City of Arlington sets up storm recovery website for residents needing help
ARLINGTON, Texas - The winter storm left very few homes completely untouched. In fact, almost a week after the storm subsided, thousands of people are still short on food, water and the financial resources to repair what's damaged.
The city of Arlington is trying to address all those needs in one place. It is trying to help and connect people with resources.
Some buildings don't have water and apartment building are still issues. That is leaving some residents unsure where to go for help.
A devastated Brittany Victoria took this cell phone video after returning home to find her Arlington apartment flooded. The single mom and her three young sons had been staying with a friend after they lost power last Monday. She came home three days later to find that a pipe had burst in her bathroom.
"There was water everywhere. And there was water coming out my wall," she said.
The city of Arlington is trying to reach families, like Victoria’s, who need help but aren’t sure where to go.
"We understand too that many families have a long road ahead with damage to your home, with water breaks and so forth," said Arlington Mayor Jeff Williams. "So we wanna help in navigating the repair process."
The mayor is hoping the city’s new storm recovery website connects residents with resources to help with food, water, housing needs, insurance issues and other repairs.
"Our city is committed to making sure that every resident has easy access to clean water," he said.
The site has a map with water distribution locations and 11 water container filling stations around the city.
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Craig Cummings with Arlington Water Utilities says the city is working with apartment complexes to help them speed up the process of fixing broken pipes.
"In some cases, it will take months to get back to normal," he said. "But the city is encouraging the owners, the plumbers, the on-site managers to get these things done as quickly as possible and certainly communicate with your tenants."
Victoria says applied for assistance from FEMA but still has to figure out what her renter’s insurance policy will cover.
"I still haven’t heard anything from management about what they are going to do with my apartment. I’m waiting for that," she said.
In the meantime, Victoria is busy getting her boys ready to return to school next week and looking for anything she can salvage.