Montgomery County officials estimate about 4000 homes were flooded, mostly in the southern portion, where Spring Creek serves as the border with Harris County.
Montgomery County Judge Craig Doyal said their big concern right now is getting flood victims into permanent housing. But as for future needs, Doyal wants to partner with Harris County for an extensive study of the region's watersheds, considering all that water eventually flows into Lake Houston.
"If we look at drainage from a regional perspective I think we're way ahead of the game than trying to focus on isolated areas," explained Doyal. "If we can identify the places along each one of those watersheds where retention ponds could be placed, we could keep some of that floodwater out of Harris County."
Another need for Montgomery County is improving its flood warning system. Darren Hess is Director of Homeland Security and Emergency Management.
"We need additional gauges and monitors," said Hess. "And we need that built into a system that will help us to more accurately forecast what kind of true flooding conditions we'll see."
And when you add up the cost of recovery, buyouts, and future mitigation, Judge Doyal expects Montgomery County will need about $1.6 billion. He said they're currently talking to the Texas congressional delegation to try to secure some of those funds.
