Clear water at Galveston beaches? Here’s why

GALVESTON, Texas – Several beachgoers have reported that the water is particularly clear at Galveston beaches after the holiday weekend.

According to the city of Galveston, the clear water is due to the current changing from east to west.

"Whether it's true or not may be a trending debate on social media, but those of us who call this Island home know that these last few days have been incredible," the city posted on Facebook.

We asked KPRC2 Chief Meteorologist Frank Billingsley to investigate. He reached out to Melissa Huffman with the National Weather Service. She said Derek Giardino with the West Gulf River Forecast Center said Alberto might have had some influence on the Galveston water being clear because the storm shifted course and a large "plume" of water was pushed toward the Gulf Coast.

Giardino added that the Galveston area did not have a typical outgoing tide on Monday that normally dumps sediment from the Houston Ship Channel into Galveston Bay and then the Gulf of Mexico. That possibly allowed for more blue, or clearer, water to hit the beach.

Unfortunately, he said the currents returned to normal Wednesday and the sediment from the ship channel has already resumed pouring into the Gulf.

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