In all-hands-on-deck response to Harvey, lessons learned from earlier storms

As College Avenue in Houston flooded Saturday night, the yellow Waffle House sign at the top of the hill stayed on.

Stranded drivers trudged toward the glow through muck and rain and sat down for a sip of coffee and some eggs-and-grits, glad to be shielded, at least for a moment, from a storm named Harvey.

Sustaining 130 m.p.h. winds, hurricane Harvey slow-walked across the Texas Coastal Bend’s barrier islands and, as the winds eased, sent a conveyor belt of more than 9 trillion gallons of Gulf water so far, inundating East Texas. Even as more than 2,000 water rescues occurred around the city, Waffle House kept most of its restaurants open, booking nearby motel rooms so employees don’t have to go home.

That was true on College Avenue, where cooks and servers are working around the

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