A Texas nursing home has finally reopened two years after being destroyed by Hurricane Harvey.
Ron Payne, CEO of Southwest LTC, credited a smooth evacuation process, which allowed owners to avoid “serious ramifications” like a lawsuit, as the reason why the Gulf Healthcare Center in Port Arthur, TX, was able to reopen last week.
The nursing home is operated through Southwest LTC, which runs 21 skilled nursing facilities and one assisted living facility in Texas and Oklahoma. It was among the many homes and businesses in the Gulf Coast that were devastated by flooding and storm damage from Harvey in August 2017.
On Wednesday, Payne thanked staff members for how they responded as floodwaters quickly rose and evacuated residents safely.
“There have been difficulties in differentiating us from the facilities that are not reopening,” Payne told the Port Arthur News. “We evacuated our building without any repercussions or lawsuits. We were able to do it all in an organized manner that was safe for all our residents.”
Before reopening, the nursing home argued with its insurance company about the extent of storm and flood damage. The dispute led Southwest LTC to use equity from another building to get a secondary loan to help pay for reconstruction. The newly-revamped nursing home now features new interior design and therapy gym equipment.
As Hurricane Dorian works its way up the East Coast this week, many long-term care operators remain in disaster prep mode. Officials also issued mandatory evacuations along the southeast Atlantic coast.
