HOUSTON (AP) — After the floodwaters earlier this month just about swallowed two of the six homes that 60-year-old Tom Madigan owns on the San Jacinto River, he didn’t think twice about whether to fix them. He hired people to help, and they got to work stripping the walls, pulling up flooring and throwing out water-logged furniture. What Madigan didn’t know: The Harris County Flood Control District wants to buy his properties as part of an effort to get people out of dangerously flood-prone areas. Back-to-back storms drenched southeast Texas in late April and early May, causing flash flooding and pushing rivers out of their banks and into low-lying neighborhoods. Officials across the region urged people in vulnerable areas to evacuate. Like Madigan’s, some places that were inundated along the San Jacinto in Harris County have flooded repeatedly. And for nearly 30 years, the flood control district has been trying to clear out homes around the river by paying property owners to move, then returning the lots to nature. |
Man fleeing cops in western Michigan dies after unmarked cruiser hits himQuentin Tarantino SCRAPS plans for his final film The Movie Critic which had Brad Pitt set to starMissouri lawmakers back big expansion of lowQuentin Tarantino SCRAPS plans for his final film The Movie Critic which had Brad Pitt set to starLawsuit filed over new Kentucky law aimed at curbing youth vapingKenya’s military chief dies in a helicopter crashJustice Department ramps up efforts to reduce violent crime with gun intel centerGunman shot himself and wasn't killed by officer, chief saysColumbia University: Police arrest protesters who had set up proOlivia Dunne congratulates LSU teammate on winning top award ahead of semifinals meet