Updated analysis shows nearly half of Houston homes damaged in Harvey
HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) -- Nearly half of all the homes in Houston had some kind of damage from Hurricane Harvey, and of those damaged, only 40 percent were in a floodplain, according to new data released Thursday by the city of Houston.
Updated estimates from the Houston Housing Department show 209,422 of the city's 501,721 homes had some kind of damage from the storm, whether by flooding or some other kind of storm damage.
Half of housing victims were renters.
Of those that did have water inside the home, 59.4 percent weren't in any floodplain, the data shows.
The new data comes as the department looks to see what need still exists financially. A team of scientists, flood engineers and housing staff conducted the assessment over the last eight months, the department said.
"Major disasters have hit Houston five times in the last three years," Mayor Sylvester Turner said in a written statement. "If we chronically undercount the damage from these storms, then we're going to be chronically under-resourced for recovery. I'm committed to continuing to fight for the resources Houston needs to build forward into a more resilient and equitable city."
While there has been nearly $4 billion in insurance claims and aid has come into the city, there is still a need of at least $15 billion, the data shows.
