This is another in a series of looks back at Harvey, as told through the photos of its victims.
Melissa Sturgis, self-described “oil-patch gypsy,” is still angry. “My entire home. Treasured antiques, three generations back from New England, are on this curb. Furniture and collectibles from eight years overseas in Malaysia, London and Russia. It’s a crime.”
Photo courtesy of Melissa Sturgis. Her entire home, three generations of family antiques, and treasures acquired from traveling the world for eight years…all went to the curb after Hurricane Harvey.What was left on the inside of Melissa Sturgis’ home after Harvey.Melissa Sturgis, who is 5’10”, shows how high the water got during Harvey.Family heirloom warped beyond usability. Catch of the day. Fish on the floor after Harvey.Cleaning out the closet after Harvey. Harvey’s wake-up call. “Someone bring a mop.”Morning after Harvey. Melissa Sturgis’ Slip ‘N Slide Dining Room.Shattered dreams left behind by Hurricane Harvey.
Silver Lining
Melissa Sturgis lives in Alaska now and says she is not moving back, though she keeps in touch with all of her Kingwood friends.
“Harvey was devastating, but it actually had a silver lining. It shook us out of complacency and made us more resilient…taught us that life is about more than things….it’s about perfect strangers coming together to help one another. People opening their home to the five of us for several days.”
“As a side note, my brother in law, sister in law, nephew and 2 cats from Sugarland were forced to evacuate. They drove hours in the torrential rain to get to my house in KW for safety–then lost their two cars in my driveway—AND THEY NEVER FLOODED IN SUGARLAND. And my sister in law had cancer at the time….and still does.”
“Yes it was tortuous, tossing out Great Grandma’s Dining Room table onto the pile….as Grandma (who also flooded and was evacuated from Arbor Terrace in Town Center) sat on the sidewalk watching her things and her mother’s antiques get tossed. Excruciating. But we survived. I’m just grateful I am no longer there. I was in Kingwood last week visiting my mother in law and Fosters Mill Estates STILL has houses abandoned or partially fixed and for sale. Some are still being worked on. It’s awful.”
Why I’m Posting These Now
Melissa donated her pictures to the cause in the hope that they will help create awareness of the devastation that flooding causes, and perhaps, just perhaps, they may create some positive change, too. Thanks, Melissa!
Hopefully, we won’t repeat the mistakes of the past…if people remember.
If you have pictures from Harvey that you would like to share with the world, please send them through the submissions page of this web site.
Posted by Bob Rehak on 3/13/2019
561 Days since Hurricane Harvey
https://i0.wp.com/reduceflooding.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/IMG_4346.jpg?fit=1500%2C1125&ssl=111251500adminadmin2019-03-13 20:58:472019-03-14 08:22:45Melissa Sturgis’ Harvey Story: Three Generations of Antiques Out on the Curb
David Burress, head of the Kings Forest architectural review committee, sent me this picture yesterday. It shows what he believes to be the last FEMA trailer leaving Kings Forest. It’s a modest, although important sign of recovery.
Last FEMA trailer leaving Kings Forest after Hurricane Harvey
Burress snapped this with his cell phone from across the street. “This was the last remaining trailer that I am aware of,” he said. “Most people didn’t even know it was there.”
While symbolic, the absence of trailers does not mean the recovery is behind us.
Many Still Struggle with 3 Cs: Cash, Confidence, Contractors
Many still live in part of their homes while the remainder undergoes repairs. The most common reasons cited for the lengthy repairs? The 3Cs: cash, confidence, and contractors.
Some thought they didn’t need flood insurance because they lived outside the 500-year floodplain. They now find themselves trying to pay out of pocket for repairs costing hundreds of thousands of dollars.
Still more struggle with the lack of reliable contractors. Many of those have elected to do repair work themselves. For them, life has become an endless string of 16-hour days. They hold down jobs during the day and spend the remainder of their waking hours on do-it-yourself repair projects.
Others are intentionally delaying repairs until they see more progress on flood mitigation. They lack confidence in government to protect them.
Looking Forward to Fall Elections
Some tell me that they look forward to November elections. They’re tired of promises and want performance. For these people, casting their votes will be another small, but symbolic victory.
Posted by Bob Rehak on March 13, 2019
561 Days after Hurricane Harvey
https://i0.wp.com/reduceflooding.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/IMG_0560.jpg?fit=1280%2C960&ssl=19601280adminadmin2019-03-13 10:14:182019-03-13 10:15:05Sign of Recovery: Last FEMA Trailer Leaves Kings Forest
At a community meeting last night, someone asked whether the Army Corps was REALLY taking sand out of the river. They didn’t see any dump trucks and they were concerned that the project was just a big hoax, on the order of Roswell, aliens and UFOs.
You have no idea how often I hear comments like this! Where are they putting all the sand? How does it get there?
Yes, they really are moving sand out of the river. But it’s not with trucks. Two dredges are pumping it though 24-inch pipe and six booster pumps miles upstream. One dredge is south of the Kingwood Country Club. The other is just east of Kings Harbor.
The first dredge is pumping sand back to an abandoned sand pit south of Kingwood College on Sorters Road. The second dredge is pumping it back to a pit on Townsend Boulevard in Humble. Here’s what it looked like today at the Townsend Pit.
Placement Area #1 on Townsend in Humble just east of North Houston Avenue. The old sand pit is nearly full.Keeping the sand evenly dispersed is a challenge. Bulldozers keep it from building up near the pipe on the left. Placement Area #1 is almost filled.
After the sediment drops out of suspension and settles to the bottom of the pit, sediment-free water returns to the river through this drain.
Picture of pit taken in October 2018 as dredging was beginning. The pit is now almost completely filled.It takes six booster pumps and five miles of pipeline to get the sand where it’s going. Before the job is done, the Army Corps will have picked up a volume of sand equivalent to the Astrodome and moved it five miles.
Posted by Bob Rehak on 3/12/2019
660 Days After Harvey
https://i0.wp.com/reduceflooding.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/CallanAtWLHP_01_02-1.jpg?fit=1500%2C1000&ssl=110001500adminadmin2019-03-12 19:49:342019-03-13 09:07:44Yes, They Really Are Moving Sand Out of the River
Melissa Sturgis’ Harvey Story: Three Generations of Antiques Out on the Curb
This is another in a series of looks back at Harvey, as told through the photos of its victims.
Melissa Sturgis, self-described “oil-patch gypsy,” is still angry. “My entire home. Treasured antiques, three generations back from New England, are on this curb. Furniture and collectibles from eight years overseas in Malaysia, London and Russia. It’s a crime.”
Silver Lining
Melissa Sturgis lives in Alaska now and says she is not moving back, though she keeps in touch with all of her Kingwood friends.
“Harvey was devastating, but it actually had a silver lining. It shook us out of complacency and made us more resilient…taught us that life is about more than things….it’s about perfect strangers coming together to help one another. People opening their home to the five of us for several days.”
“As a side note, my brother in law, sister in law, nephew and 2 cats from Sugarland were forced to evacuate. They drove hours in the torrential rain to get to my house in KW for safety–then lost their two cars in my driveway—AND THEY NEVER FLOODED IN SUGARLAND. And my sister in law had cancer at the time….and still does.”
“Yes it was tortuous, tossing out Great Grandma’s Dining Room table onto the pile….as Grandma (who also flooded and was evacuated from Arbor Terrace in Town Center) sat on the sidewalk watching her things and her mother’s antiques get tossed. Excruciating. But we survived. I’m just grateful I am no longer there. I was in Kingwood last week visiting my mother in law and Fosters Mill Estates STILL has houses abandoned or partially fixed and for sale. Some are still being worked on. It’s awful.”
Why I’m Posting These Now
Melissa donated her pictures to the cause in the hope that they will help create awareness of the devastation that flooding causes, and perhaps, just perhaps, they may create some positive change, too. Thanks, Melissa!
I’m posting these now for several reasons:
If you have pictures from Harvey that you would like to share with the world, please send them through the submissions page of this web site.
Posted by Bob Rehak on 3/13/2019
561 Days since Hurricane Harvey
Sign of Recovery: Last FEMA Trailer Leaves Kings Forest
David Burress, head of the Kings Forest architectural review committee, sent me this picture yesterday. It shows what he believes to be the last FEMA trailer leaving Kings Forest. It’s a modest, although important sign of recovery.
Kings Forest lies north of Kingwood Drive, 1.5 to 2 miles from the San Jacinto River. Despite the distance and a marked elevation change, 108 out of 250 Kings Forest homes flooded during Hurricane Harvey – 43%.
Burress snapped this with his cell phone from across the street. “This was the last remaining trailer that I am aware of,” he said. “Most people didn’t even know it was there.”
While symbolic, the absence of trailers does not mean the recovery is behind us.
Many Still Struggle with 3 Cs: Cash, Confidence, Contractors
Many still live in part of their homes while the remainder undergoes repairs. The most common reasons cited for the lengthy repairs? The 3Cs: cash, confidence, and contractors.
Some thought they didn’t need flood insurance because they lived outside the 500-year floodplain. They now find themselves trying to pay out of pocket for repairs costing hundreds of thousands of dollars.
Still more struggle with the lack of reliable contractors. Many of those have elected to do repair work themselves. For them, life has become an endless string of 16-hour days. They hold down jobs during the day and spend the remainder of their waking hours on do-it-yourself repair projects.
Others are intentionally delaying repairs until they see more progress on flood mitigation. They lack confidence in government to protect them.
Looking Forward to Fall Elections
Some tell me that they look forward to November elections. They’re tired of promises and want performance. For these people, casting their votes will be another small, but symbolic victory.
Posted by Bob Rehak on March 13, 2019
561 Days after Hurricane Harvey
Yes, They Really Are Moving Sand Out of the River
At a community meeting last night, someone asked whether the Army Corps was REALLY taking sand out of the river. They didn’t see any dump trucks and they were concerned that the project was just a big hoax, on the order of Roswell, aliens and UFOs.
You have no idea how often I hear comments like this! Where are they putting all the sand? How does it get there?
Yes, they really are moving sand out of the river. But it’s not with trucks. Two dredges are pumping it though 24-inch pipe and six booster pumps miles upstream. One dredge is south of the Kingwood Country Club. The other is just east of Kings Harbor.
The first dredge is pumping sand back to an abandoned sand pit south of Kingwood College on Sorters Road. The second dredge is pumping it back to a pit on Townsend Boulevard in Humble. Here’s what it looked like today at the Townsend Pit.
Placement Area #1 is almost filled.
After the sediment drops out of suspension and settles to the bottom of the pit, sediment-free water returns to the river through this drain.
Before the job is done, the Army Corps will have picked up a volume of sand equivalent to the Astrodome and moved it five miles.
Posted by Bob Rehak on 3/12/2019
660 Days After Harvey