Category Archives: Hurricane Katrina

Some stuff from Thursday that got lost in the Enron verdict-a-rama: Task force chief dismayed Perry lacks authority to order evacuations The chairman of Gov. Rick Perry’s hurricane task force said Tuesday that he was disappointed the Legislature did not … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Well, I’d say there’s good news and bad news in this. A hectic, above-normal tropical storm season could produce between four and six major hurricanes in the Atlantic Ocean and Gulf of Mexico this year, but conditions don’t appear ripe … Continue reading → Continue reading →

The statewide hurricane evacuation drill is going on this week, and so far we’ve learned that there’s only so much you can do to keep the highways flowing. Harris County Judge Robert Eckels, appointed as the incident commander for a … Continue reading → Continue reading →

If you hear any alarm bells tomorrow, you can ignore them. That’s just the statewide hurricane evacuation drill going on. The three-day drill – being staged statewide for the first time – will test the evacuation response in the first … Continue reading → Continue reading →

I was going to make this an add-on to my earlier post on the Perry executive order for naming crisis managers for catastrophe situations, but for future reference I figured making a separate entry would be better: Turns out it’s … Continue reading → Continue reading →

We have a resolution for the disagreement between Governor Perry and the Houston-Galveston Area Council over his demand for a single commander for catastrophe situations (see here and here for background): A committee chair will be chosen to serve as … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Yesterday, I wondered how Governor Perry would react to the Houston-Galveston Area Council’s (H-GAC) cretive interpretation of his executive order to name a single person to manage future catastrophes that may strike the region. Today we find that the answer … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Last month, Governor Perry issued an executive order that mandated (among other things) the creation of an “incident commander” to oversee evacuation issues in each of the state’s 24 regions that have councils of governments. Today, on the deadline for … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Not everyone thinks that the hurricane task force plan that Governor Perry recently mandated is a good idea; in particular, the recommendation to make the governor the sole decision-maker on when evacuations should occur was criticized. Giving the governor the … Continue reading → Continue reading →

You may recall the task force that Governor Perry appointed to study the lessons learned from the Hurricane Rita evacuations, which issued its report exactly one month ago. Today, Governor Perry is expected to sign an executive order to make … Continue reading → Continue reading →

There are a lot of important headlines in today’s H-Chron, including the story about the Pat Tillman investigation and the story which sort of suggests Tom DeLay might lose. But here’s one story that you probably won’t see blogged anywhere … Continue reading → Continue reading →

In response to the release of the report by the Governor’s task force on hurricane evacuations, TxDOT says it’s already doing a lot of the things it’s been called upon to do. Janelle Gbur, spokeswoman for the Texas Department of … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Governor Perry’s task force on What We Learned From Those Nasty Hurricanes Last Year has presented its recommendations. Texas can best manage future disasters by vesting the governor with the power to order mandatory evacuations, a task force recommended Monday. … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Another casualty of Hurricane Katrina – Atlanta police say “No bead tossing!” during the pre-Sugar Bowl parade. The ban was widely interpreted as an effort to head off the practice of women baring their breasts in exchange for Mardi Gras … Continue reading → Continue reading →

The hurricane prognosticators are predicting a lot of stormy weather next year. The predictions, made annually by a research team at Colorado State University, call for 17 named storms and nine hurricanes next season. Five of those hurricanes, the forecasters … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Earlier this week, FEMA announced it would stop paying hotel bills for evacuees who still have not been placed in apartments. FEMA had planned to place families in longer-term housing before Dec. 1, but more than 53,000 hotel rooms remain … Continue reading → Continue reading →

This was homecoming weekend at Rice, but this time the Owls were joined by another school bringing together its alumni to celebrate and reminisce. While Rice University celebrated homecoming Saturday, about 400 people with ties to hurricane-damaged Tulane University reunited … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Ladies and gentlemen, I give you the email correspondence of Mike “You’re doing a heck of a job, Brownie!” Brown. Even as subordinates warned him that the flooding of New Orleans was a matter of life or death, Michael Brown, … Continue reading → Continue reading →

I guess that sharply worded letter that Governor Perry sent to Homeland Security director Michael Chertoff got lost in the mail. Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff came to town to talk about immigration policy, and had no public response Wednesday … Continue reading → Continue reading →

It’s the same familiar story, but with two new voices in the chorus. Gov. Rick Perry and Houston Mayor Bill White on Tuesday separately criticized the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s continued hurricane recovery efforts in Texas and Houston. In a … Continue reading → Continue reading →

The reconstruction of New Orleans has hit another snag: There’s not enough housing, temporary or otherwise, for all the workers that are needed for the rebuilding as well as for the firms that are trying to get started again. And … Continue reading → Continue reading →

The Aurora Picture Show, located here in the Heights, has an event next week for Katrina and Rita relief that sounds interesting: October 26: The Pink Satin Suit, A KAT Fund Benefit Wednesday, October 26, 7pm The Pink Satin Suit … Continue reading → Continue reading →

I for one am getting tired of reading words like “most intense Atlantic storm ever recorded”. Wilma’s confirmed pressure readings this morning dropped to 882 millibars — the lowest minimum pressure ever measured in a hurricane in the Atlantic basin, … Continue reading → Continue reading →

The people of East Texas are not happy with the assistance they have gotten from FEMA since Hurricane Rita devastated their cities. Widespread confusion and inconsistency over who is entitled to grants from the Federal Emergency Management Agency is inspiring … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Here’s another look at the massive traffic jam that took place during the Rita evacuation, focusing on households that left with more than one car. Although no statistical data is available yet on the massive evacuation, “there were certainly more … Continue reading → Continue reading →

The Chronicle does a poll about the Rita evacuation. If a Category 4 hurricane had a bead on Houston, 62 percent would leave — a slightly higher percentage than actually did flee ahead of Rita, according to the poll. […] … Continue reading → Continue reading →

New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin has announced that he will lay off 3000 municipal employees due to lack of any revenue stream for the city. Nagin announced with “great sadness” that he had been unable to find the money to … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Folks are returning back to Port Arthur and Sabine Pass to see how bad the damage from Hurricane Rita was in their neighborhoods. Sadly, it was very bad. Teresa MacLelland expected some damage to her Sabine Pass home as she … Continue reading → Continue reading →

The Rita Blog has some info on how the rebuilding is going in East Texas. It also has information about Red Cross and Salvation Army relief efforts. I haven’t seen a whole lot about benefits for Rita victims; if you’re … Continue reading → Continue reading →

You know, if shamelessness were a virtue, Smokey Joe Barton would have been assumed directly into Heaven by now. First, he is one of only eleven Congressmen to vote against the emergency relief package for Katrina victims. Next, he signs … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Continuing with the theme of risk aversion and how it impacted people’s stay-or-flee decisions as Rita loomed in the Gulf, here’s another data point to consider. Water service to more than half a million Houston-area residents and several key industrial … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Previously, I asked what might happen to cars which were abandoned on evacuation routes by drivers who ran out of gas; in particular, would they be stuck for sizable towing fees, as the friend of a correspondant said he was. … Continue reading → Continue reading →

So why did people run from Hurricane Rita? Having seen the handiwork of Rita’s vicious cousin, Katrina, all of Houston’s coastal suburbs and a good percentage of everybody else in the area decided that discretion was the better part of … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Shorter Houston Chronicle front-page story: FEMA Screws Up Again. Frustration and anger mounted in Southeast Texas on Monday over the response to Hurricane Rita by the Federal Emergency Management Agency. With homes smashed, trees and power lines downed and a … Continue reading → Continue reading →