You are herding cats when directing a large scale evacuation. Even in mandatory evacuation situations, there are folks who will not leave - they don't believe the forecasts, this has never happened before, the gov'mnt is lying, I don't want to go to a 'FEMA" camp, etc. Personal factors play a large role in deciding whether or not to move.

That area of Texas is relatively flat, low lying coastal plain, and it not immediately obvious which localities will flood (although careful mapping should help with this problem). The typical hurricane hits the coast, loses strength, and moves - typically to the north and east, and the rainfall is dispersed over a very wide area, often with beneficial results. In this case, weather patterns confined Harvey to the Texas coast, and precip is concentrated.

My sister is living (still) in Houston. Talking to her before the event, she was fairly complacent and had no desire to leave. She lives on fairly high ground and has a secend story, so did OK in the event.

Still, one wonders why development is allowed within a 100 year flood plain, anywhere. For that matter, when i become Emperor of the Universe, one of my first executive orders will be to evacuate New Orleans and turn it into the world's largest National Alligator Preserve.

Standing down from soap box...