Houston furniture stores transformed into shelters in the wake of Hurricane Harvey

Unlike surrounding cities, Houston did not issue a mandatory evacuation before Hurricane Harvey made landfall, so many people are left stranded, with flooded homes and nowhere to go. So, a local furniture store is opening its doors to those in need.

Two Gallery Furniture locations in Houston are allowing people to seek shelter and find food in their stores.

The stores made this announcement via Facebook:

So, any people and pets are welcome.

This certainly is an extremely kind gesture in this time of need.

“Houstonians have a safe, dry place to take shelter at Gallery Furniture so if they can get here they are welcome,” Gallery Furniture owner Jim “Mattress Mack” McIngvale said in a message sent to the Houston Chronicle. “We hope to give them some comfort in this incredibly difficult time.”

The stores are located near  I-45 North and the Richmond area, and each one can accommodate a few hundred people.

Considering the hurricane forced an estimated 30,000 people into shelters, these stores are opening their doors at just the right time.

This is unlike anything the public officials who decided not to issue a mandatory evacuation to the city could have imagined.

“We have not seen an event like this,” FEMA administrator William “Brock” Long told the Washington Post. “You could not draw this forecast up. You could not dream this forecast up.”

The Houston community and others are expressing their gratitude to the store online.

“Simply amazing! No real words to express ur love for people. Thank you,” one Facebook user wrote.

Others are calling store owner “Matress Mack” a “hometown hero.”

https://twitter.com/kplknup/status/901987051704340484

For all those seeking shelter in his stores right now, we’d certainly say he’s earned the title.