US - South

After Hurricane Harvey hit the Texas coast in August 2017, the storm stalled over Houston and dumped as much as 60 inches of rain on some parts of the region.  Katie Hayes Luke for NPR

Lawmakers called the decision “deeply troubling.”

houstonpublicmedia.org - by Davis Land - March 7, 2019

Lawmakers on the U.S. House science committee have questions for federal and Texas officials about a decision not to fly a NASA jet that would have provided more comprehensive data on air pollution after Hurricane Harvey.

Committee members Lizzie Fletcher (D-TX), Eddie Bernice Johnson (D-TX) and Mikie Sherrill (D-NJ) have requested documents relating to the decision from the Environmental Protection Agency, Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) and NASA.

The request comes after an L.A. Times article revealed NASA officials offered up a high-tech air-sampling jet to help with pollution monitoring after Hurricane Harvey. The EPA and TCEQ reportedly pushed back on the offer, saying data from the state-of-the-art airplane would not be helpful. Their response informed NASA officials’ decision not to fly.

Harris County Public Health Martha Marquez, from left, Mac McClendon and Dr. Umair A. Shah, talk with Hurricane Harvey victim Juan Cazares in the Aldine community Saturday, Sept. 8, 2018, in Houston. The assessments of became part of a recently released report.  Photo: Steve Gonzales, Houston Chronicle / Staff photographer

CLICK HERE - REPORT - Hurricane Harvey Registry - Initial Report - February 2019 (20 page .PDF report)

houstonchronicle.com - by Todd Ackerman - February 21, 2019

Hurricane Harvey’s greatest lingering toll was on Houstonians’ mental health, according to initial findings from a first-of-its-kind registry that surveyed people about the 2017 storm’s impact on their lives.

Nearly two-thirds of respondents to the registry, modeled on the one created in the aftermath of the 9/11 World Trade Center attacks, reported intrusive or unintended thoughts about the hurricane and its resulting flooding. That was a higher rate than physical symptoms reported by respondents.

CLICK HERE - REPORT - Eye of the Storm - Report of the Governor's Commission to Rebuild Texas (168 page .PDF report)

The report calls Hurricane Harvey a warning that should not be ignored. "The enormous toll on individuals, businesses and public infrastructure should provide a wake-up call underlining the urgent need to 'future-proof' the Gulf Coast - and indeed all of Texas - against future disasters.'"

govtech.com - BY ANNA KUCHMENT, THE DALLAS MORNING NEWS / DECEMBER 13, 2018

To protect itself from the next major hurricane, Texas will have to build storm-surge barriers, shore up wetlands, buy out residents who live in vulnerable areas, rethink development plans and raise the first floors of existing buildings, suggests a sweeping new report prepared for Gov. Greg Abbott and released Thursday afternoon. 

The new recommendations come from Abbott's Commission to Rebuild Texas, led by Texas A&M Chancellor John Sharp . . .

kfdm.com - by Staff - November 27, 2018

From Texas General Land Office - Today Texas Land Commissioner George P. Bush announced the locations of regional Homeowner Assistance Program offices in advance of the application release dates. The Texas General Land Office (GLO) allocated $1.098 billion of $2.7 billion in Community Development Block Grants for Disaster Recovery (CDBG-DR) funds from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) for rehabilitation and reconstruction of thousands of owner-occupied single-family homes damaged by Hurricane Harvey. Homeowners in Harris County and the city of Houston will be able to apply for similar programs funded by direct allocations. The regional offices will be open to the public starting on the date the application is released (see article in the link below).

(CLICK HERE - READ COMPLETE ARTICLE)

CLICK HERE - Texas General Land Office - South East Texas Region