N. Texas still short of 40,000 evacuee spots

Remember earlier this year when the Dallas area said it couldn't handle the 40,000 special-needs evacuees who might need shelter there if a major hurricane hits Houston? And remember a little while later, when the area decided maybe it would be able to accommodate them after all? Well, the most recent news is that D/FW has confirmed shelter for about 16,500 evacuees so far, and now it's worried that providing for the other 23,500 could be kinda hard.

"We are well short of the space that the state has asked us to accommodate as a region, and we are faced with either overburdening the participating cities and counties, or forcing our fellow Texans to seek help 'down the road' in other states," stated a June 30 letter from Kenny Shaw, director of the office of emergency management for the city of Dallas, and Robie Robinson, director of the Office of Security and Emergency Management for Dallas County.

Part of the issue seems to be that there are so many cities, both big and small, in North Texas. Dallas and Fort Worth, by far the largest, have pledged 6,000 and 1,000 beds, respectively; Arlington, Plano, Garland and Irving, the next four largest, have promised a combined 1,950. Some cities, like Sachse, aren't pledging any shelter because they don't have any place to house evacuees; Mesquite would be home to an evacuee processing center, so it has said it won't provide any shelter, either. And the 16,500 number doesn't reflect contributions from churches and nonprofits in the area, which officials expect to significantly increase shelter opportunities.

Though people around here have been worried about what will happen if a storm heads toward Houston and the expected 100,000 evacuees hit D/FW (that's the total estimated number; the 40,000 reflects the number of people who will need assistance), officials say it will all be OK. "We have full confidence that when the people of Houston need assistance, their neighbors in Dallas will open up their homes and hearts and take care of them," Rachael Novier, a spokeswoman for Gov. Rick Perry, said. Houstonist calls first dibs on a cot near the bakery at Bread Winners!