Houston, a major economic hub, is home to the Houston Ship Channel, one of the worldโ€™s busiest maritime waterways. Along the Ship Channel are refineries and chemical plants that help make up the nationโ€™s largest refining and petrochemical complex.

But what could happen to the area if a major hurricane hit in just the right spot? ย This hour of Reveal โ€” done in collaboration with The Texas Tribune andย ProPublica, which co-produced the “Hell and High Water” multimedia project โ€”ย looks at a worst-case scenario that scientists say could be coming.

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Editor’s note: This story is a collaborationย between The Texas Tribune,ย ProPublica, an independent, nonprofit newsroom that produces investigative journalism,ย andย Reveal, a public radio show and podcast from the Center for Investigative Reporting and PRX.ย 

 Learn about The Texas Tribuneโ€™s policies, including our partnership with The Trust Project to increase transparency in news.

Neena Satija worked at the Tribune from 2013 to 2019. She was an investigative reporter and radio producer for the Tribune and Reveal, a public radio program from the Center for Investigative Reporting....