Were There Evacuation Orders for Houston before the Storm?

[Retrograde]

58. What sort of emergency preparedness does the area have?

Our biggest natural threats here in California are earthquakes and fires, with occasional flooding in wet years. The first is hard to prepare for (and since it's been so long since the last biggish ones I think a lot of people have gotten complacent), but for fires people are advised to have a "defensible zone" around buildings so underbrush doesn't spread to structures. Towns in flood-prone areas provide sand and sandbags when it looks like the creeks are going to rise over their banks. In addition there are regular preparedness drills by emergency response agencies.

Of course, we pay the highest income taxes in the country for these services, and the bottom line after Loma Prieta was be prepared to be without services for at least 3 days. Does Texas - especially those areas prone to heavy rainfall - do any sort of planning in advance for disasters?