August 8th 2024.
It's been a month since Hurricane Beryl struck the Houston community, but the effects are still being felt by residents. According to Prism, on July 8th, the Category 1 storm hit the area, causing over 2.5 million businesses, homes, and schools to lose power. Even now, more than a week after the storm, hundreds of thousands of people are still without power, leaving them cut off from loved ones and facing food shortages and safety concerns.
Unfortunately, the Houston area is no stranger to hurricanes. In 2017, the city was hit by the powerful Category 4 Hurricane Harvey. Wilbert Cooper, a resident of Northwood Manor neighborhood, has experienced 24 years of storms, but he says that Beryl caused the most damage to his home. "This one was different because of all the trees that fell," he shared with the outlet. "We didn't get much rain, just a lot of wind and a lot of fallen trees."
Cooper's neighborhood is made up mostly of Black and elderly residents, and he noted that after Hurricane Beryl, it was the civic club leaders who stepped up to help the community, rather than elected officials. "We haven't seen [Mayor John Whitmire]. We haven't seen them passing through, talking to people," he said. "You can't truly understand the situation unless you talk to the people who are living through it."
The city of Houston has been ranked low on inclusion by a study published by the Urban Institute in 2018. In fact, it ranked 273rd out of 274 cities on overall inclusion, with low scores in economic and racial inclusion. This is something that Alvarex Almendariz, a Ph.D. candidate at Harvard University, has seen firsthand. He was impacted by Hurricane Beryl and spent six days without power. During that time, he worked with his neighbors to power fans and medical equipment using small generators provided by a local disaster recovery nonprofit.
While most of his Black elderly neighbors chose to sit in their air-conditioned cars to escape the heat, Almendariz took on the task of delivering ice to keep their medicines and food chilled. In the process, he noticed that predominantly white neighborhoods in Houston had their power restored much faster than his Southside neighborhood. "Our society is deeply rooted in racism, classism, and ableism," he explained. "If we don't address these systemic issues, disaster recovery will always be a struggle for those who are already struggling to access basic resources like food, water, and shelter."
Local news outlets reported 36 deaths in the Houston area related to Hurricane Beryl, with 16 of those being heat-related. But amidst the devastation, there were also acts of kindness and support from within the community. Civic club leaders, neighbors like Almendariz, and even Houston natives and entertainers like Megan thee Stallion and Bun B stepped up to help those in need. Megan Thee Stallion donated generators to elderly residents without power, while Bun B provided free burgers from his restaurant Trill Burgers.
It's during times of crisis that we see the true spirit of a community come to light, and the Houston community proved that they are resilient and supportive even in the face of a destructive hurricane. Together, they will continue to rebuild and support one another, showing that in the face of adversity, kindness and compassion can make all the difference.
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