Weary residents in the 1.5-mile evacuation zone around a Crosby chemical plant started returning to their flood-ravaged homes early Monday just hours after a controlled burn destroyed six final trailers of decomposing chemicals at the troubled Arkema facility. But even as the week-long ordeal came to a close, the French-owned company has stayed mum about key details, including how officials ignited the trailers and a full chemical inventory for the 18000 Crosby Eastgate site. Meanwhile, some peeved locals are considering whether to sue the company for keeping them from their waterlogged homes and businesses.
SE Texas death toll rises to 17 reported deaths
The Southeast Texas death toll from Harvey rose to 17 on Monday. Newton County Sheriff Billy Rowles said two have died in his county due to floodwaters. He identified as Newton woman as Mrs. Thomas and a Deweyville man as Mr. Sneed in a statement on Monday. Rowles asked residents to pray for the Thomas and Sneed families. Orange County officials said Sunday there have been nine storm-related deaths in the county so far. Four of the deaths were elderly people and possibly related to a power outage, according to officials.
Schools announce start dates
Rain and flooding as a result of Tropical Storm Harvey are forcing Southeast Texas schools to delay the start of classes for this week. Here is the list so far. We will add more as announcements roll in. If you know of any, send them to: localnews@beaumontenterprise.com.
Orange, Vidor, Bridge City
Power will be restored by tonight to all customers in the Orange County area, except for customers served by flood damaged equipment, areas that are still flooded and areas impacted by the Vidor substation and Viway substation outages. Customers north of IH-10 on Hwy 105 up to Travillo Rd including Pine Forest and Lake View can expect power to be restored by Thursday, provided the property is able to take power. Customers in Rose City, areas south of IH-10 between Hwy 1132 and the Neches River, and the Maple Crest addition North of IH-10 can expect power to be restored by Friday.
Port Arthur, Mid-County
Power will be restored by tonight to all customers in Port Arthur and the surrounding areas, except for customers served by equipment damaged by flood water and areas that are still flooded.
Beaumont
Power has been restored to all customers in Beaumont, except for customers who cannot take power because of equipment damaged by flood waters, areas that are still flooded, and areas impacted by the Amelia substation or Bevil substation outages. Customers impacted by the Ameila substation outage include those along North Major Drive to Highway 105, Delaware St. to Barrington Heights, parts of Folsom Dr. and the Amelia area. Power is estimated to be restored to this area on Wednesday. Customers impacted by the Bevil Oaks substation outage include those in the areas north and west of the intersection of Hwy 105 and Major Drive. Power is estimated to be restored to this area on Thursday.
Entergy power updates:
Around 16,000 Entergy Texas customers are still without power, the company said. "Since yesterday morning, power was restored to nearly 5,100 Texas customers of the 192,000 affected by the storm," Entergy said. Here's an update by region:
FEMA opening disaster recovery centers
FEMA disaster recovery centers will be set up in Jefferson County perhaps as early as this week, a FEMA representative said today. People who were affected by flooding should go to disasterassistance.gov and register, said FEMA's Jefferson County spokesman Scott Thomas. Once registered, a FEMA inspector will contact you for an appointment to look at your damage. Thomas said no FEMA representative will ask for money up front, or bank account information or any requirement to pay for assistance. "Anything else is fraudulent," Thomas said. "If you have not registered, you will not be contacted.” For people with no internet access, try visiting an established local government emergency center or wait for the FEMA disaster centers to open, Thomas said. If you think you have been targeted in a scam involving FEMA, call the Department of Homeland Security's fraud hotline at (800) 269-0271.
Volunteers needed in Port Arthur
Operation Blessing is coordinating volunteer efforts for Port Arthur. Anyone interested in helping residents can call (757) 374-0944, or go directly to the Volunteer Reception Center, 460 Jimmy Johnson Blvd., at 8 a.m. daily for assignment.
The latest: Motiva refinery begins initial startup phase
Motiva's Port Arthur Refinery is in the final phases of equipment assessments and initial phases of refinery startup, the company announced in a statement on Tuesday. "We expect the refinery to initially return to approximately 40 percent production by the end of this weekend, provided that the final assessments meet our operational standards," the statement said. "We continue to work closely with state, local and federal officials as well as disaster relief organizations to address storm impacts on our business and to aid our communities in their recovery. Our highest priority remains the safety of our employees and community.” Tropical Storm Harvey forced Motiva Enterprises, owned by Saudi Arabia's Aramco, to start a controlled shutdown of the Port Arthur refinery on Aug. 30. Motiva Port Arthur Refinery is the nation's largest refinery. It churns through more than 600,000 barrels of crude oil a day to produce gasoline and other petrochemicals.