By Carley Banks and Amber Berry
Lubbock is no London, but the two have one thing in common: weather talk. From September to May, complaints about flooded or icy roads often serve as conversation starters among Texas Tech students and faculty.
Dana Jennings, a senior public relations major from Arlington, Texas, recalls floundering through puddles on a recent Monday morning.
“I step both feet into mid-shin high water and there’s no seats left on the bus,” she said. “So I’m looking down and there’s a river seeping out of my shoes and I just thought ‘what a great start to my Monday.’”
Holly Bennett, a junior exercise sports and sciences major from Keller, Texas, had car trouble last year while driving from the library to Carpenter/Wells, the on-campus apartments where she lived.
“My car engine completely flooded,” she recalled.
Taylor Weiershausen, a junior speech pathology major from San Angelo, Texas, also has flood stories to tell. Once, she and a friend were driving down Glenna Goodacre Boulevard when, suddenly, the car almost went underwater.
“The car shut down, and before we knew it, we were floating backwards down the street with no control of the car,” Weiershausen recalled.
They ended up getting out of the car and making their way in waist-deep water to a nearby apartment, where they waited for the rain to die down.
Capt. Stephen Hinkle of the Texas Tech Police Department said most calls during heavy rain and flooding come from people in stranded vehicles.
“This is due to the person driving their vehicle into an area that they shouldn’t have,” Hinkle said.
The city of Lubbock seems to be doing its best to adapt to the frequent flooding, Weiershausen said, but it could make some changes, such as investing in a new drainage system.
Hinkle said a Tech drainage system would be ideal, but he doesn’t know how it would be possible because the campus sits on top of a tunnel system.
Lubbock’s website indicates improvements to the stormwater infrastructure are happening elsewhere in the city. Construction is under way on a $72-million storm sewer project in North Lubbock along Grinnell and Erskine streets. A $2.4 million project to repair and replace storm water infrastructure and another $1.1 million project to repair concrete channels are listed as ongoing. Contracts are pending for two other projects.
Tech Terrace is notorious for flooding. Casey Smith/The Hub@TTU
The city is also changing its stormwater fee schedule to charge more for paved areas, called “impervious surfaces.” Starting in 2017, owners of large parking lots, for example, can expect higher stormwater bills because impervious surfaces hinder drainage.
In the meantime, the city is asking everyone to alleviate flooding by removing grass clippings and limiting pesticide and fertilizer use, especially before it rains, to prevent algae overgrowth.
Lubbock officials are also encourage civic vigilance.
“If you see excessive erosion or sediment escaping an active construction site, or if you witness a suspicious discharge entering the storm sewer system, please call the Storm Water Hotline at 806-775-3118 or fill out the Storm Water Complaint Reporting Form,” asks Lubbock’s Storm Water Management department website.
To improve road conditions, Weiershausen and Bennett have one more piece of advice for the city: salt and plow when it snows.
In February, the city was reported to have only one snow plow in use. A search for the word “snow” on the city of Lubbock’s website generates zero results.
After a freak snow storm in March, Texas Tech cancelled afternoon classes so people could get home safely before road conditions got worse. Sarah Self-Walbrick/The Hub@TTU
Recent transplants to Lubbock say the city’s snow removal does not compare favorably to other parts of the U.S. and the world.
Kevin Stoker, associate dean and journalism professor in the College of Media & Communication, who is originally from Idaho, recalls his first Christmas in Lubbock when 98th Street was closed for almost a week. The city had no plows and eventually used a road grader to clear the roads, Stoker said.
Jennings, the Arlington native, said she is not used to that much snow covering the roads.
“The snow, the relentless amount of snow instead of just ice on the roads is a lot different,” Jennings said.
And Lea Hellmueller, a COMC assistant professor, said Lubbock’s road conditions are worse than in her native country, Switzerland. She recalls much snow and ice during her first winter in West Texas.
“The street conditions are amazing in Switzerland,” Hellmueller said. “Cleaning up the snow is much quicker than here.”
To avoid snow and ice problems, the National Weather Service suggests winterizing one’s car at the start of the cold season, keeping the gas tank near-full and avoiding solo travel.
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