PORT ARTHUR/BEAUMONT, Texas
Tropical Storm Harvey (now a tropical depression) brought rain and flooding to Port Arthur, Texas, forcing those who took shelter within the Robert A. “Bob” Bowers Civic Center to evacuate on Wed., Aug. 30. Pictures circulated on social media of the makeshift shelter’s rows of cots sitting in murky flood water. Port Arthur Mayor Derrick Freeman jumped on Facebook Live to assure residents that rescue efforts were underway.
“Our whole city is underwater right now but we are coming,” Freeman posted Wednesday on Facebook. “If you called, we are coming. Please get to higher ground if you can, but please [stay] out of attics.”
Evacuees were reportedly moved to the Carl A. Parker Multipurpose Center, about five miles south of the flooded Bowers Civic Center, according to The Weather Channel and other media outlets.
Port Arthur is part of the larger Beaumont-Port Arthur Metro. Beaumont is dealing with a crisis of its own after the city lost its water supply indefinitely. See this Huffington Post article and The New York Times for more info.
Beaumont has a population of more than 118,000 and hosts its fair share of meetings and events. Read more on how our industry can help Harvey evacuees in southeastern Texas and elsewhere here.
