We don't know how many people are still trapped in their houses and threatened with drowning if they don't get out. Some reports have said that people were rescued from houses with water up to their necks. One report about the area north of Houston known as Splendora said there were people inside houses screaming for rescue.
Social media posts have been in the hundreds, if not the thousands, of people calling for rescue. Emails likewise have been sent to various parties calling for rescue.
We don’t know how many boats it will take to get everyone out who is in danger and whether there are enough boats to get the job done.
We don’t know how many areas in and around Houston have reached a critical level of flooding.
Once people are evacuated from their houses, where will they go and how will they be transported? Cars are left behind, there are many emergency shelters available in the area, but from all appearances they will not be enough.
Houston, unlike New Orleans 12 years ago, has moved swiftly into action on many fronts, but we don’t know if those efforts are going to be sufficient to meet the needs.
In general, the situation in Houston appears to be even worse than the fragmentary stories being played out in national and local media. The response is much more immediate and urgent this time, but it doesn’t appear to be enough to meet the needs now and in the coming weeks. More coordination and more planning are required. Meanwhile, the rains will be moving across Louisiana today and tomorrow before the storm heads farther to the east and north.