 3 meters, published November 15, 2017, downloaded from FEMA [1] and hosted in this archive at the University of Texas Advanced Computing Center (TACC) [2].. The raster dataset is contained within an Esri ArcGIS geodatabase. This product utilized Triangulated Irregular Network (TIN) interpolation, four quality assurance measures (identifying dips, spikes, duplication, and inaccurate/unrealistic measurements). High Water Marks were obtained from the Harris County Flood Control District (HCFCD), US Geological Survey (USGS), and other inspection data. Elevation data comprised a mosaic of 3 meter resampled elevations from 1M & 3M LiDAR, and IFSAR data. One section of the IfSAR data was found to be erroneous, and replaced with a blended 10 meter section.
[This description was in correspondence January 22, 2018, from Mark English, GeoSpatial Risk Analyst, FEMA Region VIII, Mitigation Division.]

A preliminary version of these depths dated September 10, 2017 can be viewed in a FEMA web map [3]. This web map shows a forecasted depth grid, based on National Weather Service (NWS) Advanced Hydrologic Prediction Service (AHPS) forecasted water levels.

See FEMA's Natural Hazard Risk Assessment Program (NHRAP) ftp site [4] for additional HWM-based depth grids and inundation polygons:
- Harris County AOIs and Inundation Boundaries [5]
- Harris County Depth Grids [6]
- Aransas, Nueces, and San Patricio Coastal Depth Grids and Boundaries [7]
FEMA notes on these Modeled Preliminary Observations:
o Based on observed Water Levels at stream gauges interpolated along rivers, downsampled to 5m resolution DEM
o Depth grids updated with new observed peak crest as they become available
o Will include High Water Mark information as it becomes available
o Extents validated with remote sensing
o Use for determining damage levels on specific structures

See also FEMA's journal of mitigation planning and actions related to Harvey [8].

References and related links:
[1] FEMA_Depths_3m_v3.zip (39 gb ftp download) [https://data.femadata.com/Region8/Mitigation/Data_Share/]
[2] TACC 39gb wget or ftp download [https://web.corral.tacc.utexas.edu/nfiedata/Harvey/flood_data/FEMA_Harvey_Depths_3m.gdb.zip]
[3] FEMA map viewer for Hurricane Harvey resources (flood depths is bottom selection in layers list) [https://fema.maps.arcgis.com/apps/webappviewer/index.html?id=50f21538c7bf4e08b9faab430bc237c9]
[4] FEMA NHRAP ftp [https://data.femadata.com/FIMA/NHRAP/Harvey/]
[5] [https://data.femadata.com/FIMA/NHRAP/Harvey/Harris_AOIandBoundaries.zip]
[6] [https://data.femadata.com/FIMA/NHRAP/Harvey/Harris_Mosaic_dgft.zip]
[7] [https://data.femadata.com/FIMA/NHRAP/Harvey/Rockport_DG_unclipped.zip]
[8] Hurricane Harvey Mitigation Portfolio - FEMA map journal [https://fema.maps.arcgis.com/apps/MapJournal/index.html?appid=70204cf2762d45409553fd9642700b7f]