Selecting his words carefully, Galveston County’s coordinator of emergency management characterized the county’s first ever-mandatory hurricane evacuation.
Almost an hour into the evacuation Elliot Jennings said he was “pleased” in how the mass exodus from the county was going.
“Honestly from our perspective we are pleased with the response to the early evacuation,” said Jennings. “Traffic has been pretty heavy, but it is moving.”
Elliott said he was please mainly because it appeared most of the county’s residents paid attention to calls to get out as a very strong Hurricane Rita moved its way across the Gulf of Mexico. As of 7:30 p.m. the National Weather Service has classified the Category 5 storm as the third strongest hurricane ever recorded.
While those who were stuck on Interstate 45, state Highway 146 and other northbound roadways would beg to differ, Elliott said the long road trips were actually factored into the state’s plan to clear out the more than 250,000 people from Galveston County.
“All along the plan has been what would normally be a two hour drive to Huntsville would take about six hours at best,” he said. “It may take a while, but at least you’ll be safe.”
Still, the early going, even during the so-called voluntary evacuation period the trip was downright horrible for many drivers.
By 11:30 a.m., traffic on the I-45 corridor was moving painfully slow as thousands rushed to get themselves, their pets and a few belongings out of Hurricane Rita’s way.
In some areas, especially between Texas City and Clear Lake, the feeder roads were as congested as the highway, with speeds averaging 10 mph.
People hauled boats, personal watercraft and trailers. Many also chose to drive moving vans or trucks.
A green Toyota pickup carried four mattresses tightly secured in its bed. A set of fishing rods dangled from the bed of another pickup, while another driver loaded his truck with a washer and a dryer, a black leather couch and two mattresses.
Anticipating widespread flooding, somebody even carried to dry land what looked like an antique rocking chair strapped back of their truck.
Three children younger than 10 sitting in the back of a car could be seen playing with a caged canary. Two older girls scribbled on the window of a dirty van.
Some vehicles were so packed with duffel bags, suitcases, laundry baskets full of supplies or just piles of clothes and items crammed in the back seat that it was hard to spot the driver and passengers inside. Among those drivers who could be spotted, several seemed to be killing time talking on their cell phones.
Maybe it was boredom that caused a few drivers to attempt to cut in traffic. Overall, however, the evacuation proceeded smoothly.
From their cars, drivers stuck in traffic could see boarded-up stores, including Academy and Aaron’s Furniture on I-45 and FM 518 in League City. Nearby, a marquee at Sudie’s restaurant read, “Gone Fishing in Dallas.”
And given the circumstances, the electronic billboard at Grace Community Church offering, “Help and Hope for Katrina Victims” may have looked a little ironic to some.
In Webster, the parking lots of Bally Total Fitness and Barnes & Noble sat empty. Unlike these, the parking lot at Home Depot on I-45 and Bay Area Boulevard had several cars — and people kept coming in and out.
For Galveston resident Jose Vallejo and his family, the long wait in traffic was not at all pleasing either.
“At this rate we will be here when the storm hits,” he shouted from his car packed with his family’s belongings while his wife, mother and children followed in a car behind along the feeder road of I-45 just north of Dickinson. “We are trying to get to my brother’s in Dallas. I hope we beat the storm.”
But two hours into the first phase of the mandatory evacuation Jennings said it appeared traffic was easing somewhat.
But that estimated six hours was more like 11 hours for many. Ashley Harris, her mother Ann Murphy-Harris along with their dog and two cats were still stuck in traffic on I-45 just south of Conroe at 11:30 p.m. Wednesday — they left Galveston at 12:30 p.m.
“This is horrible,” said Harris. “We never imagined we would be on the road this long, no way. It’s getting crazy out here, people are driving off the road and into the grass (medians) and making their own lanes.”
The road would continue to be long for Harris and her passengers as they tried to make their way to Waco.
As the night wore on, traffic conditions in the county though appeared to improve significantly to the point that Galveston County Sheriff’s deputies openly talked of having to look hard to find cars on the road. That was expected to change somewhat when the second wave of evacuations — Zone B of the county that includes Texas City, Dickinson, La Marque and Hitchcock — got underway at 2 a.m.
The third wave of the evacuation for the northern reaches of the county is scheduled to begin at noon today.
Jennings admitted that television images showing the snarled traffic might convince some to stay put.
“This is always the case, we have people tell us this is what happened last time (prior to Hurricane Alicia in 1983), but I really think with the mandatory evacuation plan in place it will move along better,” he said.
That plan which took effect at 6 p.m. basically turned I-45 and state Highways 146 and 6 into expressways to the various hurricane evacuation shelters north of Houston.
Still, Jennings said traffic snarls beat the alternative.
“Several hours on the road or 12 hours in a very dangerous storm I think the time in the car is better,” he said.
Buses Move Thousands
Texas City Emergency Management Coordinator Bruce Clawson said his city moved more than 500 people out of the city Wednesday morning. Even with advance warning that the buses would pull out by noon, some didn’t get the message.
Still, Clawson had things covered.
“We anticipated there would be some people who failed to take action as we called for,” he said. “But we had three buses held back just in case. So those who did call we told them the last bus out of the city left at 6 p.m. (Wednesday).”
Clawson was like Elliot in that he was reserved in his comments on the apparent early success of the evacuation plan. He did say that seeing the plan implemented after several tabletop-planning sessions before the hurricane season began did convince him the effort was worth it.
In La Marque, Emergency Management Coordinator Lee Lockwood was just as pleased with the effort to get people out of town.
He said around 100 people loaded up on buses at La Marque High School and at the school district’s football stadium and were headed to Huntsville. Like Clawson, there were some stragglers.
“We have one bus that will take folks out of town at midnight for one last run,” said Lockwood. “But that is the last ditch effort on that end.”
Lockwood said the city also arranged for 12 people to be transported by ambulance out of the Rita’s possible path through the county.
“All in all I think it has worked much like we had planned and hoped,” said Lockwood. “I am really thinking a lot of people got out early like we suggested.”
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Zone B traffic controls shifted into place at 2 a.m. on Thursday. The cities and evacuation routes to take.
La Marque and Texas City, Interstate 45 and state Highway 146.
Dickinson, Interstate 45.
Hitchcock, state Highway 6.
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Zone C traffic controls will shift into place at noon today.
