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Hotel space scarce for evacuees
Published September 21, 2005
ANGLETON — Brazoria County residents leaving for Brenham and the Bryan-College Station area to escape Hurricane Rita shouldn’t expect to find hotel rooms available this weekend.
Officials from both cities say they will have plenty of shelters available, but two festivals in Brenham and a Texas A&M game in College Station have all the hotel rooms booked. The Aggies might move up their game against Texas State to Thursday, but school officials won’t make that decision until today.
Officials will assign Brazoria County residents to shelters as they arrive in town. Both cities will have mandatory check-in points where evacuees must register.
Residents who live West of the Brazos will take Highway 36 to Brenham and will check in outside the Wal-Mart as they drive into town on Highway 36, said Angela Hahn, a spokeswoman for the city. “We’ll have law enforcement out with shelter information,” Hahn said. “We have signs that say, ‘Stop here to register.’”
Residents who live east of the river will take Highway 288 to Beltway 8, then take Highway 290 to Highway 6 and on to College-Station.
Brazoria County evacuees who go to College Station will find a similar setup, said Brian Hilton, College Station’s emergency management coordinator. Evacuees will be directed to exit Highway 6 at Gateway Boulevard on the south end of town, Hilton said.
“They’ll drive in,” Hilton said. “They’ll stay in their cars. They’ll get assigned to a shelter.”
Unlike Brenham, Bryan-College Station residents will be allowed to bring pets, Hilton said. “They’re family, too,” he said. “We’ve got to take care of them.”
Officials in both cities have been making preparations for the influx of visitors. Both cities still have people driven out of their homes by Hurricane Katrina, but there is plenty of room.
“We’re planning on churches, but we’ll open the schools if we have to,” Hahn said.
Hilton said Aggieland is ready. “We’ve planned for this many, many times,” he said. “We’ll be ready to have you guys.”
Residents with questions for Brenham officials should call (979) 337-7272. Those who need Bryan-College Station information should call (979) 764-3510.
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