Houston Relief

HOUSTON

As many of you know, I live in the Houston Area. I can't even begin to describe the absolute devastation Hurricane Harvey has caused. Literally, everyone I know personally has been affected in some way or another. Missing or displaced family members, houses, and vehicles completely lost, and the rain continues.....

I sincerely hope that everyone who lives in Houston is safe - if somehow you are reading this and need any information or assistance, please read below. If you are having trouble getting help from any of the sources listed below, I want you to PM me and I will literally send help myself. I have access to trucks and boats, clothing, shelter and food.

Hurricane Harvey Information:

• If your home was ravaged by the floods or sustained any storm damage, you can register your damage with FEMA at 1-800-621-3362.
• You can also file a personal claim with the Texas Department of Insurance’s consumer hotline at 1-800-252-3439.
• Harris County: Call 713-308-8580 to locate your towed car.
• Talk to a professional about emotional distress by calling the Disaster Distress Helpline at 1-800-985-5990 or texting “TalkWithUs” to 66746.
• For those looking for refuge, Texas State Park Camping is free to hurricane evacuees.
• To report a missing child call the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children at 1-866-908-9570.
• Call the United Way Helpline at 211 for information on shelters and other forms of assistance.
• Following reports that several Texans are missing in midst of the storm, the Red Cross is encouraging people to list themselves and their families as safe by clicking here. You can also receive disaster assistance from the Red Cross by calling 877-500-8645, or find a list of open shelters here.
• If your home was ravaged by the floods or sustained any storm damage, you can register your damage with FEMA at 1-800-621-3362.
• You can also file a personal claim with the Texas Department of Insurance’s consumer hotline at 1-800-252-3439.

What can you do to Help?

• If you have a boat or a safe high-water vehicle, the Harris County Sheriff’s Office wants your help; the office put out a call on Twitter for residents to help with rescues. Call 713-881-3100 to help. You can also sign up with the Cajun Navy information here.
• The Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals of Texas is helping displaced animals. You can donate at www.spca.org/give or sign up to adopt a displaced animal at www.spca.org/foster. Austin Pets Alive, which transferred more than 200 pets to its shelter as of Saturday morning, is also seeking help.
• Food banks are asking for nonperishable staples like canned meat and dry goods, as well as cleaning supplies; the Houston Food Bank, Galveston County Food Bank, Food Bank of the Golden Crescent and Corpus Christi Food Bank all accept online donations. See the Houston Press’s list of names and contact information for more food banks here.
• Donate food or cash to food banks in the Houston area. Or you can donate to Feeding Texas, a network of food banks across the state. Find a local food bank here.
• Make a cash or diaper donation to the Texas Diaper Bank, which is providing emergency diaper kits to displaced families.
• Several local and national organizations are collecting donations for general disaster relief efforts, including the United Way, Salvation Army, Save the Children, Global Giving, Heart to Heart and Southern Baptist Disaster Relief. Houston Texans defensive end J.J. Watt has set up a flood relief fund, backing the effort with his own $100,000 donation.
• Gofundme has curated a list of Harvey relief efforts, with fundraisers for individual cities, families, and homes.
• You can help Hurricane Harvey victims by texting HARVEY to 90999 to give $10 to the Red Cross (or by visiting RedCross.org to give any other amount).
• The Hurricane Harvey Relief Fund, established by Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner, is accepting donations for flood victims.
• Carter BloodCare is sending donations to Southeast Texas; see where you can donate here. You can also give blood through the South Texas Blood & Tissue Center; find out more on their website or by calling 210-731-5590. Obviously most of yall live outside of Texas, you can still donate blood through the Red Cross.

tldr; This is the worst thing that has ever happened to Houston, ever. If you want to help in some way, read above. If you are in the area, please please please be safe.

With utmost sincerity, your friend, ET

Stay safe anyone in the area.

I hope you're okay, Toade. And I hope everything turns out okay for the people you know too.

I'm half the world away so I can't really do anything, but I hope for the best everyone involved.

I just re-booked my flight over to Houston to see my hubby.. D: more then 30,000 now have lost there homes

I hope everything turns out fine and that your okay and safe Toade!
Everyone that lives around that area please stay safe~<3

Everyone in the Hurricane Harvey area please stay safe and keep others safe. If any of you can help by donating through the links Toade provided please do. If you can provide help in your local area please do that. But most importantly I want all people affected by Hurricane Harvey to stay safe. Sadly I can't help by links or in my area cause I am not affected, but I would if I was able to -Fallout

In the houston area, as well. Had a bit of flooding up to the sidewalk, but am fortunate that the water has subsided... for now. If anyone has any information on volunteering in the area, please let me know.

Well I update my situition here

Are county about hour went from mandatory to voluntary evacuation. Which means people can comeback if want but the group am with already back even if still mandatory. The Colorado River crest projections were off and looking at them now safe to return. We would have no power or water but one of us got a generator to power one of are house and go from there. The house I love is right a creek but on the high side which is already going down. I'll prolly do another message tomorrow I hope for the best for everyone in Harvey's path.

Side note: only gotten maybe 10 hours sleep since Sunday so running on fumes atm

http://imgur.com/a/96uUO
First pic: back Pasture
Second pic: driveway

Look on the bright side; your entire street is a free swimming pool now. Get your trunks on and improve your breaststroke while you can.

No matter where you live, you will get storms like this but of all kinds. Living in this area, you get those types of storms... whereas say in Canada, you dont get these, but instead our major storms are Ice storms and some very bad...
So look on the bright side... at least its not -30C with inches of ice, and feets of snow..

Here's a small album of photos I took
Some of are part Colorado in Columbus and other is the town I live in. It's been estimated anout 14 trillion gallons of water poured in span of 4 days on Texas coast. Just to give you a comparison Hurricane Harvey could fill up Great Salt lake Twice

http://imgur.com/a/FEbRW
The Colorado River beds expanded about mile or more in some places and about 15 ft deep.

Clearly I do not cough
https://i.imgur.com/c01E5Ro.jpg

Wait, it's a competition now - who has the deadliest natural disasters? What's the prize?

My entry shall be that one time back in February when my friend's house had its roof torn off, I was nearly blown off a bridge that's 20 feet in the air, and nearly got hit on the head by a tree branch, got so angry at the tree branch I told it to bugger off, the rain blew so hard in my face that it stung, my earphones couldn't even stay in my ears because they were being blown so hard, the power got knocked out in the shopping mall, and the streets were emptier because the police told everyone to go away unless you want to die; but I still had to go to school, where I was asked 'still windy out there?' after walking in completely drenched and shivering, and responded 'little bit yeah'.

And yet, I don't think that even comes close to what the people in Houston are experiencing. Huh. Guess I lose.

And yes, I've experienced a snow storm/blizzard/whatever where it was a significant amount colder than usual (and keep in mind my part of the UK's average temperature in the winter is sub-zero), and I'd much rather take that over the hurricanes we get here - and they're not even that bad.

All that extra swimming away from them for dear life will only help the swimming practice!

Disclaimer: I don't actually want the next post in this thread to be some swimsuit clad Texan taking a selfie while swimming around his submerged street with an alligator sneaking up behind him, captioned with the words 'that was a close one haha, just got attacked by a snake, got away tho'. Keep yourself and your swimsuits safe.

No, Just saying as it could be without no power... Atleast there is sill power, and since its summer, once the storm is done, the water will slowly evaporate (Might be some new ponds and lakes), but the fact that its summer will help.