In The News

CONROE, TX – Last week, Hurricane Harvey struck the Texas Coast with devastating flooding and winds. However, just a few days after it made impact with Texas, Harvey went back into the Gulf and made a second landfall affecting Southeast Texas and Louisiana. This unusual storm path caught many people who were not prepared for the storm off-guard, and thusly subjected to the historic flooding created by Harvey.

In Montgomery County, Hurricane Harvey left many homes destroyed and thousands of people displaced due to the historic flooding. Shelters and donation centers were set up across the county and an outreach for supplies began. Donations almost immediately began coming into the various shelters from both regional and out-of-state sources. Water, clothing, and bedding quickly piled up in several Donation Centers, and supplies were distributed as fast as possible to those in need.

In order to make sure the incoming resources were given out where they were needed, Montgomery County Treasurer Stephanne Davenport began publishing lists of the needed supplies in each of the distribution centers in Montgomery County on social media and also volunteered.

However, while Montgomery County was working into its recovery process, Jefferson and Orange Counties were stranded for supplies, specifically, water. Harvey caused so much damage in Jefferson and Orange counties that water was unavailable to most residents of Beaumont, Texas.

News of the water shortage in Beaumont and Orange quickly spread in the region, motivating many organizations and volunteers to assist in delivering water where it was most needed in Jefferson and Orange counties.

Stephanne Davenport worked to organize the Aviators Helping South Texas organization to bring in out-of-state donated supplies to the Houston area. A handful of private pilots and planes began bringing supplies by air to the Conroe-North Houston Regional Airport. The Conroe-North Houston Regional Airport was the only airport that remained operational throughout the storm in this entire region, and consequently became the base for air and military operations.

What began as pilots bringing supplies into Montgomery County became a second mission to take water to Beaumont and Orange. Over 500,000 pounds of water were airlifted to Jefferson and Orange counties in the course of three days with the assistance of the U.S. Army Reserves.

The water brought into the airport for distribution to Beaumont and Orange came from a combination of local distribution centers and Food Banks coordinated by County Treasurer Stephanne Davenport. Originally, the bottled water came from the Pollok Distribution Center and Interfaith of The Woodlands, as well as the United Methodist Church and other local donations. Missy Herndon, President and CEO of Interfaith of The Woodlands, worked closely with Davenport in order to coordinate the number of pallets of bottled water needed at the airport in order to fill the next plane. Pick-up trucks began hauling pallets of water to the airport, which were then loaded onto private planes and helicopters and taken to Beaumont.

Next, Stephanne Davenport called Allison Hulett, President and CEO of the Montgomery County Food Bank, asking for water to be sent to Beaumont and Orange. Hulett then reached out to the Harris County Food Bank to determine just how much water she could donate to Beaumont. Montgomery County Judge Craig Doyal and Harris County Judge Ed Emmett worked together to help move close to 200,000 pounds of water out of Harris County into Montgomery County.

After Hulett received confirmation from the Harris County Food Bank that any water given to the airport effort could be replaced with incoming shipments, she told Davenport that she could come get as much water as needed for the operation. Precinct 4 Justice of the Peace James Metts mobilized his 18-wheeler along with a volunteer fleet of large trucks to go pick-up water from the Montgomery County Food Bank and bring it back to the Conroe Airport. These fleets and volunteers were able to move another 300,000 pounds of water, for a total of 500,000 pounds of water staged at the airport.

Hulett thanked everyone involved who stepped up so quickly to meet the needs of the region. “This is not something that just organized right beforehand and comes together super easy, it takes teamwork. It takes teamwork, and phone calls, and partnerships, and friendships to pull all of this together.”

Davenport was extremely pleased at the fact everyone was able to come together and gather the large amount of bottled water needed for this operation. Davenport stated, “It didn’t matter what the call was, what the need was, everyone in the community stepped up and said, ‘How can I help, and where do you need me?’”

Major Adam Stanley, who was in charge of the military operation, explained the operation was a huge success, and he was very impressed with the amount of cooperation and organization from the county and citizens during the effort. Major Stanley said he has never before seen this kind of response and support anywhere.

“18 years in the army, multiple combat deployments, along with many of the people here today, I can stand here and tell you that this is the most important operation I have been a part of,” said Major Stanley. “To see a community come together, to see our brothers and sisters in arms come together, leave politics and everything else aside to do what’s right and help people that are suffering is no small feat.”

U.S. Congressman Kevin Brady, who helped secure the helicopter squadron and Army Reserves at the Conroe Airport for the operation, was very thankful of all of the volunteers, county officials, and military reserves who made the operation possible. Brady stated, “This is a combination of volunteers who care, local leaders who are all in, and Army Reserves who leave their element and leave their job to help save us.”

County, state, and military officials were all thanked for their hard work in securing transportation from Montgomery County to Beaumont and Orange. Stephanne Davenport also thanked the countless, dedicated volunteers who gave their time to haul and donate water to the airport, as well as bring food to those who were working to ensure supplies got where they were needed most in the region. Many organizations and businesses also worked to ensure transportation was available to get the water to the Conroe Airport, and also to ensure everyone was well fed throughout the operation.

Chad Herdrich, owner of General Aviation Jet Services, was also a big help in ensuring the operation was a success. Davenport thanked Herdrich and his wife for the use of their airport facilities, their hospitality, and providing assistance to the volunteers and military personnel on the base.

All those involved in the operation agreed it was unlike anything they had ever seen before. The sheer number of volunteers, organizations, businesses, county officials, and military personnel that worked to move water where it was needed most in the region was awe-inspiring and unbelievable. Stephanne Davenport commented that the operation only further proved that Montgomery County is, “the greatest county, in the greatest state, in the greatest nation.”

CLICK HERE for Full Video of Airport Press Conference.