Thirty-two domestic violence programs in Texas were impacted by Hurricane Harvey. The Family Services Women and Children’s Shelter was closed for 16 days and is still undergoing lots of repairs.
Countless survivors – both those in shelter, and those without – face unique vulnerabilities during this disaster. For those who have fled abuse in their homes to seek safety, the trauma of leaving is now compounded by the trauma of dealing with uncertainty, devastation, and disruption from the disaster.
Recently, a reporter from Public Radio International paid us a visit to hear what it’s like to be in the middle of a crisis and then have to deal with a natural disaster. Please listen to her piece here:
One part of Ann’s interview that didn’t make the final story was particularly striking.
She said that she began getting calls on her cell phone about being on TV. She had no idea that while being evacuated from the flooding Civic Center shelter (the first place she went after we closed and evacuated), CNN caught her on camera as she and her children boarded a bus. They live broadcast her face all over the country – AND included the bus’s destination in the story.
By luck or the grace of god, that bus never reached its planned destination. The water over I-10 was too high so instead Ann and her family were flown to another city confidentially.
Ann’s story is an incredible one. We’ll tell you more about as her recovery unfolds in the coming weeks and months.