General Discussion
In reply to the discussion: Unfortunately, this is not the worst part of the flooding. [View all]Fla Dem
(23,650 posts)I evacuated because of Matthew last October. The time away watching news broadcasts was so stressful not knowing what was in store for us when we returned home. We were blessed, whether in the religious sense or fate. While the intercostal flooded our neighborhood, the water only came 3/4 of the way up our properties. The sense of relief I felt turning into our street was overwhelming. Other close by neighborhoods were not as fortunate. There are people who have not yet returned to their homes.
But this, in Houston, no words.
This is a huge geographic area. Thousands of homes, apartments and condos ruined. Only 1 in six homeowners had flood insurance. That means no recompense for anything you lost or restoration expenses. All the vehicles that have been lost.
They can't live in their homes, they'll need temporary housing but where? We're talking thousands of people. Community services are gone in wide swaths of the Houston area. Doctors and dentist offices, restaurants, banks, ATMs, nursing homes, grocery and drug stores, gas stations. All the services and providers you depend on in your day to day lives. Jobs are gone. Schools, day care centers. It's as if an atom bomb went off in Houston. Even downtown, office buildings with lower level damage. Even if businesses opened where are the people that staff those offices or stores? Or how are they going to be able to commute? Their cars are gone. All the highway infrastructure will have to be evaluated for structural soundness and closed until repairs can be made.
Houston and the surrounding areas may become ghost towns or tent cities.
I don't know how I would handle it. Sitting in one of those relief centers. Wondering what the hell do we do now. Just overwhelming.