Harvey Closes Montgomery Co. Stores, Limits Supplies

MONTGOMERY COUNTY, TX – As Hurricane Harvey continued its devastating impact across Southeast Texas, Montgomery County residents found themselves grappling with widespread store closures and severely limited access to essential supplies on Monday, August 28, 2017. Historic flooding and impassable roads have crippled commerce, leaving communities isolated and shelves bare across the region.

Major retail destinations, typically bustling centers of activity, have been rendered silent. The Woodlands Mall and Conroe Outlets, key shopping hubs for thousands of residents, remained shut from Saturday, August 26, through at least Monday. With no clear reopening timeline in sight, the prolonged closures underscored the severity of the unprecedented weather event impacting the county.

The struggle for groceries has been particularly acute. Multiple Kroger locations across Montgomery County, including stores on Harper’s Trace, in East Montgomery County, and North Loop 336 in Conroe, were forced to close due to direct flooding or the inability of staff and supplies to reach them. Their operational status remained uncertain pending crucial damage assessments. H-E-B, a cornerstone of Texas communities, saw most of its Montgomery County stores, such as those in College Park, Alden Bridge, and Lake Woodlands in The Woodlands, shut down on Sunday, August 27, and Monday, August 28. While there was a slim hope of “limited hours” for some locations on Tuesday, August 29, residents faced dwindling options for food and water.

National retailers like Walmart and Target also experienced significant disruptions across the broader Houston area, including many local branches. The Conroe North (I-45) Walmart, for example, was specifically contending with localized flooding issues, adding to the regional crisis.

Beyond groceries, residents grappled with the scarcity of other critical items. Finding an open pharmacy for essential medications, a gas station with fuel for generators or emergency travel, or any retailer with stocked shelves became a desperate quest. The intricate supply chains that normally ensure a constant flow of goods were severely disrupted, with major highways underwater or impassable. This compounded the problem, meaning even stores that could physically open struggled to restock. Further complicating matters, store employees faced their own significant challenges reaching work due, in many cases, to personal flooding, impassable roads, or the need to care for their families.

At the heart of the crisis were the perilous road conditions. Weeks of unprecedented rainfall from Hurricane Harvey transformed major arteries and local streets into treacherous waterways. Officials repeatedly urged residents to stay off the roads, as even short drives to potentially open stores became risky or impossible. This widespread immobility effectively created pockets of isolation, preventing both residents from seeking supplies and emergency services from reaching all those in need with ease.

Hurricane Harvey, which made landfall as a Category 4 storm on Friday, August 25, 2017, unleashed historic and catastrophic flooding across Southeast Texas. Montgomery County, though inland, was deeply affected by the continuous torrential rainfall, mirroring the devastation seen in Houston and surrounding areas. County emergency management officials confirmed that the primary focus remained on life-saving operations, with the retail and supply crisis a significant secondary concern emerging from the widespread disaster. The uncertainty surrounding reopening timelines underscored the extraordinary nature of the storm’s impact, signaling a long road to recovery for local businesses and residents alike.