Undocumented workers will be linchpin in efforts
By JENALIA MORENO and SUSAN CARROLL Copyright 2008 Houston Chronicle
Sept. 25, 2008, 7:12AM
Video: Ike's aftermath See Houston's recovery from the devastating hurricane.
IMMIGRATION CHRONICLES BLOG
Thoughts on the slower rate of immigration All across southeast Texas, roofs need repair, debris must be discarded and towns hope to rebuild.
Hurricane Ike's destruction is sparking one of the largest rebuilding efforts the state has seen in decades, but at the same time is highlighting a thorny facet of the region's labor force: A lot of the recovery work will be done by illegal immigrants.
Homeowners have already turned to day laborers — many of whom are undocumented — to help clear brush, tent roofs and repair other storm damage. Contractors have hired them to rebuild or restore businesses and the city's infrastructure.
And the major work of rebuilding small towns along the Gulf Coast or big homes in Galveston will likely be aided by undocumented workers.
But this tug and pull of the labor force highlights an uneasy dilemma: The region needs the muscle of undocumented immigrants, but simultaneously is a cog in a broader crackdown of illegal immigrants at worksites.
"There's just no mechanism in place right now to provide those important laborers work authorization," said Leigh Ganchan, a Houston immigration attorney with Haynes and Boone. "It's a shame that employers can't tap into a whole segment of society that's willing and capable to provide those services. Our nation is more vulnerable than it would like to admit, I think. Vulnerable, meaning we need people to help us rebuild our infrastructure after major disasters like this."
Carlos González, Mexico's consul general in Houston, expects the area's existing immigrant population will do the rebuilding work, a key difference with what happened post-Katrina. New Orleans experienced an influx of Hispanic immigrants because it did not have as large of an immigrant population as Houston.
"You will find the immigrant community — as they always have — will play a very big role," said Laura Murillo, president of the Houston Hispanic Chamber of Commerce.
However, Americans devastated by the storm should have the option of doing the rebuilding, said Ira Mehlman, spokesman for a Washington, D.C.-group that seeks to stop illegal immigration.
"Those people should have first crack at the reconstruction jobs," said Mehlman with the Federation for American Immigration Reform. "I'm sure there are an awful lot of people who can use the jobs and use the paychecks to get themselves back on their feet."
The looming demand for immigrant labor for rebuilding efforts illustrates how dependent Texas industry and commerce are on undocumented workers.
According to a 2006 study by the Greater Houston Partnership, construction is the largest employer of undocumented workers in the city, employing nearly 36,000 people.
"The storm hasn't done anything but point out again how badly these workers are needed and how much they contribute," said Angela Blanchard, president and chief executive officer of Neighborhood Centers Inc.
Chase Duhon, with an Austin-based company that contracted to remove brush and debris across Houston, said he's having trouble finding legal local workers to help with hurricane cleanup. He posted an ad online to find more workers.
"We don't hire anyone who's illegal," said Duhon, a Houston native. "We want to keep it local. We want to use people here in Texas, but there's so much work, there are people coming from Michigan and Massachusetts."
Paralyzed by politics, immigration reform has yet to be approved by Congress despite years of hot debate. Supporters of reforms — such as a guest worker program — say storms like Ike prove how hard it is for employers to fill certain jobs.
"We need the labor. These people want to work," said Norman Adams, co-founder of Texans for Sensible Immigration Reform and president of Adams Insurance Service. "I don't think anybody has enough workers here."
Adams said the contractor repairing his water-damaged office building in the Heights area after the storm hired immigrant workers.
Honduran immigrant Esteban Valle, 49, said construction work has picked up since Ike hit.
"I think there's more work," said Valle, a legal permanent resident who previously lived in Dallas. "But it's easier for me because I have papers."
At one of the city's most popular day labor sites, the competition was stiff, with those skilled in trades like roof repair and hanging plaster wallboard often getting picked first.
"It's difficult because we don't have papers, and there are so many people," said 22-year-old Emanuel Hernandez, an undocumented immigrant from southern Mexico, gesturing to three dozen men gathered at the corner of Shepherd Drive and 11th.
Staff writer Jim Pinkerton contributed to this report.
jenalia.moreno@chron.com susan.carroll@chron.com
Showing posts with label Evacuation. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Evacuation. Show all posts
September 25, 2008
September 17, 2008
For the poor, hard times get harder
Chase Davis and Leslie Casimir - Houston Chronicle
HOUSTON — They pulled together Tuesday and used kitchen knives and brute strength to rip out sopping carpet and the padding beneath it.
Their belongings, a pile of wet clothing and children's toys, mingled in a stinky mound outside their apartment.
The Suarez family members weren't in Galveston or anywhere near the Gulf Coast. They live in North Houston, home to many gritty neighborhoods that know suffering.
Now, days after Hurricane Ike tore off roofs and overturned lives, tough times have gotten tougher.
The Suarezes, like many families, are taking matters into their own hands.
“If there is no more water, we'll be OK,” Maria Suarez, 40, said reassuringly as she took a break from the work.
In her complex alone, the roofs of 15 apartments caved in, destroying those units and the ones below.
Across Houston, unauthorized immigrants like the Suarezes, who already live on the fringes of society, are afraid to ask for help for fear of being arrested.
At the same time, citizens who've lived here all their lives are desperate for help and can't figure out who to call or grow weary waiting on busy help lines.
Mayor Bill White said the City Council today will consider establishing a roof-repair program for people who lack insurance and whose homes were severely damaged.
He issued something akin to an ultimatum to landlords: fix the roof or stop collecting rent.
“The first issue we're going to deal with is people who have holes in their roof from the hurricane,” he said. “If you have a hole in your roof, you're not up to code.”
The city has been in touch with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, which has a program to place temporary covering over holes in rooftops.
For some, the help can't come soon enough.
Warehouse worker Mario Calderon said he and his family, including three children, moved to his now destroyed East End apartment from Katy earlier this year.
The inside of his place was wet and musty in the late morning warmth. Debris carpeted his apartment after crashing through the now-skeletal ceiling.
Calderon and his wife want to apply for financial aid, but they've been greeted by constant busy signals and long waits on hold.
“They tell us to apply on the Internet, but how are we supposed to get on the Internet?” he asked. “They tell us to call, and we call and call, and they say it's too busy.”
“I understand that a lot of people had debris fly around and some people lost a roof,” he added, “but I lost everything. If there's somebody that needs help, we need help ASAP.”
In an open courtyard in front of his apartment sat a molding pile of his family's ruined possessions: mattresses and blankets, the splintered black hull of a DVD player, shoes and clothes from his three young children mixed with chunks of drywall and pink insulation.
“I tell (my children) the bogeyman came and tore everything down,” Calderon said. “What else can I say?”
The Third World arrived in the Fifth Ward, where Hurricane Ike toppled trees, shattered windows and caved in roofs of old row houses and bungalows.
At Wipprecht and Farmer streets, retiree Anopawuia Spinks sawed branches from downed trees for firewood.
“I'm using tree branches to cook up some sausages,” said Spinks, 60. “I don't think they are spoiled.”
On block after block, rooftops were patched with plastic sheets.
Tiffany Jackson, 24, who's unemployed and married to a man who's disabled, was mopping bleach water on the hardwood floor, the sky beaming down into her 2-year-old son's bedroom.
“I lost everything in my son's room,” Jackson said.
Soaked mattresses and a sofa were piled outside to dry. So was a television, but as it dried out in the daylight sun, someone stole it.
Houston Chronicle Staff Writers Matt Stiles and Bradley Olson contributed to this report.
HOUSTON — They pulled together Tuesday and used kitchen knives and brute strength to rip out sopping carpet and the padding beneath it.
Their belongings, a pile of wet clothing and children's toys, mingled in a stinky mound outside their apartment.
The Suarez family members weren't in Galveston or anywhere near the Gulf Coast. They live in North Houston, home to many gritty neighborhoods that know suffering.
Now, days after Hurricane Ike tore off roofs and overturned lives, tough times have gotten tougher.
The Suarezes, like many families, are taking matters into their own hands.
“If there is no more water, we'll be OK,” Maria Suarez, 40, said reassuringly as she took a break from the work.
In her complex alone, the roofs of 15 apartments caved in, destroying those units and the ones below.
Across Houston, unauthorized immigrants like the Suarezes, who already live on the fringes of society, are afraid to ask for help for fear of being arrested.
At the same time, citizens who've lived here all their lives are desperate for help and can't figure out who to call or grow weary waiting on busy help lines.
Mayor Bill White said the City Council today will consider establishing a roof-repair program for people who lack insurance and whose homes were severely damaged.
He issued something akin to an ultimatum to landlords: fix the roof or stop collecting rent.
“The first issue we're going to deal with is people who have holes in their roof from the hurricane,” he said. “If you have a hole in your roof, you're not up to code.”
The city has been in touch with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, which has a program to place temporary covering over holes in rooftops.
For some, the help can't come soon enough.
Warehouse worker Mario Calderon said he and his family, including three children, moved to his now destroyed East End apartment from Katy earlier this year.
The inside of his place was wet and musty in the late morning warmth. Debris carpeted his apartment after crashing through the now-skeletal ceiling.
Calderon and his wife want to apply for financial aid, but they've been greeted by constant busy signals and long waits on hold.
“They tell us to apply on the Internet, but how are we supposed to get on the Internet?” he asked. “They tell us to call, and we call and call, and they say it's too busy.”
“I understand that a lot of people had debris fly around and some people lost a roof,” he added, “but I lost everything. If there's somebody that needs help, we need help ASAP.”
In an open courtyard in front of his apartment sat a molding pile of his family's ruined possessions: mattresses and blankets, the splintered black hull of a DVD player, shoes and clothes from his three young children mixed with chunks of drywall and pink insulation.
“I tell (my children) the bogeyman came and tore everything down,” Calderon said. “What else can I say?”
The Third World arrived in the Fifth Ward, where Hurricane Ike toppled trees, shattered windows and caved in roofs of old row houses and bungalows.
At Wipprecht and Farmer streets, retiree Anopawuia Spinks sawed branches from downed trees for firewood.
“I'm using tree branches to cook up some sausages,” said Spinks, 60. “I don't think they are spoiled.”
On block after block, rooftops were patched with plastic sheets.
Tiffany Jackson, 24, who's unemployed and married to a man who's disabled, was mopping bleach water on the hardwood floor, the sky beaming down into her 2-year-old son's bedroom.
“I lost everything in my son's room,” Jackson said.
Soaked mattresses and a sofa were piled outside to dry. So was a television, but as it dried out in the daylight sun, someone stole it.
Houston Chronicle Staff Writers Matt Stiles and Bradley Olson contributed to this report.
September 10, 2008
Feds: Evacuees' Immigration Status Won't be Checked
Evacuee Concerns
Deportation fears may stop illegals from evacuating
WESLACO - Federal authorities say they won't check the immigration status of evacuees at loading zones or other checkpoints.
There's a big concern illegal immigrants may risk their lives by refusing to board buses, because they're afraid of being arrested or deported.
Officials say illegals have more to fear from a hurricane than they do the Border Patrol. They encourage everyone, regardless of immigration status, to leave if an evacuation order is issued.
Deportation fears may stop illegals from evacuating
WESLACO - Federal authorities say they won't check the immigration status of evacuees at loading zones or other checkpoints.
There's a big concern illegal immigrants may risk their lives by refusing to board buses, because they're afraid of being arrested or deported.
Officials say illegals have more to fear from a hurricane than they do the Border Patrol. They encourage everyone, regardless of immigration status, to leave if an evacuation order is issued.
Ike predicted to hit Texas, Lubbock prepares for evacuees
By: Matt Cobb
With Hurricane Ike steaming into the Gulf of Mexico, Texas emergency officials Tuesday stood ready to evacuate 1 million people from the impoverished Rio Grande Valley.
They put Lubbock on standby to provide refuge to what could be as many as 1,000 evacuees.
The Lubbock City Council appropriated $500,000 for emergency items to provide assistance and care to the evacuees, according to a statement made by the city. The state will reimburse all of the city's expenditures.
The Lubbock-based American Red Cross South Plains Regional Chapter is waiting to be notified by its national chapter before it begins to provide aid in response to the storm, said Megan Graham, fund development director of the chapter.
The chapter already is preparing to help with the evacuees and is waiting for proper notification, Graham said. It is planning to provide assistance both in Lubbock and wherever the storm makes landfall.
"We have a possibility of sending out an emergency response vehicle down to the coastline," Graham said. "It can feed up to 500 people at one time and could be down there for up to two weeks."
The City Bank Auditorium and Coliseum is set up to hold evacuees, Graham said, including 500 cots that were set up for evacuees expected to arrive after Hurricane Gustav. Necessary supplies also are in place.
The Texas Tech Police Department is preparing to provide security support to evacuees, said Gordon Hoffman, deputy chief of the department. They are planning to provide security to the coliseum and to aid with possible parking issues in any way they can if evacuees are brought to Lubbock.
"The word I've been given is that the city may get up to 1,000 evacuees," Hoffman said. "They could start arriving as soon as tomorrow, so we're preparing right now."
Emergency planning officials met all day Tuesday to decide if and when to announce a mandatory evacuation for coastal counties close to the Mexican border, according to the Associated Press.
With forecasts showing Hurricane Ike blowing ashore this weekend, authorities lined up nearly 1,000 buses in the region in case they are needed to move out the many poor and elderly people who have no cars.
Federal authorities gave assurances they would not check evacuees' immigration status at evacuation loading zones or inland checkpoints.
But residents were skeptical, according to the AP, and there were worries that many illegal immigrants would refuse to board buses and go to shelters for fear of getting arrested and deported.
"People are nervous," said the Rev. Michael Seifert, a Roman Catholic priest and immigrant advocate, according to the AP. "The message that was given to me was that it's going to be a real problem."
One reason for the skepticism: Back in May, Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff said the U.S. Border Patrol would do nothing to impede an evacuation in the event of a hurricane. But when Hurricane Dolly struck the Rio Grande Valley in late July, no mandatory evacuation was ordered, and as a result the U.S. Border Patrol kept its checkpoints open. Agents soon caught a vanload of illegal immigrants.
It would be the first mandatory large-scale evacuation in South Texas history. State and county officials let people decide for themselves whether to leave a hurricane area until just before Hurricane Rita struck the Gulf Coast in 2005. Now county officials can order people out of harm's way.
Hidalgo County Judge J.D. Salinas said to the AP if an evacuation is ordered this time, county officials will visit immigrant neighborhoods and forcefully urge people to clear out.
After Hurricanes Katrina and Gustav, "There were a lot of immigrants who said, 'I'm not going to go,'" said Salinas, the county's top elected official. "It's going to be hard."
In Washington, Rear Adm. W. Craig Vanderwagen, assistant U.S. health secretary for preparedness and response, told reporters: "In storm events, if people are trapped it doesn't particularly matter to those of us in the humanitarian assistance world which side of that border they come from. We will do what we need to do to evacuate the people who need to be evacuated."
At 5 p.m. EDT, Ike was about 90 miles southwest of Havana, Cuba, moving northwest at 10 mph with sustained winds near 75 mph. It was expected to cross the Gulf of Mexico, strengthening to a Category 3 with winds of up to 130 mph.
Forecasters said that it could hit on Saturday morning almost anywhere along the Texas coast, with the most likely spot close to the Corpus Christi area.
Areas from Matagorda Bay to Corpus Christi and south to Brownsville - about 250 miles of coastline - were told to prepare for possible mandatory evacuation.
On Tuesday, Ike roared across Cuba, ravaging homes, killing at least four people and forcing 1.2 million to evacuate.
The Rio Grande Valley is still soggy from Dolly, which flooded the region, damaging hundreds of homes but killing no one. Many homes still have blue tarps on their roofs.
The Rio Grande Valley's residents are among those least equipped to handle hurricane flooding. It is one of the poorest parts of the country, with one-third of all families living below the poverty line, compared with 10 percent nationally.
Colonias, or ramshackle communities often lacking sewer systems and paved streets, dot the Valley. Even an ordinary rainstorm can fill yards with disease-ridden sewage from flooded septic tanks. Many of the poor lack health insurance.
Mexican officials said more than a dozen dams in the northern state of Chihuahua were at capacity or spilling over, heightening fears of flooding on the American side of the border.
Gov. Rick Perry declared 88 coastal counties disaster areas Monday to start the flow of state aid, and began preparing for an evacuation, lining up "buses rather than body bags."
The Dallas-Fort Worth area sheltered about 3,000 Hurricane Gustav evacuees last week and is prepared for up to about 20,000 people this time, said Steve Griggs, a county official, according to the AP. The downtown convention center would again serve as the main shelter.
The Associated Press contributed to this article.
© Copyright 2008 Daily Toreador
With Hurricane Ike steaming into the Gulf of Mexico, Texas emergency officials Tuesday stood ready to evacuate 1 million people from the impoverished Rio Grande Valley.
They put Lubbock on standby to provide refuge to what could be as many as 1,000 evacuees.
The Lubbock City Council appropriated $500,000 for emergency items to provide assistance and care to the evacuees, according to a statement made by the city. The state will reimburse all of the city's expenditures.
The Lubbock-based American Red Cross South Plains Regional Chapter is waiting to be notified by its national chapter before it begins to provide aid in response to the storm, said Megan Graham, fund development director of the chapter.
The chapter already is preparing to help with the evacuees and is waiting for proper notification, Graham said. It is planning to provide assistance both in Lubbock and wherever the storm makes landfall.
"We have a possibility of sending out an emergency response vehicle down to the coastline," Graham said. "It can feed up to 500 people at one time and could be down there for up to two weeks."
The City Bank Auditorium and Coliseum is set up to hold evacuees, Graham said, including 500 cots that were set up for evacuees expected to arrive after Hurricane Gustav. Necessary supplies also are in place.
The Texas Tech Police Department is preparing to provide security support to evacuees, said Gordon Hoffman, deputy chief of the department. They are planning to provide security to the coliseum and to aid with possible parking issues in any way they can if evacuees are brought to Lubbock.
"The word I've been given is that the city may get up to 1,000 evacuees," Hoffman said. "They could start arriving as soon as tomorrow, so we're preparing right now."
Emergency planning officials met all day Tuesday to decide if and when to announce a mandatory evacuation for coastal counties close to the Mexican border, according to the Associated Press.
With forecasts showing Hurricane Ike blowing ashore this weekend, authorities lined up nearly 1,000 buses in the region in case they are needed to move out the many poor and elderly people who have no cars.
Federal authorities gave assurances they would not check evacuees' immigration status at evacuation loading zones or inland checkpoints.
But residents were skeptical, according to the AP, and there were worries that many illegal immigrants would refuse to board buses and go to shelters for fear of getting arrested and deported.
"People are nervous," said the Rev. Michael Seifert, a Roman Catholic priest and immigrant advocate, according to the AP. "The message that was given to me was that it's going to be a real problem."
One reason for the skepticism: Back in May, Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff said the U.S. Border Patrol would do nothing to impede an evacuation in the event of a hurricane. But when Hurricane Dolly struck the Rio Grande Valley in late July, no mandatory evacuation was ordered, and as a result the U.S. Border Patrol kept its checkpoints open. Agents soon caught a vanload of illegal immigrants.
It would be the first mandatory large-scale evacuation in South Texas history. State and county officials let people decide for themselves whether to leave a hurricane area until just before Hurricane Rita struck the Gulf Coast in 2005. Now county officials can order people out of harm's way.
Hidalgo County Judge J.D. Salinas said to the AP if an evacuation is ordered this time, county officials will visit immigrant neighborhoods and forcefully urge people to clear out.
After Hurricanes Katrina and Gustav, "There were a lot of immigrants who said, 'I'm not going to go,'" said Salinas, the county's top elected official. "It's going to be hard."
In Washington, Rear Adm. W. Craig Vanderwagen, assistant U.S. health secretary for preparedness and response, told reporters: "In storm events, if people are trapped it doesn't particularly matter to those of us in the humanitarian assistance world which side of that border they come from. We will do what we need to do to evacuate the people who need to be evacuated."
At 5 p.m. EDT, Ike was about 90 miles southwest of Havana, Cuba, moving northwest at 10 mph with sustained winds near 75 mph. It was expected to cross the Gulf of Mexico, strengthening to a Category 3 with winds of up to 130 mph.
Forecasters said that it could hit on Saturday morning almost anywhere along the Texas coast, with the most likely spot close to the Corpus Christi area.
Areas from Matagorda Bay to Corpus Christi and south to Brownsville - about 250 miles of coastline - were told to prepare for possible mandatory evacuation.
On Tuesday, Ike roared across Cuba, ravaging homes, killing at least four people and forcing 1.2 million to evacuate.
The Rio Grande Valley is still soggy from Dolly, which flooded the region, damaging hundreds of homes but killing no one. Many homes still have blue tarps on their roofs.
The Rio Grande Valley's residents are among those least equipped to handle hurricane flooding. It is one of the poorest parts of the country, with one-third of all families living below the poverty line, compared with 10 percent nationally.
Colonias, or ramshackle communities often lacking sewer systems and paved streets, dot the Valley. Even an ordinary rainstorm can fill yards with disease-ridden sewage from flooded septic tanks. Many of the poor lack health insurance.
Mexican officials said more than a dozen dams in the northern state of Chihuahua were at capacity or spilling over, heightening fears of flooding on the American side of the border.
Gov. Rick Perry declared 88 coastal counties disaster areas Monday to start the flow of state aid, and began preparing for an evacuation, lining up "buses rather than body bags."
The Dallas-Fort Worth area sheltered about 3,000 Hurricane Gustav evacuees last week and is prepared for up to about 20,000 people this time, said Steve Griggs, a county official, according to the AP. The downtown convention center would again serve as the main shelter.
The Associated Press contributed to this article.
© Copyright 2008 Daily Toreador
Texas officials weigh evacuations as Ike nears
McALLEN, Texas (AP) — With Hurricane Ike steaming into the Gulf of Mexico, Texas emergency officials Tuesday stood ready to order 1 million people evacuated from the impoverished Rio Grande Valley and tried to convince tens of thousands of illegal immigrants that they have less to fear from the Border Patrol than from the storm.
Emergency planning officials were meeting all day to decide if and when to announce a mandatory evacuation for coastal counties close to the Mexican border.
With forecasts showing Ike blowing ashore this weekend, authorities lined up nearly 1,000 buses in case they are needed to move out the many poor and elderly people who have no cars.
Farther up the coast, officials in the county surrounding Corpus Christi planned to begin busing people who have special medical needs inland on Wednesday.
Federal authorities gave assurances they would not check people's immigration status at evacuation loading zones or inland checkpoints. But residents were skeptical, and there were worries that many illegal immigrants would refuse to board buses and go to shelters for fear of getting arrested and deported.
"People are nervous," said the Rev. Michael Seifert, a Roman Catholic priest and immigrant advocate. "The message that was given to me was that it's going to be a real problem."
One reason for the skepticism: Back in May, Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff said the Border Patrol would do nothing to impede an evacuation in the event of a hurricane. But when Hurricane Dolly struck the Rio Grande Valley in late July, no mandatory evacuation was ordered, and as a result the Border Patrol kept its checkpoints open. Agents soon caught a van load of illegal immigrants.
It would be the first mandatory large-scale evacuation in South Texas history. State and county officials let people decide for themselves whether to leave a hurricane area until just before Hurricane Rita struck the Gulf Coast in 2005. Now county officials can order people out of harm's way.
Hidalgo County Judge J.D. Salinas said if an evacuation is ordered this time, county officials will visit immigrant neighborhoods and forcefully urge people to clear out.
After Hurricanes Katrina and Gustav, "there were a lot of immigrants who said, `I'm not going to go,'" said Salinas, the county's top elected official. "It's going to be hard."
In Washington, Rear Adm. W. Craig Vanderwagen, assistant U.S. health secretary for preparedness and response, told reporters: "In storm events, if people are trapped it doesn't particularly matter to those of us in the humanitarian assistance world which side of that border they come from. We will do what we need to do to evacuate the people who need to be evacuated."
At 11 p.m. EDT, Ike was about 120 miles west of Havana, Cuba, moving west-northwest near 9 mph with sustained winds near 80 mph. It was expected to cross the Gulf of Mexico, strengthening to a Category 3 with winds of up to 130 mph.
Forecasters said that it could hit on Saturday morning just about anywhere along the Texas coast, with the most likely spot close to the Corpus Christi area.
Areas from Matagorda Bay to Corpus Christi and south to Brownsville — about 250 miles of coastline — were told to prepare for possible mandatory evacuation.
On Tuesday, Ike roared across Cuba, ravaging homes, killing at least four people and forcing 1.2 million to evacuate.
The Rio Grande Valley is still soggy from Dolly, which flooded the region, damaging hundreds of homes but killing no one. Many homes still have blue tarps on their roofs.
The Rio Grande Valley's residents are among those least equipped to handle hurricane flooding. It is one of the poorest parts of the country, with one-third of all families living below the poverty line, compared with 10 percent nationally.
Colonias, or ramshackle communities often lacking sewer systems and paved streets, dot the Valley. Even an ordinary rainstorm can fill yards with disease-ridden sewage from flooded septic tanks. Many of the poor lack health insurance.
Mexican officials said more than a dozen dams in the northern state of Chihuahua were at capacity or spilling over, heightening fears of flooding on the American side of the border.
Gov. Rick Perry declared 88 coastal counties disaster areas Monday to start the flow of state aid, and began preparing for an evacuation, lining up "buses rather than body bags."
The Dallas-Fort Worth area sheltered about 3,000 Hurricane Gustav evacuees last week and is prepared for up to about 20,000 people this time, said Steve Griggs, a county official. The downtown convention center would again serve as the main shelter.
Associated Press writers Eileen Sullivan in Washington, April Castro in Austin, Texas, and Jeff Carlton in Dallas contributed to this report.
September 4, 2008
Immigrant detention center still recovering from Dolly
Fernando del Valle (Valley Morning Star)
RAYMONDVILLE - Hurricane Dolly damaged the domed tents at the Willacy County detention center, preventing officials from returning illegal immigrants who were evacuated before the July 23 storm, officials said Thursday.
Rain from the Category 2 hurricane drenched the domes while the storm's 100-mph winds shot debris into some walls, said Bill Bryan, a consultant who oversaw development of the $111 million project that includes 10 domes and a 1,000-bed building.
The damage has prevented officials from returning detainees to the camp, so the inmate count has plunged from about 1,943 before the hurricane to a low of 685, county records show.
A lower detention center population has cost the county money, County Commissioner Aurelio Guerra said. It was not immediately clear how much money.
Under contract terms, the federal government pays the county $2.25 per day for each illegal immigrant it holds at the detention center.
Dolly damaged nine of the detention center's 10 domes, Bryan said.
The hurricane's rains leaked into the domes through air conditioning vents, he said.
"We had some water inside the facility," Bryan said. "That's probably the focus of concerns."
Winds carried debris that punctured the domes with incisions as long as 6 inches into some of the domes' walls, Bryan said.
"There are minor cuts caused by flying debris," he said.
When the detention center opened in 2006, officials said the domes could withstand hurricane-force winds.
"Our concern was the structural integrity - the aluminum and the truss," Bryan said. "The structures themselves are structurally sound.
They suffered no structural damage."
Management & Training Corp., the Utah-based company that operates the detention center for U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, will pay for the repairs, Bryan said.
"The county obviously doesn't have any liability," he said.
The detention center will be prepared to receive illegal immigrants by Sept. 19, Bryan said.
Nina Pruneda, spokeswoman for Immigration and Customs Enforcement, said she did not have information readily available to determine when federal officials could return detainees to the domes.
The detention center continued to hold detainees in its 1,000-bed metal building, officials said.
The detention center's inmate count stood at 1,943 on July 21 before officials evacuated detainees from the domes, county records show. Since the hurricane, the detention center's inmate count dropped to a low of 685 on July 31.
Records show that on Tuesday, the inmate count stood at 897.
"I just hope we get back on track so we can maximize our revenues," Guerra said.
This year, local officials counted on the detention center to put $1 million into county coffers, County Auditor Ida Martinez said.
Officials planned to put $500,000 in the county's general fund budget and the remainder in a capital projects fund used to buy vehicles and pay for building improvements, she said.
RAYMONDVILLE - Hurricane Dolly damaged the domed tents at the Willacy County detention center, preventing officials from returning illegal immigrants who were evacuated before the July 23 storm, officials said Thursday.
Rain from the Category 2 hurricane drenched the domes while the storm's 100-mph winds shot debris into some walls, said Bill Bryan, a consultant who oversaw development of the $111 million project that includes 10 domes and a 1,000-bed building.
The damage has prevented officials from returning detainees to the camp, so the inmate count has plunged from about 1,943 before the hurricane to a low of 685, county records show.
A lower detention center population has cost the county money, County Commissioner Aurelio Guerra said. It was not immediately clear how much money.
Under contract terms, the federal government pays the county $2.25 per day for each illegal immigrant it holds at the detention center.
Dolly damaged nine of the detention center's 10 domes, Bryan said.
The hurricane's rains leaked into the domes through air conditioning vents, he said.
"We had some water inside the facility," Bryan said. "That's probably the focus of concerns."
Winds carried debris that punctured the domes with incisions as long as 6 inches into some of the domes' walls, Bryan said.
"There are minor cuts caused by flying debris," he said.
When the detention center opened in 2006, officials said the domes could withstand hurricane-force winds.
"Our concern was the structural integrity - the aluminum and the truss," Bryan said. "The structures themselves are structurally sound.
They suffered no structural damage."
Management & Training Corp., the Utah-based company that operates the detention center for U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, will pay for the repairs, Bryan said.
"The county obviously doesn't have any liability," he said.
The detention center will be prepared to receive illegal immigrants by Sept. 19, Bryan said.
Nina Pruneda, spokeswoman for Immigration and Customs Enforcement, said she did not have information readily available to determine when federal officials could return detainees to the domes.
The detention center continued to hold detainees in its 1,000-bed metal building, officials said.
The detention center's inmate count stood at 1,943 on July 21 before officials evacuated detainees from the domes, county records show. Since the hurricane, the detention center's inmate count dropped to a low of 685 on July 31.
Records show that on Tuesday, the inmate count stood at 897.
"I just hope we get back on track so we can maximize our revenues," Guerra said.
This year, local officials counted on the detention center to put $1 million into county coffers, County Auditor Ida Martinez said.
Officials planned to put $500,000 in the county's general fund budget and the remainder in a capital projects fund used to buy vehicles and pay for building improvements, she said.
August 5, 2008
Ahumada proposes sheltering Matamoros residents during hurricane
August 5, 2008 - 10:03PM
BY EMMA PEREZ-TREVINO, The Brownsville Herald
Mayor Pat M. Ahumada Jr. proposed Tuesday - barring state or federal obstacles - to open shelters in Brownsville to Matamoros residents in the event of a Category 4 or 5 hurricane.
Ahumada, who as mayor oversees emergency management for the city, said Brownsville residents and their pets would be under mandatory evacuation because otherwise they would drown. The mayor then proposed that Matamoros residents, who decide not to evacuate to the south, would stand a better chance in Brownsville.
He also noted that the federal government sends personnel, equipment and funding to foreign countries to assist in disasters. "Why not take a proactive approach in assisting our sister-city?" Ahumada asked.
The mayor presented the proposal at Tuesday's City Commission meeting.
"We cannot ignore the fact that we have neighbors to the south," Ahumada told the commissioners.
"This is a proactive measure to save lives," he said, adding that if approved by state and federal authorities, Matamoros residents would be sheltered, "under a very controlled environment."
The mayor suggested that the Texas National Guard supervise the sheltering.
"I'm not reinventing the wheel," Ahumada said. He said that the international bridge between both countries and sister cities was opened during Hurricane Beulah, a Category 3 hurricane.
"Many people from Matamoros came and sought shelter here," he said and noted that they returned home after the hurricane.
"I think the footprint is there to do it," the mayor said, although he pointed out that there are a lot more regulations in place since the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks.
Ahumada said the proposal would be explored.
He also proposed converting trailers into ambulances for the evacuation of patients. He said evacuations could not be accomplished with the five ambulances available.
The mayor also proposed the use of diesel-generated pumps instead of electrical pumps. He said that the city airport sustained about $5 million in damages because, due to the lack of electricity, the pumps couldn't be used to drain water.
Ahumada also asked residents to be patient and said that brush and debris will be picked up.
"We just all have to be patient. Hopefully, we will have more people (contracted to work)," the mayor said.
Later in the evening, the commission was poised to consider an agreement with Cameron County or with a contractor for the removal and disposal of debris within city limits from Hurricane Dolly.
The mayor also proposed the construction of an adequate emergency command center with a kitchen, bedding and showers that could double as a satellite branch of the Brownsville Public Utilities Board.
The commission extended proclamations to the BPUB, City Manager Charlie Cabler and staff, and Emergency Management Coordinator Jeff Johnston, thanking them for their response to Hurricane Dolly.
In other business, the commission gave its final approval to create the posts of deputy city manger and assistant city manager, bringing to two the number of assistant city manager slots.
Although the city manager makes the selections, the commission funds the positions. An allocation has not been made yet.
BY EMMA PEREZ-TREVINO, The Brownsville Herald
Mayor Pat M. Ahumada Jr. proposed Tuesday - barring state or federal obstacles - to open shelters in Brownsville to Matamoros residents in the event of a Category 4 or 5 hurricane.
Ahumada, who as mayor oversees emergency management for the city, said Brownsville residents and their pets would be under mandatory evacuation because otherwise they would drown. The mayor then proposed that Matamoros residents, who decide not to evacuate to the south, would stand a better chance in Brownsville.
He also noted that the federal government sends personnel, equipment and funding to foreign countries to assist in disasters. "Why not take a proactive approach in assisting our sister-city?" Ahumada asked.
The mayor presented the proposal at Tuesday's City Commission meeting.
"We cannot ignore the fact that we have neighbors to the south," Ahumada told the commissioners.
"This is a proactive measure to save lives," he said, adding that if approved by state and federal authorities, Matamoros residents would be sheltered, "under a very controlled environment."
The mayor suggested that the Texas National Guard supervise the sheltering.
"I'm not reinventing the wheel," Ahumada said. He said that the international bridge between both countries and sister cities was opened during Hurricane Beulah, a Category 3 hurricane.
"Many people from Matamoros came and sought shelter here," he said and noted that they returned home after the hurricane.
"I think the footprint is there to do it," the mayor said, although he pointed out that there are a lot more regulations in place since the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks.
Ahumada said the proposal would be explored.
He also proposed converting trailers into ambulances for the evacuation of patients. He said evacuations could not be accomplished with the five ambulances available.
The mayor also proposed the use of diesel-generated pumps instead of electrical pumps. He said that the city airport sustained about $5 million in damages because, due to the lack of electricity, the pumps couldn't be used to drain water.
Ahumada also asked residents to be patient and said that brush and debris will be picked up.
"We just all have to be patient. Hopefully, we will have more people (contracted to work)," the mayor said.
Later in the evening, the commission was poised to consider an agreement with Cameron County or with a contractor for the removal and disposal of debris within city limits from Hurricane Dolly.
The mayor also proposed the construction of an adequate emergency command center with a kitchen, bedding and showers that could double as a satellite branch of the Brownsville Public Utilities Board.
The commission extended proclamations to the BPUB, City Manager Charlie Cabler and staff, and Emergency Management Coordinator Jeff Johnston, thanking them for their response to Hurricane Dolly.
In other business, the commission gave its final approval to create the posts of deputy city manger and assistant city manager, bringing to two the number of assistant city manager slots.
Although the city manager makes the selections, the commission funds the positions. An allocation has not been made yet.
July 23, 2008
Border Patrol NOT Checking Documentation of Valley Evacuees
Agency says getting all people, legal and illegal, to safety is its top priority
By Jim Forsyth
Wednesday, July 23, 2008
The U.S. Border Patrol said today it is not checking the documents of individuals who are fleeing Hurricane Dolly, and it has no intention of using natural disasters as a pretext for rounding up and deporting illegal immigrants, 1200 WOAI news reports.
Officials in the Rio Grande Valley have been worried about Border Patrol actions ever since a reporter spotted a Border Patrol official conducting a document check during a hurricane evacuation drill in McAllen in May. Some officials had expressed concern that Rio Grande Valley residents, many of whom have relatives who are undocumented, would decline to evacuate if they knew a relative could be deported.
"Our goal is to make sure that people understand that we are not going to stop people from boarding modes of evacuation to check their citizenship or anything like that," Border Patrol Agent Lloyd Easterling told 1200 WOAI news. "We will not...will not..be impeding anybody who needs to be evacuated."
Easterling says the check points at Sarita and Falfurrias, which everybody driving north from the Rio Grande Valley have to pass through to leave the Valley, are open and are operating today, but there are no indications that any large number of people are leaving the Rio Grande Valley. Hundreds have left their homes, but they are seeking shelter inland in the Valley, in San Benito, Weslaco, and Edinburg.
"As members of that community, we are going to be out there making sure that people of all nationalities are safe and those lives are preserved. That's what our mission is."
Easterling said in the event of a major evacuation from the Rio Grande Valley, the officers in charge of the checkpoints would not impede traffic by checking documents.
But Easterling said the law enforcement aspect of the Border Patrol's work will continue. If the Border Patrol sees a 'wanted felon' or is told by another police agencies that a wanted individual is in an evacuation area, that person will be arrested. But he says the agency will not be entering evacuation busses or checking the papers of streams of evacuees at the checkpoints.
"We're going to be down there in a support role to help people get out of the impact zone, and get them into areas were they are safe, and their lives are not imperiled," he said.
By Jim Forsyth
Wednesday, July 23, 2008
The U.S. Border Patrol said today it is not checking the documents of individuals who are fleeing Hurricane Dolly, and it has no intention of using natural disasters as a pretext for rounding up and deporting illegal immigrants, 1200 WOAI news reports.
Officials in the Rio Grande Valley have been worried about Border Patrol actions ever since a reporter spotted a Border Patrol official conducting a document check during a hurricane evacuation drill in McAllen in May. Some officials had expressed concern that Rio Grande Valley residents, many of whom have relatives who are undocumented, would decline to evacuate if they knew a relative could be deported.
"Our goal is to make sure that people understand that we are not going to stop people from boarding modes of evacuation to check their citizenship or anything like that," Border Patrol Agent Lloyd Easterling told 1200 WOAI news. "We will not...will not..be impeding anybody who needs to be evacuated."
Easterling says the check points at Sarita and Falfurrias, which everybody driving north from the Rio Grande Valley have to pass through to leave the Valley, are open and are operating today, but there are no indications that any large number of people are leaving the Rio Grande Valley. Hundreds have left their homes, but they are seeking shelter inland in the Valley, in San Benito, Weslaco, and Edinburg.
"As members of that community, we are going to be out there making sure that people of all nationalities are safe and those lives are preserved. That's what our mission is."
Easterling said in the event of a major evacuation from the Rio Grande Valley, the officers in charge of the checkpoints would not impede traffic by checking documents.
But Easterling said the law enforcement aspect of the Border Patrol's work will continue. If the Border Patrol sees a 'wanted felon' or is told by another police agencies that a wanted individual is in an evacuation area, that person will be arrested. But he says the agency will not be entering evacuation busses or checking the papers of streams of evacuees at the checkpoints.
"We're going to be down there in a support role to help people get out of the impact zone, and get them into areas were they are safe, and their lives are not imperiled," he said.
July 22, 2008
Border Patrol won't stop motorists in Sarita
July 22, 2008 - 9:28PM
Fernando Del Valle
Valley Morning Star
RAYMONDVILLE -- Preparations for Tropical Storm Dolly include plans by the federal government for thousands of illegal immigrants in custody at the detention center.
But U.S. Border Patrol agents at the Sarita checkpoint will not stop motorists evacuating from a hurricane, an official said Monday.
"We're not going to be stopping people and asking where they're from," said Lloyd Easterling, a spokesman for the Border Patrol in Washington, D.C. "We don't want to slow the evacuation process. Life is paramount at this point."
Forecasters projected Tropical Storm Dolly would strengthen into a Category 1 hurricane by the time it makes landfall Wednesday morning somewhere along the South Texas coast.
Officials at the U.S. Department of Homeland Security have a "contingency plan" to evacuate detainees from the 3,000-bed detention center of tent-like domes, in Raymondville, officials said.
"The government carefully monitors wind speed and, if they have to, they are capable of moving inmates. That's a last resort," said Carl Stuart, spokesman for Management and Training Corp., the company that operates the detention center for the U.S. Bureau of Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
Stuart said he did not have information available to determine whether the domes could withstand hurricane winds.
But developers said in 2006, when the detention center opened, that the domes were built to withstand "hurricane force winds."
Stuart said security concerns prevented him from disclosing the conditions under which officials would order an evacuation of detainees.
Officials would transport detainees to other detention centers in Texas, said Nina Pruneda, a spokeswoman for ICE in San Antonio.
Rio Grande Valley residents who plan to evacuate could travel on Expressway 77 as far north as State Highway 186.
At that point, authorities would detour traffic from the expressway to west SH 186 in Raymondville, said Amy Rodriguez, spokeswoman for the Texas Department of Transportation in Pharr.
But authorities would not use roadblocks to physically shut down Expressway 77 because hurricane winds could turn the barriers into debris, she said.
In Raymondville, city officials in this low-lying area began distributing sandbags at 9 a.m. Monday, said Mary de la Garza, a clerk at City Hall.
Residents can pick up sandbags at City Hall, where officials are limiting six bags per person, she said.
Fernando Del Valle
Valley Morning Star
RAYMONDVILLE -- Preparations for Tropical Storm Dolly include plans by the federal government for thousands of illegal immigrants in custody at the detention center.
But U.S. Border Patrol agents at the Sarita checkpoint will not stop motorists evacuating from a hurricane, an official said Monday.
"We're not going to be stopping people and asking where they're from," said Lloyd Easterling, a spokesman for the Border Patrol in Washington, D.C. "We don't want to slow the evacuation process. Life is paramount at this point."
Forecasters projected Tropical Storm Dolly would strengthen into a Category 1 hurricane by the time it makes landfall Wednesday morning somewhere along the South Texas coast.
Officials at the U.S. Department of Homeland Security have a "contingency plan" to evacuate detainees from the 3,000-bed detention center of tent-like domes, in Raymondville, officials said.
"The government carefully monitors wind speed and, if they have to, they are capable of moving inmates. That's a last resort," said Carl Stuart, spokesman for Management and Training Corp., the company that operates the detention center for the U.S. Bureau of Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
Stuart said he did not have information available to determine whether the domes could withstand hurricane winds.
But developers said in 2006, when the detention center opened, that the domes were built to withstand "hurricane force winds."
Stuart said security concerns prevented him from disclosing the conditions under which officials would order an evacuation of detainees.
Officials would transport detainees to other detention centers in Texas, said Nina Pruneda, a spokeswoman for ICE in San Antonio.
Rio Grande Valley residents who plan to evacuate could travel on Expressway 77 as far north as State Highway 186.
At that point, authorities would detour traffic from the expressway to west SH 186 in Raymondville, said Amy Rodriguez, spokeswoman for the Texas Department of Transportation in Pharr.
But authorities would not use roadblocks to physically shut down Expressway 77 because hurricane winds could turn the barriers into debris, she said.
In Raymondville, city officials in this low-lying area began distributing sandbags at 9 a.m. Monday, said Mary de la Garza, a clerk at City Hall.
Residents can pick up sandbags at City Hall, where officials are limiting six bags per person, she said.
July 9, 2008
Groups seek clarification on evacuation policies
July 9, 2008 - 11:09AM
Jeremy Roebuck
SAN JUAN -- Four community groups sought clarification in federal court Wednesday on whether authorities will conduct immigration checks in the event of a hurricane evacuation.
The activists filed a petition Wednesday asking a judge to order the U.S. Border Patrol to clearly outline its policy on what documents, if any, will be needed to pass through checkpoints should a storm hit the Rio Grande Valley.
"To prevent a Hurricane Katrina-type catastrophe, residents must know what is going to happen when an evacuation is called," said Juanita Valdez-Cox, Texas director of La Union del Pueblo Entero, one of the groups that filed the petition in U.S. District Court in McAllen.
"We must have answers to make sure residents of the Valley find safety."
The issue came under renewed scrutiny during a mock evacuation drill earlier this year in which agents were observed asking the fake evacuees for proof of citizenship or legal residency.
City leaders and migrant rights activists protested, fearing such tactics would deter people from fleeing in advance of a storm and would slow down the overall evacuation process.
"Border Patrol has set in motion the conditions for a perfect storm," said Eric Rodriguez, an attorney for Texas RioGrande Legal Aid, which represents the petitioners. "By pursuing this reckless law enforcement policy, they've created a danger for everyone."
Since then, however, Gov. Rick Perry's office reported it had received assurances that no checks would occur during an evacuation, but federal officials would not confirm that policy.
Michael Chertoff, secretary of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, has only dialed down his department's original rhetoric.
"We're not going to be bogging people down with checks or doing things to delay the rapid movement of people out of the zone of danger," he said during a May news conference.
But lawyers for the community groups pointed out Wednesday that confusion lingers and could affect individual decisions on whether to stay or leave.
"It's already hurricane season," said the South Texas Civil Rights Project's Corinna Spencer-Scheurich. "This could become an issue next week - any day now."
Valdez-Cox's organization, LUPE, joined with three Cameron County community groups - Proyecto Juan Diego, Proyecto Digna and San Felipe Community Church - in filing the petition Wednesday.
Government officials have at least 20 days to respond under federal court guidelines.
Spencer-Scheurich said she hopes a judge will make a ruling within the next month.
____
Jeremy Roebuck covers courts and general assignments for The Monitor. You can reach him at (956) 683-4437.
Jeremy Roebuck
SAN JUAN -- Four community groups sought clarification in federal court Wednesday on whether authorities will conduct immigration checks in the event of a hurricane evacuation.
The activists filed a petition Wednesday asking a judge to order the U.S. Border Patrol to clearly outline its policy on what documents, if any, will be needed to pass through checkpoints should a storm hit the Rio Grande Valley.
"To prevent a Hurricane Katrina-type catastrophe, residents must know what is going to happen when an evacuation is called," said Juanita Valdez-Cox, Texas director of La Union del Pueblo Entero, one of the groups that filed the petition in U.S. District Court in McAllen.
"We must have answers to make sure residents of the Valley find safety."
The issue came under renewed scrutiny during a mock evacuation drill earlier this year in which agents were observed asking the fake evacuees for proof of citizenship or legal residency.
City leaders and migrant rights activists protested, fearing such tactics would deter people from fleeing in advance of a storm and would slow down the overall evacuation process.
"Border Patrol has set in motion the conditions for a perfect storm," said Eric Rodriguez, an attorney for Texas RioGrande Legal Aid, which represents the petitioners. "By pursuing this reckless law enforcement policy, they've created a danger for everyone."
Since then, however, Gov. Rick Perry's office reported it had received assurances that no checks would occur during an evacuation, but federal officials would not confirm that policy.
Michael Chertoff, secretary of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, has only dialed down his department's original rhetoric.
"We're not going to be bogging people down with checks or doing things to delay the rapid movement of people out of the zone of danger," he said during a May news conference.
But lawyers for the community groups pointed out Wednesday that confusion lingers and could affect individual decisions on whether to stay or leave.
"It's already hurricane season," said the South Texas Civil Rights Project's Corinna Spencer-Scheurich. "This could become an issue next week - any day now."
Valdez-Cox's organization, LUPE, joined with three Cameron County community groups - Proyecto Juan Diego, Proyecto Digna and San Felipe Community Church - in filing the petition Wednesday.
Government officials have at least 20 days to respond under federal court guidelines.
Spencer-Scheurich said she hopes a judge will make a ruling within the next month.
____
Jeremy Roebuck covers courts and general assignments for The Monitor. You can reach him at (956) 683-4437.
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