Fort Worth prepares for Gulf Coast evacuees fleeing Hurricane Laura amid coronavirus
Dallas-Fort Worth could be hosting at least 800 evacuees from the Gulf Coast as Hurricane Laura barrels toward Texas and Louisiana — no small endeavor in the age of the novel coronavirus.
Two hotels have been prepared to take evacuees, many of whom are already on buses headed for North Texas, said Fort Worth Fire Department spokesman Mike Drivdahl. The City Council on Tuesday night issued a 60-day disaster declaration, opening the door for both refugees and state disaster funding. Gov. Greg Abbott added Tarrant County to the state’s disaster declaration Wednesday.
The hotels, each with 200 rooms, will provide families fleeing Hurricane Laura, now a Category 4 storm, with socially distanced space.
In the past, the city has made room available the the Fort Worth Convention Center or at the Will Rogers complex with cots packed into arena floors. That won’t work during a pandemic, Drivdahl said, so the city reached out to hotels for space.
It will be a much better situation than sleeping in a crowded arena, and may become the standard for how Fort Worth hosts evacuees in the future, he said, calling it “more compassionate.”
“I cannot imagine what it would feel like to get on bus and not know if the next time I saw my house it’d be gone,” he said. “We want to show them we care and do whatever we can to make them feel comfortable in Fort Worth.”
The is not releasing which hotels are taking evacuees, but he said more may open if needed.
Evacuees are first sent to Mesquite. Depending on available space they may be sent to Fort Worth or Dallas. San Antonio and Austin have also received evacuees.
Texas cities on the Gulf Coast have already issued mandatory evacuation orders and official evacuation routes. A full list of evacuation orders can be found at gov.texas.gov/hurricane.
Two evacuation centers have been open in the Dallas-Fort Worth area since Tuesday night. Evacuees coming to Fort Worth are first sent to Mesquite and then will travel here or to Dallas, depending on available space.
Fort Worth is expecting 20 buses each with 20 passengers Wednesday evening followed by another group of 20 buses by midnight, Drivdhal said. The state has said protective equipment, like face masks, and sanitizing materials, have been placed on buses.
Passengers will be screened for coronavirus symptoms, and the city is making testing and medical care available at each hospital.
In addition to providing shelter, Fort Worth Fire sent 17 firefighters to the coast along with a brand new high-profile truck used for water rescues. Drivdhal said the department received the truck Tuesday and sent it straight to the Houston area. Another 20 firefighters may be on coast by mid-day Thursday.
This story was originally published August 26, 2020 at 4:55 PM.
