Natalie Weber / Houston Public Media
Community members discuss their experiences surviving natural disasters at a town hall on Saturday, May 30, 2026.
During Hurricane Harvey, water crashed through the roof of Doris Brown’s home and into a chair where she had been sitting just moments before.
Brown is a co-director at West Street Recovery, an organization that helps Houstonians rebuild after natural disasters. She was one of more than 20 community members who spoke on their experiences surviving natural disasters during a town hall hosted by the Climate Action Campaign and other environmental groups this weekend.
“Through the years, we have had so many natural disasters and they are only getting worse,” she said.
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Texas has seen multiple hurricanes, floods, a derecho and a historic freeze over the last ten years. During the town hall, residents and activists called for more government funding for disaster preparedness and recovery, raising concerns about climate change and extreme weather.
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“People love to say that Houston is resilient, and we are resilient,” said Amy Zachmeyer, a local organizer. “But resilience is only a virtue when you’re forced to need it. And what we actually deserve and what every Texan and human deserves is safety and security.”
The townhall was part of a national initiative by the Climate Action Campaign, calling for full funding of FEMA, the National Weather Service and NOAA, along with stronger EPA enforcement of environmental regulations and an accelerated clean energy transition.
Residents spoke about their experiences surviving hurricanes, flooding last summer in the Hill Country and pollution from disasters at industrial facilities.
“I’ve witnessed firsthand the consequences that these disasters leave in communities,” Galena Park Fire Chief Tom Ehlers said. “There’s a physical toll. There’s a mental toll and a financial toll that is felt from everyone.”