Katy Community Rallies to Support Each Other; Many Residents Remain in the Dark

KATY MAGAZINE NEWS

July 11, 2024

By Natalie Cook Clark

Katy is still recovering after category 1 Hurricane Beryl moved through the city on Monday. Many residents and businesses are still waiting for power. Here's how to help and where to find help in Katy.

Katy First United Methodist Church

Many Katy Residents Start Day 4 with No Power

It's been four days sine Hurricane Beryl left many residents and businesses in the dark. While some have gotten power back, many still wait. In addition to the power outages, Katy families are dealing with poor cell service and widespread internet disruptions.

Katy Strong

"I know our friends and neighbors without power are suffering in this heat, please take precautions and utilize the cooling centers being provided by churches and public entities," says Chris Harris, City of Katy Mayor Pro Tem.

City of Katy Mayor Dusty Thiele wants to remind residents to follow this city's official website and social media pages for the latest updates.

Yesterday CenterPoint hit their goal of restoring power to a million residents. This helped many Katy residents and businesses. Along with power being restored to some Katy neighborhoods, Katy Mills Mall and LeCenterra got their power back. Still for those waiting this news isn’t helpful and the Katy area remains in a heat advisory.

Harris says that the city is in communication with officials and recieving the same public updates, and the power provider is aware of the outages.

"Please check on your neighbors and Katy always pulls through in tough times," says Harris.

Katy Cooling Centers

A Mobile Cooling Center will be available at the Merrell Center (west side) today, July 11th, for anyone without power needing to cool off.

Katy First United Methodist Church is currently hosting around 70 Red Cross response personnel. The church is also welcoming anyone who needs to cool-off or charge devices. If you need this service, see the church office from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. or call 281-391-2121.  

Katy Mills Mall is a good place where Katy families can go get cool, find entertainment, and shop. Still, some businesses may be operating by a different schedule so residents should always check information before heading out.

Play Out of the Heat

Katy Magazine is continuing to update their story about indoor Katy play places. See who is open. Many places also offer WIFI in addition to a place where families can stay cool while having fun.

Firethorne, Woodcreek Reserve, Creekside Ranch, Anserra, Woodcreek Estates, parts of Cinco Ranch such as Greenway Village, Falcon Ranch and more Katy area neighborhoods are still without power.

Many are blessed with good friends who have welcomed them. Families with children have relocated to out of Katy to relative’s homes with power. Authorities are saying that the power outages from Hurricane Beryl are historic. But Katy organizations are helping.

Katy ISD Offers Free Meals

Katy ISD continues to offer free meals for any Katy kid under the age of 18, regardless of their enrollment status.

Summer Meals at Opportunity Awareness Center and Mayde Creek High School. Here’s the schedule:

OAC- breakfast 7:00 to 8:30. Lunch 10:15 to 1:00. MCHS 9:30 to 11:30. No breakfast.

Meals available to all children, aged 18 and under, regardless of their enrollment.

Donate to Help Katy Residents

Katy Christian Ministries issued an urgent donation request yesterday. These donations are already being redistributed back to help Katy residents in need. Yesterday they distributed over 4,000 pounds of food and disaster supplies to Katy residents.

More Cooling Center Info

The City of Katy is working on debris removal and is also here for residents in need. Follow them on Facebook for information regarding debris removal.

Cooling centers have been set up in the city since Tuesday. Residents who need a cooling center can get the information by calling Katy Police Department at 281-391-4848 or reach out to Katy Christian Ministries.

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