After years of waiting, Harvey survivors move closer to compensation

Added: 2026-05-14

[00:00:00]Nearly 9 years after thousands of homeowners in West Houston were flooded during Hurricane Harvey, they say they're finally getting some justice.

[00:00:07]>> Last month, a judge ruled homes downstream from the Barker and Addicks dams were intentionally flooded by the government during the storm. The court found the dams were never at risk of failure as some had claimed. Here's Matt Dougherty.

[00:00:20]I'm 91. Wow, 91. Wow, that's pretty good. Shirley Azell has lived on Heatherfield Drive the longest.

[00:00:27]>> Well, I will be 91 in a couple months.

[00:00:30]Her house at the end of the cul-de-sac is where she and her husband decided to raise their family. 52 years later, Ms. Shirley is the only one left.

[00:00:39]>> When's your birthday?

[00:00:40]July 8th. And she was the only one that August night back in 2017 when the rain that had been falling for days just wouldn't quit. It got up to the deck and then it receded. So, I felt comfortable.

[00:00:54]It's over.

[00:00:56]But it wasn't. Ms. Shirley was fast asleep when water from the bayou returned, swallowing up her backyard and spilling into her home. They forgot about >> [laughter] >> play over here. In the middle of the night, her neighbors grabbed their pets and whatever else they could carry in their hands. And water started coming in under the front doorway.

[00:01:17]And he said, "Mom, we got to go." Sally Smith, who lives at the other end of the block, was also in bed when it happened.

[00:01:23]And I was packed in a minute, grabbed the dog, went downstairs, and it was at least up to my waist.

[00:01:30]At the time, officials said the water had to be released in order to save the dams. If the dams failed, they claimed it would have been a catastrophe and thousands of Houstonians would have been killed. They knew in advance that there was no danger. Richard Mithoff is the attorney representing the more than 500 homeowners in a class action lawsuit against the federal government. All of these homes were flooded needlessly.

[00:01:55]Last month, a judge agreed. It turned out the dams, which were built in the 1940s during World War II, came with instructions. The call was dictated by the terms of the manual. Once the water in the dams reached a certain level, the instructions directed the engineers to start releasing water. Testimony during the trial made it clear the dams were structurally sound throughout the hurricane and never at risk of failure.

[00:02:21]And that was a turning point in the trial when they admitted that there was absolutely no threat, no threat at all to to the integrity of the dam. Midoff says government documents revealed the Corps's detailed plan to flood the area downstream of the dams. By house, by block, and they knew in advance exactly which homes were going to flood. But that's the thing that probably upsets me the most is that they had that information and they didn't share it with anybody.

[00:02:48]>> My Uncle Doug and Aunt Maureen are among the many downstream residents who lost their home. We're waiting for the chest-deep swirling water in the middle of the flood, carrying a dog and a couple of other belongings we had. If we would have any warning that this was going to happen, that, you know, we could have evacuated safely. Doug and Maureen eventually made it out of the neighborhood on an airboat. This is a picture of my uncle standing outside of his front door. I had about 4 and 1/2 ft of water in my house for 2 weeks.

[00:03:17]Uh my house was destroyed.

[00:03:19]>> Yeah, Ron, we're standing at one of the entrances to one of the subdivisions here in Nottingham Forest. I was there back in 2017 as residents were returning to their homes. We would have bought flood insurance if we thought we were in a flood plain. Luckily, my aunt and uncle had flood insurance, which helped them build a new house 2 years later.

[00:03:36]However, most of the downstream residents did not. Their homes had never flooded before and they weren't located in a flood plain. Most importantly, they were never told the government had a worst-case scenario plan that involved flooding their homes. Biggest question I have is what what happens next. Now that the federal government has been found liable for the damages caused from releasing water from the dams, the judge will decide how much. It's real shame that a number of people unfortunately won't live long enough to see the result. For a case that's already taken years to get to this point, nobody can say for certain how much longer it will take for the residents to be made whole. I knew that I'd make it through somehow. The Lord was in control and he has blessed me all my life, so he'd take care of me.

[00:04:26]Ms. Shirley's son showed up that first night of the flood while she was still sleeping and got her to safety. For the next year she lived with her daughter while her home was rebuilt. The thought of moving somewhere else never crossed her mind. A lot of people advised me to do that.

[00:04:45]But I didn't do it because this is my home. In West Houston, I'm Matt Dougherty, KHOU 11 News.