FEMA chief tours deadly storm damage in Houston area as more residents restore power

HOUSTON (AP) — As the head of the Federal Emergency Management Agency toured the Houston area Tuesday to assess the damage caused by last week’s deadly stormslocal authorities still reassured residents without power that their lights would be on again and they could soon start rebuilding their lives.

Houston Mayor John Whitmire said CenterPoint Energy crews worked hard to restore power to residents. manage temperatures around 90 degrees (32 Celsius) and heat indexes approaching 100 degrees (38 Celsius).

At the height of the power outages, nearly a million people in the Houston area were without power. By Tuesday evening, that figure had fallen to fewer than 95,000.

“We are at the top. No one is overlooked,” Whitmire said.

Widespread destruction caused by last Thursday’s storms left at least eight dead and paralyzed much of Houston. Thunderstorms and hurricane-force winds devastated the city, reducing businesses and other structures to piles of debris, uprooting trees and shattering glass from downtown skyscrapers. A tornado also touched down near Cypress, a northwest suburb of Houston.

Some downtown streets remained closed as crews continued to clean windows as high winds damaged 3,250 high-rise building windows. Officials said it could take months to repair all the windows.

The deadly winds swept across a large swath of Harris County, where Houston is located, causing damage and knocking out power to low-income and wealthier neighborhoods.

Last week’s storms occurred while the Houston area and several Texas counties to the north were still recovering. flooding caused by heavy rain end of April and beginning of May.

FEMA approved small business loans and federal disaster assistance, which can help finance temporary housing and repairs, for both weather events.

More than 48,000 people in affected counties that have been declared disaster areas have already requested assistance, FEMA Administrator Deanne Criswell said Tuesday. The agency has already released more than $1 million in assistance to residents.

“We know that thousands of people in the region are still without electricity. Again, I encourage you to continue to check on your loved ones, your neighbors, your vulnerable people in your communities and make sure they are OK,” Criswell said.

Lisa Reed, a teacher who lives in the Cloverleaf neighborhood in eastern Harris County, was without power for four days before finally getting it back Monday night.

“I felt exhilarated. It was really good to be back in my own house,” Reed said.

But Reed said one of his daughters and his son, who both live nearby, were still without power Tuesday. Even with power restored, some of Reed’s neighbors were dealing with sparkling wires and other electrical issues.

“It’s frustrating to see people struggle. You wish you could do more,” she said. “Not everyone has the resources.”

Harris County Commissioner Lesley Briones, whose home still did not have power Tuesday, said the deadly storms took a serious toll on many low-income residents.

In one area of ​​the Spring Branch neighborhood in northwest Harris County, many damaged apartment complexes are “completely uninhabitable” with damaged roofs and debris that is not being cleaned up by owners or landlords. Briones said many families in these complexes live paycheck to paycheck.

“The choice is to remain in these unsanitary and unlivable conditions or become homeless. So we are actively working on the long-term legal issues,” she said.

Michelle Hundley, a spokeswoman for CenterPoint Energy, said the utility still plans to restore power to more than 90% of customers by Wednesday. If someone didn’t have power Wednesday, it would likely be due to damaged equipment in their home that the homeowner would need to repair.

“Certainly our linemen and all of our employees are working very diligently to make sure your power is up and running, and we will do the best we can,” Hundley said.

Harris County Commissioner Adrian Garcia said some underserved communities may feel left out “because they see the lights going on in nicer neighborhoods.” I just want to tell you that you are not forgotten. You are not left behind.

Authorities initially reported that the deadly storms were responsible for at least seven deaths. On Sunday, authorities raised the total to eight to include a man who died of carbon monoxide poisoning while running a generator after a power outage.

___

Follow Juan A. Lozano: https://twitter.com/juanlozano70