30,000 Guard troops prepared to respond to Harvey

originally posted by: CriticalStinker

originally posted by: TXTriker

originally posted by: CriticalStinker
a reply to: Zaphod58

While this story is good to hear, I just wish everyone was a little more prepared for what many were saying. Many knew there would be record floods.

Hopefully this incident doesn't go I'm vein. How many category 3's have we seen mandatory evacuations. There's a lesson in this.

Houston was not hit by the hurricane. We got the rain. A lot rain due to the storm being bracketed by two high pressure systems. 53 Texas counties were affected with around 11M people. How do you evacuate 11M people. No matter how much time you have that is an impossible task. Houston has 6.6M people - evacuation would be impossible and would hinder the evacuation of those actually in the path of the worst of the storm.

I've lived in Texas, and the vast area you speak of have some great roadways out. This storm came in slow. But to say that no efforts could be done and waiting for it to hit to try and start moving people out simply doesn't seem a viable excuse to me.

First , there was an alert out. You cant force anyone to leave their homes in the US .
As stated many times. You CANT evacuate that many people. I dont care how many roads there are
The governor of Georgia tasked the agencies to develop an evacuation plan for Atlanta once upon a time. The plan they came up with was reviewed and it would have taken weeks at least to achieve. And that was the best plan . The one on the books now.
I understand this is a conspiracy forum , but a little forethought and logic should be required first before posting

a reply to: Gothmog

I see your point. But look at the map Zaphod posted. There is a lot of people in that area, but that area is the size of many of our states.

I get it, can't get everyone out, but I'm surprised there wasn't more of an effort to do so before the storm hit.... At least for at risk citizens. Surely it's easier to get a head start than wait for the aftermath.

I'm not saying this is a conspiracy, I'm just surprised is all.

Four CH-47s that belong to Singapore, and are based in Texas have joined relief operations.

originally posted by: orionthehunter
What I'm left wondering is how are the 5 or 6 million people in the Houston area doing as far as food, water, and shelter? Is most of the city shut off? Are there thousands unknown dead or is the situation not as bad as the flood images seem to suggest? If there are millions stranded, we could have a major crisis of people without food, water and shelter. I heard numbers like 10,000 in one shelter, several thousand elsewhere. Those numbers make me wonder what about everyone else?

I'm wondering if there are millions of people in partially flooded homes or are they simply high and dry and getting by ok.

Most are doing good now. HEB (local grocery) has an emergency response team that can feed up to 5000 people each meal. They are on the ground at the largest shelter.

Stores are already opening, restaurants are opening so most everyone is good with food and water. There are still some rescues due to the path of the storm some areas flooded later than others. The 10,000 is now down to 8,000 as the initial need is lessening and people are finding more permanent alternatives. That shelter was our equivalent of the Super Dome. We have over 100 shelters in Houston and more in the suburbs. Anyone left in their homes have adamantly refused to leave after being offered rescue numerous times.

People are already returning to work. I would but our office is still down due to IT issues so we are all remotely working. Those that have boats have been out helping with the rescues. Others are opening their homes to perfect strangers so they don't have to go to a shelter. At least two of our employees were among those being rescued and one was in a shelter for a short time before a co-worker went and got her.

Some are starting their recovery before it is even over. I think most will be OK.

originally posted by: Zaphod58
a reply to: orionthehunter

My cousin lives there now. A lot of the city is not flooded. Someone put it well earlier, in that "Houston" covers something like 80 miles. It's mostly the area around the 610 loop and around there that's underwater.

That is not true. I live 35 miles west of the Galleria and it was flooded from here all the way to downtown and then on to Beaumont. It is getting worse now that the rivers are cresting. Check ABC13 and KHOU or youtube for aerial views. It is a massive flood area. It did not stay in the loop.

originally posted by: CriticalStinker
a reply to: Gothmog

I see your point. But look at the map Zaphod posted. There is a lot of people in that area, but that area is the size of many of our states.

I get it, can't get everyone out, but I'm surprised there wasn't more of an effort to do so before the storm hit.... At least for at risk citizens. Surely it's easier to get a head start than wait for the aftermath.

I'm not saying this is a conspiracy, I'm just surprised is all.

Those that were in the direct path of the hurricane (being the landfall of the eye) were evacuating. Had Houston then tried to evacuate a lot of people would have been trapped on the roads. Those counties on the map have 11M people. About 6.5 are in the Houston area - that leaves 5M. Houston tried to evacuate 5M during Rita - see Zaphod's posts on that - it was a disaster.

a reply to: TXTriker

I didn't say that it was the ONLY area, but for the downtown area it was the loop region of the city that got hit the hardest. Where my cousin lives, outside the loop, the parking lot of her apartment complex had a couple inches of water in it and that was about it.

originally posted by: Zaphod58
a reply to: TXTriker

I didn't say that it was the ONLY area, but for the downtown area it was the loop region of the city that got hit the hardest. Where my cousin lives, outside the loop, the parking lot of her apartment complex had a couple inches of water in it and that was about it.

Then she is very fortunate or on a hill. But it still isn't just the hardest hit area. The entire area in and out of the loop is under water. Like I said, I'm 35 miles from the galleria and we got about 20" of rain. The city of Katy was completely underwater. The little town closest to me had areas underwater.

I'm not knocking your cousin but she doesn't have full information for some reason. Yes there are pockets of dry where houses didn't flood but they are few and far between.

The DoD and Guard will supply any equipment that Texas needs.

www.defense.gov...

An E-3 Sentry and P-8 Poseidon joined the efforts doing damage survey work. AFNORTH has 11 HH-60G Pave Hawks, and 7 HC-130J aircraft working the area.

fightersweep.com...

a reply to: Zaphod58

Exactly. Cities down on Mississippi's gulf coast were slammed as hard as New Orleans but when you hear "Katrina" your first thought is New Orleans.