Recovery specialists from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA), local and state agencies will staff the centers. They can answer questions about disaster assistance and low-interest disaster loans. They can also help survivors apply for federal disaster assistance. The closest centers to the Lake Houston Area are at the following locations:
Harris County Social Services Building
9418 Jensen Drive
Houston, TX 77093
May County Center
2100 Wolf Road
Huffman, TX 77336
Montgomery County Disaster Recovery Center
Bullas Sallas Park – Fair Association Building
21675 McCleskey Road
New Cany, TX 77359
Jack Hartel Bld.
318 San Jacinto Street
Liberty, TX 77575
Seven Days a Week (Until Further Notice)
DRCs help state and local officials maximize their reach to as many affected areas and survivors as possible. The centers offer in-person support to Texas homeowners, renters and business owners who sustained damage or losses during Tropical Storm Imelda.
Individual Assistance
Texas homeowners, renters and business owners in Chambers, Harris, Jefferson, Liberty, Montgomery and Orange counties that were included in the major disaster declaration for Individual Assistancemay apply for uninsured and underinsured damage and losses incurred from Sept. 17 – 23, 2019.
Individual Assistance for homeowners and renters may be eligible for grants to help pay for temporary housing, home repairs and other serious disaster-related expenses not met by insurance or other assistance programs.
Disaster survivors must meet the following criteria qualify for assistance through the Individuals and Households Program:
Disaster losses are in a presidentially-declared disaster area.
The damage to the home must have been caused by the declared disaster.
The homeowner must provide proof of ownership.
Both renters and homeowners may also be eligible for Other Needs Assistance (ONA) through FEMA. ONA helps survivors with uninsured or underinsured necessary expenses and serious needs caused by the disaster.
A member of the household must be a United States citizen, a non-citizen national, or a qualified alien.
The damaged home is where the applicant lives the majority of the year.
The applicant must have maintained flood insurance if assisted by FEMA in a previous disaster.
The damaged home is inaccessible or not livable due to the disaster.
The disaster survivor has necessary expenses or serious needs as a result of the disaster that are not covered by insurance or any othersource.
How to Register Online
To register, go online to DisasterAssistance.gov or call the FEMA helpline at 800-621-3362. Help is available in most languages and phone lines are open 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. seven days a week until further notice.
What to Bring if You Go to a DRC
Survivors who plan to register with FEMA at a DRC should have the following information:
Social Security number
Address of the damaged primary residence
Description of the damage
Information about insurance coverage
A current contact telephone number
An address where they can receive mail
Bank account and routing numbers for direct deposit of funds
Other Types of Assistance Available
Low-interest disaster loans from SBA are also available to businesses, private nonprofit organizations, homeowners and renters to cover residential and business losses as a result of the disaster. Applicants can visit a DRC for one-on-one assistance, visit www.SBA.gov/disaster, or call SBA’s Customer Service Center at 800-659-2955.
Difference Between SBA Loan and Individual Assistance
Many people I talk to have been wiped out financially by back-to floods. They fear they may not have the ability to repay an SBA loan. Therefore, they don’t want to apply for one. If you fall into that category, understand that being turned down for an SBA loan may qualify you for Individual Assistance. To get IA, you need to apply for an SBA loan first.
Group Flood Insurance
If you had Individual or Other Needs Assistance from a previous flood, you may already have GROUP flood insurance and not even know it. As part of the effort to reduce future expenses from floods, FEMA directly purchases Group Flood Insurance Policy (GFIP) certificates on behalf of applicants who are required to buy and maintain flood insurance BUT who may not otherwise be able to purchase a policy. FEMA may pay $600 under Other Needs Assistance (ONA) for three years of flood insurance for eligible ONA recipients. So if you flooded during Harvey and again on May 7th or during Imelda, check this out. Here is a factsheet on group flood insurance and a previous post on the subject.
For People with Disabilities
Disaster recovery centers are accessible to people with disabilities. American Sign Language interpreters may be available to assist at a DRC.
FEMA Disaster survivors who are deaf, hard of hearing or have a speech disability and use a TTY may call 800-462-7585 to register. Those who use 711 or VRS (Video Relay Service) or require accommodations while visiting a center may call 800-621-3362. All disaster recovery centers are accessible and equipped with tools to accommodate disaster survivors who need disability-related communication aids.
Posted by Bob Rehak on 10/27/2019
789 Days after Hurricane Harvey
https://i0.wp.com/reduceflooding.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/09/LelaFlood1.jpg?fit=1500%2C2000&ssl=120001500adminadmin2019-10-27 15:12:462019-10-28 10:18:42How to Get Help from FEMA and SBA
On October 24, 2019, Congressman Dan Crenshaw, along with Texas Senators John Cornyn and Ted Cruz and Representative Kevin Brady (TX-08), sent a letter to Acting FEMA Administrator Peter Gaynor. The letter requested FEMA’s swift approval of the City of Houston’s new plan to dredge more of the San Jacinto river mouth bar.
Letter in Response to New Request Filed by City
The letter came in response to the most recent request from the City for FEMA aid on or about October 11, 2019.
While FEMA has already completed its initial 500,000 cubic-yard debris-removal mission, sediment brought by Hurricane Harvey still exists in the San Jacinto river mouth-bar. To protect Houston, Kingwood, and Humble residents from future flooding, it is imperative that the remaining debris is removed, said Congressman Dan Crenshaw.
“The City of Houston recently filed a Project Worksheet (PW) for debris removal as Category A work under the Public Assistance program,” the group of legislators wrote.“We urge you to use any and all necessary FEMA resources to expeditiously review and approve the city’s PW. Delay will only increase costs and prevent FEMA from fully leveraging presently available dredging assets.”
Great Lakes Dredge and Dock has finished its Army Corps assignment at the mouth bar. I photographed workers continuing to dismantle the company’s dredge this afternoon.
Packing it in. Great Lakes Dismantles its dredge after a little more than a year on the West Fork. Photo taken 10/26/2019.The command post opposite Marina Drive in Forest Cove was a behind of activity this afternoon.Note the sections of dredge pipe stacked up in the background. It is no longer connected to the dredge.Crew and survey boats, cranes and other heavy equipment still remain to support a future dredging effort…but not for long.
The last line of the letter (“leveraging presently available dredging assets”) refers to assets other than the dredge itself. Such assets include the command post opposite Forest Cove, a second launch point in Atascocita, pipe, cranes, and other assets that could soon be removed. See photos above.
TDEM to Forward Request to FEMA
As of yesterday, according to Houston City Council Member Dave Martin, TDEM still had not forwarded the request to FEMA. However, this reportedly falls within TDEM’s normal processing time for such requests. I wouldn’t read too much into it yet. But let’s hope they hustle up. Those crews at the command site were working late into Saturday night. I’m guessing that represents overtime.
You can clearly see from the pictures above how much equipment it takes to support a dredging operation. And remember, each 40-section of dredge pipe weighs 4,000 pounds and there are about 10 miles of it! This request should not be taken lightly.
Posted by Bob Rehak on 10/26/2019
788 Days since Hurricane Harvey
https://i0.wp.com/reduceflooding.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/RJR_3783.jpg?fit=1500%2C1000&ssl=110001500adminadmin2019-10-26 19:16:202019-10-26 19:19:42Crenshaw, Brady, Cruz and Cornyn Ask FEMA to Dredge More of West Fork Mouth Bar
Houston is at an existential crossroads. We’ve had five major floods in the last five years. If we can’t reduce flooding, people will no longer want to live here or move here.
With that in mind, I believe flooding is the number one issue a new mayor must address. That’s not to say we don’t have other important issues. But if we don’t address flooding, we’re sunk.
So which of the candidates has the best plan? Bill King…by far.
These plans have been vetted by dozens of experts throughout the Houston region from both the government and private sectors.
Stopping the diversion of drainage fees will give Houston more cash to put into flood mitigation. This will allow Houston to solicit matching funds quickly and accelerate the development of mitigation projects.
Regional cooperation is also critical, especially for places like the Lake Houston Area. Other counties and cities surround us. As we have seen in Elm Grove, if Montgomery County allows worst practices for new developments, we pay the consequences.
Bill King, candidate for Mayor of Houston, spent the day after Imelda visiting with Elm Grove residents and analyzing the causes.
But we currently have no influence in MoCo, which seems to have a development-at-any-cost-even-if-it-floods-people mentality. Until this problem is fixed, we are all looking down the barrel of a water cannon.
King’s seven white papers contain many great thoughts. King clearly understands flooding issues throughout the city. He is extremely articulate and lays out a compelling plan. I believe he can lead voters and the City to solutions.
Include flood abatement credits as part of the permitting process. They would be good for credits against drainage fees in the first year after construction.
Identify projects where flood abatement constitutes at least 15% of the total project cost and move those to the front of the line for permit approval.
Publicly recognize a different business each month that replaces concrete with natural surfaces.
Those represent good market-driven proposals. Buzbee says he has many other ideas and that, “My campaign will roll them out once our comprehensive white paper is complete.” It’s getting to be about time for that. Voting has already started.
But that post, dated August 19, also contains claims that did not come true. For instance, “The City has won permission from FEMA for the Corps of Engineers to include the removal of the mouth bar in the San Jacinto River…” Unfortunately, FEMA and the Corps only scratched the surface of the area around the mouth bar. That’s a big problem when you rely on OPM (other people’s money).
Under Turner’s watch, he did make some changes to building codes. He also created Stormwater Action Teams, a $17 million program actually funded by the City to address hundreds of … you guessed it … deferred maintenance issues.
By the City’s own admission, we’re not much better off today than we were the day after Harvey.
Other Reasons I’m Voting for King
King also has experience as a mayor. While Kemah isn’t Houston, it’s a start.
Bill King has prepped for the Mayor’s job since the last campaign. He has studied every city budget and every audit of every budget since then. He’s been involved in Houston politics for decades and knows most of the players. He’s ready to walk into office on Day 1 and start doing the job.
He has the common sense of a business man who understands the importance of a dollar and delivering results NOW, or losing business tomorrow.
King has the integrity and experience to promise what he’s going to deliver and deliver what he promises.
That’s not a comment about Buzbee. I have met both King and Buzbee on multiple occasions and like them both. I just feel that at this point in time, King has more experience in the political arena and a better plan to address flooding.
King first approached me shortly after I started this web site and long before he announced his run for mayor. He asked me to show him the flooding issues in Kingwood. We’ve met more than a dozen times since then.
We have visited every part of the community. We’ve slogged through sand and mud together, slapping mosquitoes, so that he could see the flooding issues firsthand. I’ve seen him crawl under fences to get a better look at how Woodridge Village flooded homes in Elm Grove and North Kingwood Forest. He’s waded through ankle-deep mud on Village Springs.
He’s seen the heartbreak of people whose homes flooded on multiple occasions. He understands this problem on both an intellectual and emotional level. He knows this cannot continue. And that’s why I’m voting for Bill King.
Posted by Bob Rehak on 10/25/2019
787 Days since Hurricane Harvey and 36 since Imelda
https://i0.wp.com/reduceflooding.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/09/Elm-Grove-9.19_56.jpg?fit=1500%2C1000&ssl=110001500adminadmin2019-10-25 13:18:512019-10-25 13:25:01Bill King Has Best Plan to Address Flooding By Far
How to Get Help from FEMA and SBA
Disaster Recovery Centers Open in Harris, Montgomery Counties to Help Imelda Survivors
Joint state/federal Disaster Recovery Centers (DRC) opened earlier this month in Harris, Montgomery and certain other southeast Texas counties to help disaster survivors affected by Tropical Storm Imelda.
Recovery specialists from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA), local and state agencies will staff the centers. They can answer questions about disaster assistance and low-interest disaster loans. They can also help survivors apply for federal disaster assistance. The closest centers to the Lake Houston Area are at the following locations:
Seven Days a Week (Until Further Notice)
DRCs help state and local officials maximize their reach to as many affected areas and survivors as possible. The centers offer in-person support to Texas homeowners, renters and business owners who sustained damage or losses during Tropical Storm Imelda.
Individual Assistance
Texas homeowners, renters and business owners in Chambers, Harris, Jefferson, Liberty, Montgomery and Orange counties that were included in the major disaster declaration for Individual Assistance may apply for uninsured and underinsured damage and losses incurred from Sept. 17 – 23, 2019.
Individual Assistance for homeowners and renters may be eligible for grants to help pay for temporary housing, home repairs and other serious disaster-related expenses not met by insurance or other assistance programs.
Disaster survivors must meet the following criteria qualify for assistance through the Individuals and Households Program:
How to Register Online
To register, go online to DisasterAssistance.gov or call the FEMA helpline at 800-621-3362. Help is available in most languages and phone lines are open 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. seven days a week until further notice.
What to Bring if You Go to a DRC
Survivors who plan to register with FEMA at a DRC should have the following information:
Other Types of Assistance Available
Low-interest disaster loans from SBA are also available to businesses, private nonprofit organizations, homeowners and renters to cover residential and business losses as a result of the disaster. Applicants can visit a DRC for one-on-one assistance, visit www.SBA.gov/disaster, or call SBA’s Customer Service Center at 800-659-2955.
Here is an SBA Loan Fact sheet.
It explains the three different types of available disaster loans:
The fact sheet also describes:
This flowchart explains the three-step SBA Loan Application Process – application, verification, loan – much like any other loan.
Finally, this fact sheet discusses the three ways to register and apply: online, in person or by mail.
Difference Between SBA Loan and Individual Assistance
Many people I talk to have been wiped out financially by back-to floods. They fear they may not have the ability to repay an SBA loan. Therefore, they don’t want to apply for one. If you fall into that category, understand that being turned down for an SBA loan may qualify you for Individual Assistance. To get IA, you need to apply for an SBA loan first.
Group Flood Insurance
If you had Individual or Other Needs Assistance from a previous flood, you may already have GROUP flood insurance and not even know it. As part of the effort to reduce future expenses from floods, FEMA directly purchases Group Flood Insurance Policy (GFIP) certificates on behalf of applicants who are required to buy and maintain flood insurance BUT who may not otherwise be able to purchase a policy. FEMA may pay $600 under Other Needs Assistance (ONA) for three years of flood insurance for eligible ONA recipients. So if you flooded during Harvey and again on May 7th or during Imelda, check this out. Here is a factsheet on group flood insurance and a previous post on the subject.
For People with Disabilities
Disaster recovery centers are accessible to people with disabilities. American Sign Language interpreters may be available to assist at a DRC.
FEMA Disaster survivors who are deaf, hard of hearing or have a speech disability and use a TTY may call 800-462-7585 to register. Those who use 711 or VRS (Video Relay Service) or require accommodations while visiting a center may call 800-621-3362. All disaster recovery centers are accessible and equipped with tools to accommodate disaster survivors who need disability-related communication aids.
Posted by Bob Rehak on 10/27/2019
789 Days after Hurricane Harvey
Crenshaw, Brady, Cruz and Cornyn Ask FEMA to Dredge More of West Fork Mouth Bar
On October 24, 2019, Congressman Dan Crenshaw, along with Texas Senators John Cornyn and Ted Cruz and Representative Kevin Brady (TX-08), sent a letter to Acting FEMA Administrator Peter Gaynor. The letter requested FEMA’s swift approval of the City of Houston’s new plan to dredge more of the San Jacinto river mouth bar.
Letter in Response to New Request Filed by City
The letter came in response to the most recent request from the City for FEMA aid on or about October 11, 2019.
While FEMA has already completed its initial 500,000 cubic-yard debris-removal mission, sediment brought by Hurricane Harvey still exists in the San Jacinto river mouth-bar. To protect Houston, Kingwood, and Humble residents from future flooding, it is imperative that the remaining debris is removed, said Congressman Dan Crenshaw.
“The City of Houston recently filed a Project Worksheet (PW) for debris removal as Category A work under the Public Assistance program,” the group of legislators wrote. “We urge you to use any and all necessary FEMA resources to expeditiously review and approve the city’s PW. Delay will only increase costs and prevent FEMA from fully leveraging presently available dredging assets.”
To see the complete letter, click here.
Great Lakes Packing Up
Great Lakes Dredge and Dock has finished its Army Corps assignment at the mouth bar. I photographed workers continuing to dismantle the company’s dredge this afternoon.
The last line of the letter (“leveraging presently available dredging assets”) refers to assets other than the dredge itself. Such assets include the command post opposite Forest Cove, a second launch point in Atascocita, pipe, cranes, and other assets that could soon be removed. See photos above.
TDEM to Forward Request to FEMA
As of yesterday, according to Houston City Council Member Dave Martin, TDEM still had not forwarded the request to FEMA. However, this reportedly falls within TDEM’s normal processing time for such requests. I wouldn’t read too much into it yet. But let’s hope they hustle up. Those crews at the command site were working late into Saturday night. I’m guessing that represents overtime.
You can clearly see from the pictures above how much equipment it takes to support a dredging operation. And remember, each 40-section of dredge pipe weighs 4,000 pounds and there are about 10 miles of it! This request should not be taken lightly.
Posted by Bob Rehak on 10/26/2019
788 Days since Hurricane Harvey
Bill King Has Best Plan to Address Flooding By Far
Houston is at an existential crossroads. We’ve had five major floods in the last five years. If we can’t reduce flooding, people will no longer want to live here or move here.
So which of the candidates has the best plan? Bill King…by far.
Comparing Candidates’ Plans
Bill King
King has by far the most developed and comprehensive plan. He has laid out a clear, concise, well researched, actionable statement of objectives, strategies, and financing in seven parts:
These plans have been vetted by dozens of experts throughout the Houston region from both the government and private sectors.
Stopping the diversion of drainage fees will give Houston more cash to put into flood mitigation. This will allow Houston to solicit matching funds quickly and accelerate the development of mitigation projects.
Regional cooperation is also critical, especially for places like the Lake Houston Area. Other counties and cities surround us. As we have seen in Elm Grove, if Montgomery County allows worst practices for new developments, we pay the consequences.
But we currently have no influence in MoCo, which seems to have a development-at-any-cost-even-if-it-floods-people mentality. Until this problem is fixed, we are all looking down the barrel of a water cannon.
King’s seven white papers contain many great thoughts. King clearly understands flooding issues throughout the city. He is extremely articulate and lays out a compelling plan. I believe he can lead voters and the City to solutions.
Tony Buzbee
Tony Buzbee has flood information on at least two different web sites. His campaign site lists flooding as the number one issue. It has a great discussion of Kingwood. That links to a third-party site that features his vision for flood control. After discussing different types of flooding and their causes, he has three suggestions:
Those represent good market-driven proposals. Buzbee says he has many other ideas and that, “My campaign will roll them out once our comprehensive white paper is complete.” It’s getting to be about time for that. Voting has already started.
Sylvester Turner
Sylvester Turner doesn’t seem to have a flood plan that I can find online. His campaign site has a list of his accomplishments while Mayor after Harvey. He also has a blog post called Getting Ready for the Next Big Storm. In it he mostly talks about partnering with other entities that have money to spend on flood mitigation.
But that post, dated August 19, also contains claims that did not come true. For instance, “The City has won permission from FEMA for the Corps of Engineers to include the removal of the mouth bar in the San Jacinto River…” Unfortunately, FEMA and the Corps only scratched the surface of the area around the mouth bar. That’s a big problem when you rely on OPM (other people’s money).
Mayor Turner also lists, “Creating and operating Neighborhood Recovery Centers … through which victims could apply for federal housing repair aid.” Mayor Turner said in a debate that the City had received $1.3 billion for home repair and recovery. However, the State recently took that program over because more than 2 years after Harvey, only 15 people had received aid.
Under Turner’s watch, he did make some changes to building codes. He also created Stormwater Action Teams, a $17 million program actually funded by the City to address hundreds of … you guessed it … deferred maintenance issues.
And after selling Proposition A last year as a way to create a lockbox around the drainage fund, he diverted $44 million from it this year to cover other costs. That’s on top of another quarter billion worth of diversions in previous years. No wonder it takes so long to get things done. One wonders how much of that mouth bar could have been dredged with a tiny portion of that money.
By the City’s own admission, we’re not much better off today than we were the day after Harvey.
Other Reasons I’m Voting for King
King also has experience as a mayor. While Kemah isn’t Houston, it’s a start.
Bill King has prepped for the Mayor’s job since the last campaign. He has studied every city budget and every audit of every budget since then. He’s been involved in Houston politics for decades and knows most of the players. He’s ready to walk into office on Day 1 and start doing the job.
He has the common sense of a business man who understands the importance of a dollar and delivering results NOW, or losing business tomorrow.
King has the integrity and experience to promise what he’s going to deliver and deliver what he promises.
That’s not a comment about Buzbee. I have met both King and Buzbee on multiple occasions and like them both. I just feel that at this point in time, King has more experience in the political arena and a better plan to address flooding.
King first approached me shortly after I started this web site and long before he announced his run for mayor. He asked me to show him the flooding issues in Kingwood. We’ve met more than a dozen times since then.
We have visited every part of the community. We’ve slogged through sand and mud together, slapping mosquitoes, so that he could see the flooding issues firsthand. I’ve seen him crawl under fences to get a better look at how Woodridge Village flooded homes in Elm Grove and North Kingwood Forest. He’s waded through ankle-deep mud on Village Springs.
He’s seen the heartbreak of people whose homes flooded on multiple occasions. He understands this problem on both an intellectual and emotional level. He knows this cannot continue. And that’s why I’m voting for Bill King.
Posted by Bob Rehak on 10/25/2019
787 Days since Hurricane Harvey and 36 since Imelda