Hidalgo County to hire 50 to 70 workers for hurricane prep

Hidalgo County will hire up to 70 temporary workers to remove debris and repair damages caused by Hurricane Alex and complete other work intended to prepare the county’s drainage ditches for the next hurricane.

A $900,000 disaster-recovery grant will allow county commissioners to supplement their work crews with about 50 to 70 temporary employees who are eligible to work about four months.

Commissioner Joel Quintanilla, whose low-lying precinct was hit the hardest last year by overwhelmed drainage ditches, said the employment program will provide his full-time workers needed assistance in completing repair and cleanup work still left from Alex.

“It’s going to be a cost savings to the precinct because we’ll be able to clean up, maintain and get our 400 colonias practically ready for a hurricane season that is here in full force,” Quintanilla said. “Imagine the county funding those type of employees to try to clean up the mess Hurricane Alex left behind. There’s no way. We couldn’t afford it.”

The National Emergency Grant, a program designed to re-employ laid-off workers in disaster recovery, was approved last year for Texas counties affected by Alex, but Hidalgo County Judge Ramon Garcia found the county had not applied for its share when he took office. Slated to expire at the end of June, the Texas Workforce Commission requested an extension from the Department of Labor to allow work to continue through the end of the year.

Starr and Willacy counties will continue with current work programs, said Victor de Leon, a spokesman for Workforce Solutions of the Lower Rio Grande Valley. Starr County has about 31 temporary workers and Willacy County has about 39 who are still working on projects.

Hidalgo County will use its share of funding to complete any outstanding work left by Hurricane Alex and make improvements to infrastructure to prevent future, possible damage.

He said the program will generate much-needed jobs in the region and offer an indirect benefit for the county to be better prepared for future storms.

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Jared Janes covers Hidalgo County government, Edinburg and legislative issues for The Monitor. He can be reached at (956) 683-4424.