On the Ground in the Rio Grande Valley

Last week, I spent some time speaking with residents of the Rio Grande Valley of south Texas, where people were waiting out Hurricane Dolly.

Dolly arrived with severe rain and wind, destroying or damaging hundreds of homes in the area and forcing residents to evacuate. (Later, Texas Governor Rick Perry declared 14 south Texas counties disaster areas as a result of the storm.)

The big question on everyone's mind as the storm approached was whether the levees would hold.

The levees have needed repairs since 2007, and experts predicted if the levees failed, flooding could have devastated more families than were impacted by Katrina. That's why local groups have been asking for resources to repair the levees -- to avoid an instant replay of New Orleans.

Just two weeks ago, local delegates went to Washington but were told they won’t get the needed $125 million for repairs any time soon. (Meanwhile, the Department of Homeland Security is still pushing ahead to construct the border wall to the tune in the billions.)

Luckily, the levees held. But hurricane season isn’t over yet, and Dolly's torrential rains have caused flooding in various parts of the region.

Working families have felt the effects of Dolly acutely, with many who live in mobile homes or poorly constructed housing have suffered the worst damage.

Now, while flood waters slowly recede, many families are still without electricity and are being exposed to disease.

Yet the storm has not dampened the resolve of more than 500 families in the area who plan to mobilize in Birmingham for the National Family Convention in September. In spite of the hurricane, families are cleaning up this week, trying to resume their lives -- and committed to moving forward.

Peter Bloch Garcia is a program officer for the Marguerite Casey Foundation.

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