Conroe homes, businesses rebuild after Hurricane Harvey

Receiving federal assistance

On Aug. 30, President Donald Trump added Montgomery County to the Presidential Disaster Declaration he issued Aug. 25, including 38 other Texas counties that are eligible for federal funding to aid in recovery efforts.

According to Federal Emergency Management Agency, as of Sept. 17 the agency had approved more than $480 million in individual assistance applications for more than 251,000 Hurricane Harvey survivors. As of Sept. 18, FEMA had approved 3,476 individuals and households for assistance in Montgomery County, totaling roughly $5.3 million.

With the disaster declaration, residents and business owners can register with FEMA to determine their eligibility for federal disaster relief assistance, which may include short-term housing assistance, disaster unemployment assistance or low-interest disaster loans and grants.

FEMA Media Relations Specialist Peter Herrick said the application will be open for residents affected by the storm for at least two months.

“Every person gets evaluated individually, so it is not like the money is going to run out,” Herrick said. “Make sure you are safe, you are in a shelter, you are housed and fed, and then register for FEMA assistance.”

Red Cross Shelter Manager Gary Mattfeld said shelters—like the Lone Star Convention & Expo Center in Conroe—can serve displaced families in short- and long-term capacities, so interested volunteers should leave their contact information with shelters in case assistance is needed in the future.

“This is a situation that could change in a flash,” he said. “We could end up having to bring more evacuees here from other shelters, and then with more evacuees, we would need more volunteers.”

Numerous community groups organized donation drives following the storm, volunteered at evacuee shelters and helped with homes damaged by flooding. Local nonprofit Friends of Conroe organized a mass donation drive at the Veterans of Foreign Wars of the U.S. Conroe location, preparing hot meals for displaced or trapped families.

Lake Conroe water floods properties

During Harvey, water levels in the Lake Conroe watershed reached a peak of 206.2 feet above average sea level, exceeding the previous record of 205.6 feet in 1994, according to a Sept. 6 statement from the San Jacinto River Authority.

During Harvey, the Lake Conroe watershed was receiving about 130,000 cubic feet of water per second—roughly 972,000 gallons of water. As water rushed in and pushed the Lake Conroe watershed to its brim, SJRA released water to avoid a dam breach.

The highest volume at which water was released from Lake Conroe was a record of roughly 79,000 cubic feet of water per second—or approximately the amount of water from an Olympic swimming pool released every 1.1 seconds.

With unparalleled amounts of water being released from the dam, homes and businesses along the San Jacinto River were inundated with water.

Conroe’s McDade Estates subdivision faced mandatory evacuation from their homes around 2:30 a.m. on Aug. 28 due to anticipated flooding. Other Conroe neighborhoods were also put under recommended evacuation and experienced some degree of flooding, including River Plantation, Woodhaven Forest, Artesian, Riverbrook Drive and Sherbrook Circle as well as neighborhoods off FM 2854 and neighborhoods downstream from McDade Estates.

Conroe Fire Chief Ken Kreger said first responders and city officials knocked on hundreds of doors in the early hours of Aug. 28 to notify residents of the dam’s record-breaking release and the subsequent flooding.

“We had no idea how deep the water was going to get and in what places,” he said. “We need to document this and try to make sure that if this happens again, we have a good map [showing] where and who this can affect so we have a better warning in place.”

A Sept. 12 report from Conroe’s Community Development Department stated seven businesses suffered major flood damage as a result of water being released from the dam, including Vernon’s Kuntry Katfish, Clint’s Kuntry Catfish Catering and Wolfies Restaurant.

Vernon’s Kuntry Katfish sustained about 3.5 feet of water in the restaurant, and it will be closed for construction for four to six weeks during the complete remodel, General Manager Buster Bower said. A GoFundMe page was launched to support the restaurant’s 50-employee staff during construction, quickly exceeding the $7,500 fundraising goal by raising more than $10,000. 

Although the restaurant is closed for construction, it has not stopped the crew from providing fish, fries and hushpuppies in the parking lot of the business. Bower said the plates are donation-based, with all proceeds going to support the restaurant’s employees.

“In a time as bad as this, it really makes you feel good inside to see so much support from the community and customers,” Bower said. “We have to do what we know how to do, and we are going to keep doing what we have always done: serve our customers.”

Authorities assess storm damage 

City and county officials said they continue to assess the overall damages from Harvey. Nancy Mikeska, Conroe’s director of community development, said the city is assessing property damage daily and submitting the information to FEMA.

A Sept. 12 damage assessment from Conroe Community Development reported that 242 homes and 22 businesses suffered a financial effect from Harvey, accumulating $5.2 million in damages. These damages, added with the cost of repair to city facilities and utilities, equal an estimated $30.7 million in assessed damages in Conroe.

Because assessment is ongoing, Mikeska said the estimated total damage assesment is due to change.

Conroe’s wastewater treatment plant and the police department training facility and gun range, both located near the West Fork San Jacinto River, suffered the most significant damage from the floods, with city officials estimating the cost of repair could reach up to $10 million for each facility.

Director of Public Works Norman McGuire said most buildings in the wastewater treatment plant were submerged in 6 feet of water, with other areas receiving 12 feet of water. The floodwaters caused significant damage to facility buildings, McGuire said, including multiple equipment failures and a system shutdown on the morning of Aug. 29.

When the plant was inoperable, McGuire said waste from the Conroe area was unable to be treated before flowing into the San Jacinto River.

“There was a period when [the waste] was getting no treatment; it was just passing through the plant and right down the San Jacinto River,” McGuire said. “But as it was happening, the 5 million gallons per day [of untreated wastewater] was being diluted extremely by 32 million gallons of water per minute [coming from Lake Conroe].”

Conroe public works employees returned to the wastewater treatment facility when water had receded to a safe level, and the treatment plant resumed operation by the evening of Sept. 2.

The storm delayed school for Conroe, Montgomery and Willis ISDs, but students were able to return to school Sept. 5. The Texas Education Agency announced Aug. 29 that school systems falling within declared disaster counties were excused from having to make up missed days. Officials with the affected districts also reported no district buildings sustained notable damage.

Additionally, Montgomery and Willis did not sustain significant damage, the cities’ respective city administrators said. However, high-water rescues were performed in both Montgomery and Willis, according to the cities’ respective fire chiefs.

Montgomery Fire Department Chief Brian Edwards estimated 20 high-water rescues occurred during the storm. Jason Oliphant, Montgomery County Emergency Service District No. 1 fire chief, estimated 111 high-water rescues were performed in the Willis area, specifically along tributaries and near Lake Conroe.

Conroe Mayor Pro Tem Duke Coon said he went on a helicopter tour with Mayor Toby Powell and other officials before floodwaters receded to assess storm damage. Coon said the city fared well compared to areas south of Conroe and south of the San Jacinto River basin where flooding was more severe.

“I have been living here all my life, and I have to say that it breaks my heart to see that many people suffering,” he said. “We have a lot of work to do, but we have a great mayor that understands what needs to be done. We understand it is going to be a long process.”