BRAZORIA COUNTY, Texas – The mandatory evacuation zone has been lifted for County Road 400, Sugar Mill and areas north of FM 655, and County Road 674, according to a notice from the Office of County Judge Matt Sebesta.
Residents in Brazoria County were packing up and hitting the road Tuesday after the county issued several mandatory evacuations.
Brazoria County Judge Matt Sebesta issued a mandatory evacuation for residents living on County Road 400 from FM 521 to FM 2004 and for residents living on County Road 400 from County Road 304, including CR 304, to State Highway 36. A dusk to dawn curfew also went into effect.
A voluntary evacuation is recommended for residents on County Road 400 from FM 2004 to State Highway 36.
Garry Mize has a ranch in the Freeport area. For the past couple of days, his family has been raising furniture in the house in anticipation of flood waters from Oyster Creek and the Brazos River reaching their home.
File: Revised Evacuation Map- Jones Creek Side CR 400 June 12 2016
File: Revised Evacuation Map June 9 2016
File: Revised Evacuation Map South June 9 2016
In addition to their furniture, the family also has about 50 animals, including horses and cows, that need to get to higher ground.
“They get really crazy and wild in the water and the mud and it has been raining here for three months, so it’s really bad conditions,” Mize said.
Ranchers in #BrazoriaCounty near Freeport trying to get their animals to safety before water reaches them @KPRC2 pic.twitter.com/6VXBJPzMoc
— Samantha Ptashkin (@SamPtashkin) June 7, 2016
Fellow ranchers spent the day helping Mize transport his animals from his ranch to another one. “Nobody believed this was going to happen,” Mize said.
Now his family is playing it safe by evacuating, while just waiting and hoping the water doesn’t reach their ranch.
"You can always come back,” Mize said. “Just get on out, you can take your stuff with you.”
A mandatory evacuation was previously issued for the Sugar Mill and Buffalo Camp Farms subdivisions and for homes along County Road 674. Water began rising in those areas Monday even though the river appeared to have crested in the northern part of Brazoria County.
Also, a major state highway to mandatory evacuation areas was been closed to the general public. Highway 35, west of 288, takes drivers to the mandatory evacuation areas, Bailey's Prairie and the latest one, the Bar X Ranch neighborhood.
Bailey's Prairie in #BrazoriaCounty @KPRC2 pic.twitter.com/crKYwSHq5G
— Samantha Ptashkin (@SamPtashkin) June 7, 2016
Check the Brazoria County website for the most recent information.
[Road closures in Brazoria County]
Emergency managers estimate approximately 3,000 houses have water in them, and almost 50 roads have been closed due to flooding.
Brazoria County has opened four shelters in Eagle Lake, Rosahron, West Columbia and Angleton. The Angleton shelter was reported to be at full capacity Monday.
Emergency management officials want residents to listen to warnings, pay attention to the latest water level numbers and stay away from high water.
Several shelters have been set up for people who need somewhere to go:
- North of Downing Street in Angleton
- On Second Street in Rosharon
- On Plantation Drive in Lake Jackson