Hurricane Harvey’s legacy will be water, pollution and crumbling infrastructure

The longer a house is under water, the greater the damage.
Water can compromise or ruin wallboard, electrical systems, insulation, doors, windows and cabinets.
Forty inches or more of water pounding the pavement in less than a week can undermine the streets people drive on every day.
Big bridges will fare better in Texas.
Zandi notes that New Orleans’ economy depends almost entirely on tourism and energy, while Houston prospers from health care, transportation, oil refineries and the chemical industry, among others.
Though Zandi expects Houston to come back strongly, he says, that depends, in part, on a strong federal disaster aid package.
Thousands of Houston area storm survivors who fled flooded homes found refuge in large shelters, but those temporary living quarters can become incubators for infections.
Houston’s floodwaters, contaminated by lawn pesticides, spilled fuel and runoff from oil refineries and chemical plants, also pose potential health risks, according to experts .
And now Harvey.
One study found that residents in the path of Sandy suffered from depression and post-traumatic stress.

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