God bless you guys down there. Wish I wasn't so far away.

The mayor of Houston, the county judge of Harris County and any other emergency official should be removed from office for the unbelievable decision to "shelter in place". Houston has flooded many times in the past and will continue to flood.

The National Weather Service and the National Hurricane Center were not only projecting a major nurricane, they were warning about about record and catastropic flooding. These projections were made and published several days prior to landfall of Hurricane Harvey.

The argument that the prior evacuation had gone poorly has little to do with this storm. The last evacuation was a poorly planned disaster and should have served as a template for what not to do.There was ample time for an orderly evacuation if officials had started the process when the initial warnings were issued.

The governor of Texas should be applauded for telling everyone to get out of the path of the storm. It was obvious that this was a cataclysmic disaster that would cause unprecedented suffering for millions of people.

If the Mayor had not downplayed the damage potential of this storm, many people would have left Greater Houston and avoided the trauma of helicopter or boat rescue.

I wish a speedy recovery to all the victims of this storm. RIP to the unfortunate souls who lost their lives. And prayers to all who have suffered from this storm.

Perhaps those in-the-know closer to the storm can suggest how to help or donate, considering that some organizations aren't as charitable as one might expect and some items are better to donate than others. Would love to hear some suggestions.

FWIW, a friend of mine from Texas is collecting some items and flying them down Friday in his Mooney. He said the following:

"Update: It sounds like hygiene supplies, baby wipes, diapers, formula and similar are higher priorities than clothing and soft goods right now. Cleaning supplies like bleach, household cleaner, gloves, trash bags, etc are very much needed as well. Bug spray & sunscreen are also useful. Thanks for the response so far!"

Consistently over my life time the AMERICAN RED CROSS has always been the most trustworthy and most beneficial route to donate to people in need.

that's funny after what I saw first hand here in louisisna last year I will never give a dime to red cross. that's been across the board here from most people. but to each their own.

I thought Red Cross would be okay.

How about JJ Watts Houston Flood Relief Fund ?

https://www.youcaring.com/victimsofh...eharvey-915053

I cant say, from what I have read these pop up efforts often end up funneling the money to established relief efforts as they dont have the infrastructure to actually help people. Nothing wrong with raising cash for he good cause as long as it ends up where it's needed and not spent trying to duplicate whats already out there.

They rely on volunteers so you cant expect excellence at every turn. They are still the top rated large human relief organization on charity watch

Red Cross Exec Doesn't Know What Portion Of Donations Go To Harvey Relief : The Two-Way : NPR
As Americans are opening their wallets and donating to relief efforts in the aftermath of Hurricane Harvey, one of the most prominent charities is the American Red Cross. But donors might be surprised to learn the Red Cross won't, or can't say, what percentage of their dollars will go directly to helping the victims of the storm.

Dating back to 2014, NPR and Pro Publica have reported that the Red Cross misstated how donor dollars are spent.

A study released by Sen. Charles Grassley, R-Iowa, concluded that the Red Cross had spent $124 million — one-quarter of the money donors gave for earthquake relief in Haiti in 2010 — on internal expenses.

Hurricane Harvey: How American Red Cross Donations Are Used | Money
Reports obtained by the New York Times detailed at length how the organization had failed to help victims of Hurricane Katrina in 2005. Examples include volunteers arriving with only bleach when people had no food or water, and donations that were of little use. "A truck load of Danish pastries and cinnamon rolls...arrived moldy because they were shipped without refrigeration."

Internal changes after Katrina did little to help the organization's performance. In the wake of a devastating earthquake in Haiti in 2010, the Red Cross raised almost half a billion dollars to help in relief efforts in the country. Five years later, a damning exposé by NPR and ProPublica showed that the organization had done little with the money except squander it. One example: According to the story, the organization had at that point claimed that it had built enough homes to provide shelter for 130,000 people—but it had actually only built six.

same deal here in the greater Baton Rouge area. Told churches they could put their Bibles out and their food so it was too chicken nuggets and a scoop of green beans or two. Will have to see if I can dig that picture up. If people brought food cooked they cannot give it out per their protocol it all got dumped in dumpsters. Was very eye opening.