E-E financial crisis jeopardizes hurricane shelter plans

EDCOUCH - Two of the communities hardest hit by Hurricane Dolly could find themselves without certified hurricane shelters during this year's storm season.

Several Edcouch-Elsa school district campuses that housed residents during last year's storm failed a recent inspection by the American Red Cross, the charitable organization said last week.

At Edcouch-Elsa High School, inspectors found several inoperable toilets, showers that didn't work and ceiling tiles still swollen from leaks in the roof.

Carlos F. Truan Junior High School and Santiago Garcia Elementary were also ruled out as possible shelter sites because of past issues with flooding and design flaws that made them unsuitable for housing large numbers of people, said Victoria Salazar, the Red Cross inspector who toured the campuses last month.

"The primary concern for us is the safety of the people that are going to be there," she said. "We didn't feel we could ensure that at these schools."

More than 700 people took up temporary residency at the high school during Hurricane Dolly last year as the Category 1 storm dumped inches of rain on the Mid-Valley and its floodwaters forced hundreds out of their homes for days.

The Red Cross provided cots, food, blankets and supplies to the campus in the storm's wake. But without certification from the agency this year, the community could be forced to pay up front for such items if it decides to shelter residents there anyway.

The school district could also opt not to open a shelter at all - forcing nearby evacuees to seek refuge in communities such as Monte Alto, Edinburg or Weslaco in the event of a major storm, said Tony Peña, Hidalgo County's emergency management coordinator.

Edcouch-Elsa officials have not returned multiple calls for comment over the past three weeks on the Red Cross' findings but said at a recent meeting that the school district's current financial crisis has made it difficult to make necessary repairs that would bring the high school into compliance.

"If there's an accident or someone gets hurt, we are going to have a major lawsuit," the district's maintenance supervisor, Senovio Castillo, told school board members on June 17.

In December, the school system was forced to lay off more than 20 percent of its workforce - including 23 maintenance workers - in the face of a $10 million budget shortfall. And recent cost-cutting measures have only made the problem worse, said Castillo, who retired from his position late last month.

Of the seven maintenance employees who survived the staff cuts, only one was kept on to work through the summer months. A carpenter by trade, he does not have the plumbing expertise to fix the toilet and shower problems that would bring the high school up to Red Cross standards.

At the June 17 meeting, board members approved hiring an outside contractor to address the plumbing problems. But as of late Friday, the school district had not notified the Red Cross of any changes that might affect the outcome of an inspection, said Salazar, the Red Cross inspector.

Regardless, the Delta's residents won't be left out in a storm, said Peña, the county's emergency management coordinator.

"Edcouch-Elsa is a very tight-knit community," he said. "They take care of their own. There will be places to go."