RIDE IT OUT
That’s what Harlingen police say about the storm.
“Ride the storm out at home,” police Sgt. Larry Moore said yesterday.
“It may still be very dangerous outside.”
Moore said everyone should have prepared for what could happen after the storm. Residents should stay off the road if possible and stay away from flooded areas.
“If we have standing water and you don’t know how deep it is, don’t go try and drive through it or walk through it,” Moore said. “There may be debris under that water.”
He said people can get trapped in their cars and vehicles can stall out in the water. Some areas of Harlingen are lower than others and more prone to flooding.
“People just need to be cautious if they are going to be out driving around,” Moore said. “I would encourage people during the main part of the storm to stay home.”
IF YOU HAVE TO DRIVE
For those still wanting to head out of town, TxDOT cautions drivers to be careful with debris and other drivers.
“If you feel you are not safe, make sure you have a plan and you can go somewhere that you feel your family is safe,” public information officer Octavio Saenz said.
Seanz recommended that you be prepared, like a Boy Scout, and travel with enough supplies.
“Impatience and selfishness is what gets us all in trouble,” Saenz said. “If we plan and we are respectful on the road, we will all be safe.”
STAY ALERT
That’s the most important advice given by emergency management coordinators.
You need to stay away from downed power lines and downed trees.
“If we get really strong winds and we have power lines down, we don’t want people walking on those power lines,” said Tom Hushen, emergency management coordinator for Cameron County.
“If you have downed power lines, you definitely need to notify your police department.”
The same goes for downed trees.
“Even though the police will be out there looking, we may miss something,” Hushen said.
“So we do need the eyes of the citizens to let us know what’s going on, also.”
Also be aware that the effects of a hurricane can come in waves, he said.
“One minute, we’ll have a pretty strong storm and then it might go away,” he said. But then, the next band of the storm could pass through the area.
“People need to be vigilant,” he said.
“If it does look bad, stay in doors, stay at work, wherever you are.”
DRIVING TIPS
Be cautious when traveling through flood-prone areas. Flash floods can come rapidly and unexpectedly — within a few minutes or hours of excessive rainfall.
Turn on your headlights and slow down, allowing extra distance for braking.
Never attempt to drive through flooded roadways. Water covering roadways may hide washed-out bridges or gouged-out roadbeds.
Even in relatively shallow water, tires can act as flotation devices, lifting up big vehicles and sending them downstream. It takes only two feet of water to float a 3,000-pound car.
Source: Texas Department of Transportation
IF THE POWER GOES OUT
AEP Texas cannot work on restoration of power until after the storm passes.
During the storm, customers are asked not to call the AEP Customer Solution Center except to report downed power lines and other situations that could pose a safety threat.
To report a fallen power line or utility pole, call 1-866-223-8508. All power lines should be considered energized and dangerous.
Because of the likelihood that the storm will cause many lines to fall, customers are asked to keep their children and pets inside during and after the storm.
Residents can track progress on the restoration effort by visiting the outage area at www.aeptexas.com.
CLOSED TODAY
All Harlingen schools. HCISD has canceled all school and athletic related events. Classes will resume on Monday.
TSTC Harlingen campus will be closed today.
All Brownsville schools and operations
Texas Southmost College will be closed through Sunday. TSC will reopen on Monday for first day of fall semester.
Los Fresnos CISD has cancelled classes for Friday. All offices will also be closed. Friday’s Los Fresnos-PSJA North football scrimmage at Leo Aguilar Memorial Stadium has been canceled. The SAT scheduled Saturday at Los Fresnos High School has been rescheduled for Sept. 9.
South Texas College will close all of its campuses Friday through Sunday.
The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley is closing all campuses and locations Friday, August 25, and Saturday, August 26. Emergency and essential personnel will remain on duty as needed. In addition, all UTRGV events scheduled for Friday and Saturday will be cancelled and/or postponed. The campus will reopen Monday, August 28, and all services will resume for the first day of class.
IDEA Schools will close all Brownsville and San Benito campuses on Friday.
The Department of Public Safety is closing all driver license offices in Cameron County for the remainder of today and all day on Friday.
All Cameron County offices will be closed on Friday and will reopen on Monday.
The U.S. federal courthouse in Brownsville will be closed on Friday.
The Catholic Diocese of Brownsville will close all of its schools valleywide on Friday.
Sea Turtle Inc. in both South Padre Island and Corpus Christi will shut down Friday and is expected to reopen to the public at 10 a.m. Saturday.
The 12th annual Fishing for Hope tournament scheduled for Saturday at Louie’s Backyard on South Padre Island has been postponed until Oct. 20-21 due to Tropical Storm Harvey. For more information, call (956) 362-3140.
In Port Isabel, Amigos del Valle is canceled for Friday. The Port Isabel Library, Port Isabel Chamber of Commerce, Museums of Port Isabel and Port Isabel Event Center are closed until Monday, August 28th.
Isabel Y. Garcia Animal Shelter will close today at 4:00 pm. Port Isabel City Hall is open. Fire, Police and EMS will be in operation throughout the storm.”
