ROCKPORT, Texas – The city of Rockport and the town of Fulton are celebrating their rebuilding after Hurricane Harvey destroyed many areas of the community nine months ago.
“We took a tremendous hit because Harvey had its eye on Rockport, Fulton,” said Diane Probst, president and CEO of the Rockport-Fulton Chamber of Commerce.
On the brink of another hurricane season, business is once again picking up in the tourism-driven coastal community.
“There are over 800 businesses back up and running now, and so those 800 businesses are ready for the people to come back and visit them,” Probst said.
The Pelican Bay Resort, which Laura and David Denham opened about two decades ago, was hit hard by Harvey in August. Their hard work was almost completely washed away.
“All the roofs were compromised. Pelican Bay Lane, which goes through the resort -- you could not drive down the lane at all. The debris was over head high,” David Denham said.
On Thursday, the owners of the resort held a grand reopening ribbon-cutting ceremony.
“There was no waiting around to get started. There were people from other communities here, so it's really hard to actually just sit back,” said Jessee Pilgrim, co-owner of the Pelican Bay Resort.
While it’s uncertain what this hurricane season will bring for the coastal community, business owners said they’re better prepared this year.
“We had numerous holes in our insurance. Most of our fencing wasn't covered. Our pool wasn't covered. Things that we didn't even think about in the past, so now that's something that we're very focused on,” said Jordan Pilgrim, co-owner of the Pelican Bay Resort.
The Rockport-Fulton Chamber of Commerce will host a hurricane preparedness breakfast Friday morning, at which community members will discuss the lessons they learned from Harvey and ways to brace for any future heavy weather.