Fort Bend County pursues lawsuit against Army Corps of Engineers' operation of Barker Reservoir

[Elderberry]

Houston Chronicle by By Brooke A. Lewis May 22, 2018

Fort Bend County commissioners voted Tuesday to pursue a lawsuit against the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers' operation of the Barker Reservoir during Hurricane Harvey, according to a news release from the county judge's office.

The county and the Fort Bend County Drainage District are seeking a declaratory judgement from a federal district judge in relation to the way the Barker Reservoir was handled by the Corps during the hurricane.

Texas firm AL Law Group is expected to file the lawsuit later this week.

"The county is filing suit seeking to require the Corps to follow federal law and its own rules in its operation of the Reservoir," Fort Bend County Judge Bob Hebert said in the release.

The county will allege in the lawsuit that the Corps "knowingly operated the Barker Reservoir ... in a manner that unlawfully flooded land the Corps did not own," according to the release.

The lawsuit comes after Fort Bend County commissioners agreed last month to fund a study that would determine the cost and feasibility of adding a levee to enclose the back of Barker Reservoir.

A group of Harris County homeowners and businesses last September also filed their own lawsuit against the federal government based on the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers' release of water from Barker and Addicks reservoirs during the hurricane.

Herbert said more than 3,000 homes in the Fort Bend County area were flooded after Harvey from the Barker Reservoir, which is located in the west side of Houston.

More: https://www.chron.com/neighborhood/fortbend/news/article/Fort-Bend-County-to-pursue-lawsuit-against-U-S-12935096.php

[thackney]

Man, as much as I've followed this,

and I can understand the homeowners that think "why me",

and I certainly have an understanding what they have gone through,

I don't see blaming the Corps for dealing with this in the way they did.

[HoustonSam]

I don't see blaming the Corps for dealing with this in the way they did.

Yeah I did a bit of mud out and demo work where Barker backed up to the west, and work colleagues lost homes east of the dam when the Corps had to open it up.  I don't see what the Corps could have done differently.  40 inches of rain just is what it is.

[LauraTXNM]

So do you all think the homeowners have any chance of winning? 

[Bigun]

IMHO the Corp of  Engineers is the truly innocent party in all of this as they warned against letting building occur  downstream of those damns very early on.

[GrouchoTex]

Strange, but the county may have to sue themselves.
After all, didn't they issue the building permits to the home builders, after they were warned against it?

[Bigun]

Strange, but the county may have to sue themselves.
After all, didn't they issue the building permits to the home builders, after they were warned against it?

That's exactly right so far as I understand.

[IsailedawayfromFR]

When one govt entity sues another govt entity, the only ones who win are the lawyers on both sides.

Taxpayers always lose.