Evacuations urged in Montgomery and Harris counties as heavy storms hit Houston region

CLEVELAND — With fire ants nipping at his feet, Mike Miller tugged his boat through cold floodwaters from the Orange Branch of the San Jacinto River as he and his buddy, Jacob Smith, lent a hand to Liberty County residents stranded by Thursday’s floods.

Rising floodwaters spark evacuation orders

Although the sun broke through Thursday afternoon and storms moved out of the area, Keough urged residents to remain vigilant. In a post Thursday evening, he said that the San Jacinto River had not yet crested and officials expected another 10 to 12 feet of water rise.

Officials urged residents living downstream to evacuate.

In the eastern part of Montgomery County, residents can go to Calvary Baptist Church at 816 N. Blair Avenue in Cleveland. Residents in the southern part of the county can access the shelter in The Woodlands at Sts. Simon and Jude Catholic Parish at 26777 Glen Loch Drive. Residents in the western portion of the county can go to the Lone Star Community Center at 2500 Lone Star Parkway for shelter.

Harris County opened four shelters: the Greens International Church at 200 W Greens Road, Houston; the Phillipian’s New Faith Missionary Baptist Church at 7858 Angus St, Houston and the Leon Z Grayson Community Center at 13828 Corpus Christi Street, Houston and the Calvary Baptist Church at 816 N. Blair Avenue, Cleveland. The county closed the shelter at the Grayson Community Center Friday.

Liberty County Judge Jay Knight issued a voluntary evacuation order for all of the low-lying areas throughout the county including: New River Lake Estates, Old Snake River Lake Estates, Trinity River Lake Estates, Knight Forest, Horseshoe Lake Estates, Sam Houston Lake Estates, Cypress Lake Estates, Dayton Lake Estates and Six Lakes Estates, the Harrison Subdivision, Moss Bluff in Lake Granada and all areas along the East Fork of the San Jacinto River.

“Get ready because we haven’t seen water of this nature come through in quite some time,” he said.

The judge cautioned that Liberty County residents have not yet seen the worst of the flooding.

The highest the Trinity River had previously crested was around 32 feet and 7 inches during Hurricane Harvey, and county officials expect the river to crest around 32 feet again this Saturday.