Las Yescas Elementary School

August 18, 2007 - 11:39PM
By BRAD DOHERTY, The Brownsville Herald

Some of the 100 school buses from Dallas County Schools arrive
Saturday, Aug. 18, 2007, at the Alamodome in San Antonio. The
buses are part of the emergency plan in preparation for Hurricane
Dean evacuations from the Valley and south Texas.

Cameron County Judge Carlos H. Cascos is expected to order a
mandatory evacuation of the county sometime today or on Monday.

A voluntary evacuation of the county was ordered on Saturday as
well as a mandatory removal of high profile vehicles from the
Laguna Madre area.

The orders are due to the threat Hurricane Dean, a category 4 storm,
poses to the South Texas coast.

The storm is expected to make landfall sometime between Wednesday
night and Thursday at noon between Mexico and the Rio Grande Valley,
according to the latest projections.

Brownsville Mayor Pat Ahumada issued a voluntary evacuation of
Brownsville residents as well encouraging residents to register
with the 2-1-1 system by noon today.

The city opened its Emergency Operations Center on Saturday. The
county could open its center sometime today.

Cascos said.

The county will open its San Benito hub at 8:30 a.m. on Monday
for Cameron County residents who want to be evacuated out of the
Rio Grande Valley, but do not have the means to do so.

There are several pick up points in the county where residents
can meet and be transported by bus to the San Benito location.
The buses will transport residents to the San Benito location
every 30 minutes, Cascos said.

Some of those locations include Ben Brite Elementary on Browne Road,
Lopez High School on Dakota Road, Laureles-Liberty Elementary School
in Los Fresnos and Las Yescas Elementary in Las Yescas.

The first 5,000 evacuees will be sent to Laredo with the overflow
being sent to San Antonio.

?They are not going to be checking anything (at the hub,) no type
of residency requirements are needed. Anybody can go,? Cascos said.