HOUSTON – Harvey’s floodwaters are gone, but for many townhome owners living along the banks of Buffalo Bayou, they feel like their troubles have only just begun.
“We're scared. We need some help,” homeowner Tim Daly said.
In the 21 years he’s lived at Doliver Point in West Houston, Daly has seen erosion before.
“We lose a little bit every year,” Daly said.
But nothing like he’s seen over the past two years.
“During the last two floods, last year we lost about 5 feet of horizontal bank, 200 feet long. This last one we lost another 15. So we have lost 25 feet in the last two years,” Daly said.
The erosion from Harvey is so bad, he fears another major rain event would make the situation even worse and that the bayou will one day swallow his home and all the others that now sit near the bayou’s bank.
“At the rate we've been going, the units will be going in pretty soon,” Daly said.
Unless something is done right now to protect them.
The recent collapse of the bayou caused a sewer line to break. City crews are addressing the problem Friday.
Daly hopes it sheds light on his concern that their homes may one day fall into the bayou if nothing is done to stop the erosion.
“We hope and we plan on going in front of different city entities to try and organize a plan. We can't do it alone. We need some help. I don't know what we'll do,” Daly said.
The Harris County Flood Control District said it is aware of the erosion that has been reported by residents.
Flood control is already performing priority emergency repairs in a growing number of watersheds and will continue conducting a countywide assessment to identify the total extent of the damage along its 2,500 miles of channels and prioritize them for immediate or future repairs.
The Flood Control District released the following statement:
“The Harris County Flood Control District is aware of the erosion that has been reported by residents at this location, as well as an issue with a City of Houston sewer line.
“We are gathering information. Hurricane Harvey did extraordinary damage to Harris County’s bayous, creeks and drainage channels.
“The Flood Control District is already performing priority emergency repairs in a growing number of watersheds while we conduct a county-wide assessment to identify the total extent of damages along our 2,500 miles of channels, and prioritize them for repair. Complicating this process along Buffalo Bayou is the current high water conditions.
“The high water conditions are expected to last for several more weeks, although that is a matter under the control of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, which owns, operates, and maintains the Addicks and Barker reservoirs."
