The storm’s confirmed death toll reached 31 and the grim work of recovering the bodies of those who were trapped in homes or vehicles gathered pace in Houston, the nation’s fourth-largest city. Methodical block-by-block searches were underway in what had been some of the hardest-hit areas, said Houston’s assistant fire chief, Richard Mann.
In what could prove an ominous precursor in the Gulf Coast’s sprawling petrochemical hub, flames and plumes of smoke soared skyward early Thursday at a chemical plant on the city’s outskirts. Rising temperatures and a power cutoff had set off volatile reactions inside the Arkema Inc. plant in Crosby, 30 miles northeast of downtown Houston, authorities said.
Ten Harris County sheriff’s deputies were treated for possible chemical inhalation after the emission of fumes, local law enforcement officials said Thursday morning. They described the chemicals as nontoxic, but in Washington, Federal Emergency Management Agency chief William “Brock” Long called the incident dangerous.
After a high-profile visit to Texas on Tuesday by President Donald Trump, Vice President Mike Pence was traveling to the state accompanied by several Cabinet secretaries, his office said.
The storm sent more than 30,000 people into shelters since making landfall Friday as the most powerful hurricane to hit Texas in five decades. Even downgraded to a tropical depression, Harvey was drenching parts of Louisiana, with the National Weather Service warning that torrential rains could hit areas of Mississippi, Tennessee and Kentucky. There were flash-flood warnings as far away as southern Ohio.
High waters were expected to linger for a week in some areas, said Texas Gov. Greg Abbott. The storm-affected zone was larger than that surrounding New Orleans when it was pummeled a dozen years ago by Hurricane Katrina.
Even those who had managed to escape the floodwaters awakened to new woes Thursday. In Beaumont, 90 miles east of Houston, people turned on their water faucets, and nothing came out. The city of 118,299 people lost access to water after floods knocked out a pump station along the Neches River, along with its backup water supply from wells in Hardin County, municipal authorities said.
“At this time there is no water supply for the city water system,” the city of Beaumont said in a statement. “We will have to wait until the water levels from this historical flood recede before we can determine the extent of damage and make any needed repairs. There is no way to determine how long this will take at this time.”
Amid the devastation, there were nascent signs of recovery. Houston’s two major airports were operating again, and services like trash pickup and limited bus and light rail were resuming. Just south of downtown, restaurants and grocery stores were doing brisk business.
But in parts of the city, receding waters gave way to a landscape that was sometimes hard to recognize. Moldy, soaked debris piles lined the streets of the Meyerland neighborhood, bisected by Brays Bayou, which also flooded the previous year.
While areas of downtown Houston buzzed with activity — morning rush hour, businesses reopening — work crews in the neighborhood set to the wearying task of removing soaked carpets and carting away debris, amid the hum of industrial fans and dehumidifiers. By Thursday, some residents had stripped their homes down to the studs and left, exhausted.
“It’s devastating to anyone who loses most of their possessions to go to work and try to make a living with this aggravation,” said Alan Ross, a photographer who lives in the neighborhood and was helping his son clean up.
Scott Ross, 33, a video producer, had seen his ranch house flood for the second time, with waters reaching 23 inches deep. His wife is seven months pregnant, so they planned to stay with his parents until their flood insurance kicks in.
After last year’s flood, some neighborhood residents elevated their houses by several feet, but that can be costly. Despite that, some of the raised homes still flooded this time.
“It will be interesting to see what happens with this area in the future. Will these older houses be knocked down? Will they do something about the flooding in this area? Will people stay?” he said as he stood outside the house volunteers had helped him strip.
“It’s unknown,” his father said.
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(Los Angeles Times staff writers Hennessy-Fiske reported from Houston, Pearce from Beaumont, Texas, and King from Washington.)
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