City of Rockport department heads gave disaster reports at an emergency Rockport city council meeting Friday, Sept. 1 at the Rockport Service Center on the bypass.
Public Works
Public Works Director Mike Donoho said his department has been extremely busy since after storm hit.
“Our main goal is to get water and the sanitary sewer system operating,” he said. “Water is on between 7 a.m. and 5 p.m. so we can check on leaks.
“We are still closed. We are not open.
“We are asking people, if they come back, please leave (in the evening). We have no operating sewer.”
If people start flushing toilets, etc. there is going to be raw sewage backing up.
“Our main concern is the health safety and welfare of our city,” said Donoho.
“After the electricity comes on (estimated by AEP at 10 p.m. Friday, Sept. 8) it will take a couple of days to get everything balanced.”
Donoho also noted power to the community does not mean power to every structure.
“Everything isn’t going to work,” said Donoho.
At the Emergency Operations Center meeting Saturday, Sept. 2 Donoho said six generators have been requested for the city’s major lift stations.
“We will crank it up and see how it goes,” he said.
There have been two water main breaks (caused by uprooted trees). One has been repaired and one water main has been shut off.
There are thousands of minor leaks, which have been repaired, but there are still many more minor leaks.
Water departments from all over the nation have offered help.
“We are still assessing the condition of city structures,” said Donoho. “We have moderate to severe damage to all city structures.”
The least damaged was the Rockport Service Center on the bypass.
“It was built specifically for this purpose,” said Donoho.
City hall received significant damage and now has an “open air atrium.”
Donoho said when clearing storm debris, one should separate brush and limbs in one pile, building materials in another, and appliances, etc. in another pile.
Donoho’s advice to everyone is, “Please be patient.”
He noted debris on private property is the property owner’s responsibility.
City leaders will meet again on Monday to report on city facilities and to decide on recommendations for the council in regard to future operations.
Parks
Parks Director Rick Martinez said damage to city parks is significant.
“Memorial Park lost most of its structures,” said Martinez.
The new bathroom near the entrance to the park survived.
“We have yet to go around the trail at Memorial Park,” he said.
Park department offices on Corpus Christi and Teal streets received major damage.
There is exterior wall damage on the office building at the Aquatic Park, and damage inside.
Shade structures at that park fared well because all the covers were removed prior to Harvey making landfall.
The skate park also fared well.
The rookery at the Bent Oaks property lost a lot of trees.
“We lost the historic Zachary Taylor oak tree at Zachary Taylor Park,” said Martinez. “The gazebo was also severely damaged.”
All but one of the “character palms” at Compass Rose Park was lost. The gazebo was flattened.
The new playground equipment at Spencer Park survived.
Big trees were lost at Mathis Park.
“There is a lot of damage in the park system,” said Martinez. “Our urban forester has offered his services when we’re ready.
“City of Corpus Christi parks staff has offered to come in a clear some area at Memorial Park to give people a place to go outside.”
Police
Rockport Police Department (RPD) Chief Tim Jayroe reported the RPD side of the Public Safety Center had some water damage on the west side through the walls.
“In general, we’re in good shape,” said Jayroe.
Three of the four flagpoles in front of the facility were blown down.
All three communications towers were lost.
“We are getting by with communications, but it’s not what we need,” said Jayroe.
RPD officers are working 12 hours shifts.
Law enforcement assets from the DPS, State Guard, National Guard, Attorney General’s Office, Border Patrol and area police and sheriff’s departments are in town aiding the effort.
“We’ve got a lot of people out and around,” said Jayroe.
There are patrols at the entrances to limited access neighborhoods, because they can check people easily.
“We are operating out of two-man units because we don’t have enough cars,” said the chief.
Blown out windows are in the process of being replaced.
The chief also said the “DPS Navy” is patrolling the canals.
“We have had two incidents of looting and three arrests,” said Jayroe.
Communications
Dispatch Administrator Lee Zapata reported 911 services are limited. The addresses of calls are not coming up.
“We hope 911 is fully operational in the next couple of days,” said Zapata.
Outside dispatchers have aided local efforts, which has given local dispatchers some much needed time off.
IT
IT intern Joey Manahan reported AT&T is running fiber optic line between the city facility on the bypass and the Emergency Operations Center.
ACISD IT employee Chris Garis returned on Saturday and has been a huge help, too.
The Aransas County Appraisal District servers are operating out the city’s facility on the bypass. Aerial photos of damage are being made, which can be compared to properties prior to the storm.
The IT department is also working on a credentialing system for outside contractors. That is expected to be operational on Tuesday. This will give locals comfort when dealing with outside contractors who are swarming Aransas County.
