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My Nephews Are Without a Home

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***HELP!*** My nephews and sister are in need!  They are without a home.  Their home in the Canyon Gate subdivision in Fort Bend County is submerged.  It was drowned when the Barker Reservoir purposely flooded areas downstream to relieve pressure caused by rising waters from Hurricane Harvey.  



Houston dam spills over for the first time in history, overwhelmed by Harvey rainfall

Canyon Gate residents were not forewarned of this event, told, or ordered to evacuate by either Fort Bend or Harris county until the very last minute.  There was almost no time to evacuate and now they are not allowed back into their homes -- not even to salvage their treasured memories or belongings -- because their homes are still under water.  Some were told it could be three months before they are allowed into the neighborhood.  

***UPDATE*** Residents were allowed in the neighborhood 8 days after the area was deliberately flooded from Barker Reservoir.  It took my sister an hour and a half by foot to reach her home from the entrance of the neighborhood as that area remained impassable by vehicles.   

***UPDATE*** With the generosity and kindness of BAPS Charities volunteers, my sister's house was gutted 12 days after the area was deliberatly flooded from Barker Reservoir.  

To add insult to injury, people who bought homes in these communities were told the area was not in a flood zone. As a result, they were not advised to buy flood insurance in case this happened or warned of this danger.

If you personally know my nephews and my sister, Mimi, you know that they are an extremely caring and giving family.  Mimi is a single mother who's always tried to provide for her children.  And now, she's in an extremely terrible situation.  We don't know what the outcome of her home will be, but  she now needs help to raise funds to rebuild or find a new place to live.  I honestly don't know if $20,000 is sufficient for a downpayment or house repair but any help she can get would be extremely appreciated. All funds raised will be directed to her.

The Street Where My Nephews Used to Live

As for my nephews, they are currently staying at my house.  Their school is also under water.  We try keeping them distracted but they continue to be reminded by the grim images of the underwater neighborhoods they see on TV.  One of them says to me, "we are homeless." Then, I remind them that material things don't matter; that the most important thing they have is their lives and each other. 

BARKER RESERVOIR MAKES HEADLINES:

NATIONAL
https://www.dallasnews.com/news/harvey/2017/09/02/flood-waters-recede-houston-homeowners-find-nature-blame

http://abcnews.go.com/WNT/video/reservoirs-dams-tremendous-strain-49476703 

http://www.slate.com/blogs/moneybox/2017/08/28/what_happened_to_the_reservoirs_that_were_supposed_to_protect_downtown_houston.html 

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/post-nation/wp/2017/08/28/houston-releases-water-from-two-dams-in-attempt-to-prevent-uncontrolled-overflow/?utm_term=.5d71ead3c41b 


LOCAL
http://www.houstonchronicle.com/news/houston-texas/houston/article/Many-homeowners-unaware-they-lived-in-reservoir-12231188.php#photo-14010398

https://www.click2houston.com/news/meeting-gets-heated-over-flooding-concerns-from-barker-reservoir-release

http://cw39.com/2017/09/23/meeting-of-west-houston-residents-flooded-by-reservoir-release-leaves-uncertainty-for-recovery/

http://abc13.com/flooding-continues-as-reservoir-surpasses-capacity/2348619/ 

http://www.houstonchronicle.com/local/gray-matters/article/How-the-Barker-and-Addicks-dams-work-12171719.php

http://www.houstonpress.com/news/addicks-and-barker-releases-to-flood-houston-homes-on-buffalo-bayou-for-months-to-come-9751411 

http://www.khou.com/weather/hurricanes/hurricane-harvey/controlled-release-of-barker-addicks-reservoirs-to-impact-thousands/468348109

https://www.click2houston.com/news/water-to-be-released-from-addicks-barker-reservoirs

http://www.houstonpress.com/news/how-addicks-and-barker-reservoirs-are-handling-tropical-storm-harvey-9740819 


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*** ¡AYUDA! *** Mis sobrinos y mi hermana están en necesidad!  Están sin hogar.  Su hogar en la subdivisión de Canyon Gate en el condado de Fort Bend está sumergido.  Se sumergió cuando el embalse de Barker deliberadamente inundó las áreas de su vecindario para aliviar la presión causada por el aumento de las aguas del huracán Harvey. 

Los residentes de Canyon Gate no fueron advertidos de este evento, o ordenados a evacuar por las autoridades del condade de Fort Bend o Harris hasta el último minuto. Casi no había tiempo para evacuar y ahora no se les permite regresar a sus hogares - ni siquiera para salvar sus valiosos recuerdos o pertenencias - porque sus casas todavía están bajo agua.  A algunos se les dijo que podrían pasar tres meses antes de que se les permitiera entrar en el vecindario. 

*** ACTUALIZACIÓN*** Los residentes fueron permitidos en el vecinadario 8 días después de que el área fue deliberadamente inundada por el embalse de Barker.  A mi hermana le llevó una hora y media a pie llegar a su casa desde la entrada del vecindario, ya que esa zona seguía siendo intransitable por los vehículos.

*** ACTUALIZACIÓN *** Con la generosidad y amabilidad de los voluntarios de Caridades BAPS, la casa de mi hermana fue eviscerada 12 días después de que el área fue inundada deliberadamente por el embalse de Barker.

Para añadir insulto a las lesiones, la gente que compró casas en estas comunidades se les dijo que el área no estaba en una zona de inundación.  Como resultado, no se les aconsejó comprar un seguro de inundación en caso de que esto sucediera o se advirtiera de este peligro. 

Si conocen personalmente a mis sobrinos y mi hermana, Mimi, saben que son una familia extremadamente cariñosa y generosa.  Mimi es una madre soltera que siempre ha tratado de proveer a sus hijos. Y ahora, ella está en una situación extremadamente terrible.  No sabemos cuál será el resultado de su hogar, pero ahora necesita ayuda para recaudar fondos para reconstruir o encontrar un nuevo lugar para vivir.  Sinceramente, no sé si $ 20.000 es suficiente para un pago inicial, pero cualquier ayuda que pueda obtener sería muy apreciada.  Todo el recaudo será dirigido a ella.

En cuanto a mis sobrinos, actualmente se están quedando en mi casa. Su escuela también está bajo el agua. Tratamos de mantenerlos distraídos, pero siguen siendo recordados por las sombrías imágenes de los barrios submarinos que ven en la televisión.  Uno de ellos me dice: "estamos sin hogar".  Entonces, les recuerdo que las cosas materiales no importan; Que lo más importante que tienen es sus vidas y el uno al otro.

- Henry Yau
Houston, TX
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    • $200 
    • 7 yrs
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Henry Yau
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Houston, TX

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