Flooded Homeowners Sue Feds, City Of Houston After Reservoir Releases

HOUSTON, TX — Residents whose homes were flooded when the Army Corps of Engineers released flood waters from the Addicks and Barker reservoirs during Hurricane Harvey have filed a class action lawsuit against the federal government.

The lawsuit alleges that the federal government committed inverse condemnation, and that the Army Corps of Engineers knowingly condemned their property when they released the water into Buffalo Bayou. (Want to get daily news updates and news of other events going on in your area? Sign up for the free Houston Patch morning newsletter.)

Officials with the Corps of Engineers said during the storm that releases were necessary in order to avoid a greater catastrophe, and to reduce the chance of an uncontrolled release should the dams overflow.

The releases flooded homes that were not affected by the storm.

Officials said the lawsuit doesn’t accuse the federal government of negligence, but does demand that homeowners be compensated for the government’s actions, KPRC reported.

“In our lawsuit we are not complaining the Army Corps of Engineers did anything wrong, but what we are saying is, once they made the deliberate decision to open the flood gates on the Barker and Addicks reservoir, that they have a duty to compensate the landowners downstream,” attorney Jeff Meyers told KPRC.

The lawsuit is one of three that have been filed since Hurricane Harvey dumped trillions of gallons of rain on the Houston area in August.

One of the lawsuits, which was filed in state court, was also filed by homeowners downstream of the reservoirs and is demanding financial compensation for damages from the City of Houston and the Harris County Flood Control District for those so-called controlled release, according to a Houston Chronicle report.

Homeowners in those affected areas have not yet been allowed to return to their homes.

Image: Associated Press

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