Vernon's Kuntry Katfish Bouncing Back

CONROE, TX -- The recent flooding that affected Vernon’s Kuntry Katfish on SH 105, at first does not seem to be the setback that the restaurant experienced during Hurricane Harvey seven years ago. Volunteers and crews were already demoing the restaurant before the flood waters had completely receded from the parking lot. Large swaths of Montgomery County experienced devastating flooding with houses flooded up to the roof, as the forecasted rains overwhelmed the lake forcing the release of massive amounts of water from the Lake Conroe Dam.

Blaze Benson, President of Cowl Spur Development, who oversaw the last rebuild of Vernon’s in 2017, is quite confident that at least the dining room will be open soon, in perhaps 10 days to two weeks.

“It’s not near as bad as it was during Hurricane Harvey,” said Benson, the Bowers’ family contractor, and best friend of the late Buster Bowers. He was speaking of the dining area. “The dining room dried out much faster than the kitchen, which will take longer to get back up and running.”

The flooding inside Vernon’s after Hurricane Harvey was 27”, but this time the flooding was 18”, and items like beadboard which covers the lower walls, were able to be pulled off the walls, and dried out. The insulation will have to be replaced, but the saved plywood is a big cost saver. The fans and dehumidifiers have been doing yeoman's work in drying out the dining area, and there is no lingering smell of the floodwaters in the restaurant.

“Once we get the dining room reopened we do anticipate frying out in the parking lot, with customers dining inside with the air conditioning,” said restaurant General Manager Debbie Bowers. “We anticipate having a portable frying trailer on-site near the entrance to serve customers, hopefully ready to go before the end of the month, frying up catfish, French fries, and hushpuppies.”

Since the flooding happened on the early afternoon of May 2nd, Bowers and her staff were able to save office records and equipment this time as opposed to 2017. Also, many stainless steel kitchen preparation tables were moved to a safe location prior to the restaurant being inundated with water. The air conditioning units, fryers, refrigerators and other appliances that were total losses during the last flood, may be able to be reused due to little or no damage. In addition, electrical units were moved out of reach from the flood waters in 2017, so they were not affected this time.

“We drove to Vernon’s Kuntry Katfish around 11am, and the parking lot was bone dry,” said Chaz Miller, a reporter for ABC13. “And we drove back around 1pm, and the building was submerged.”

The sudden and forceful release of water from the Lake Conroe Dam overwhelmed the West Fork of the San Jacinto River and forced water out of its banks, thus flooding the countryside and the catfish restaurant for the second time since 2017. The San Jacinto River Authority has yet to issue a clear explanation on the reasoning on the reduced release of less than 10,000 cubic feet per second, between late April and May 1st, when the forecast was clear in the anticipated deluge that followed.

In addition, the SJRA has not responded to a request submitted by MCN on the subject. All of this stems from the City of Houston having majority water rights to Lake Conroe, with the SJRA only maintaining a 1/3rd share. As of press time, the SJRA was releasing 1590 c.f.s., with a lake level just above full pool. 201 ft., by a few tenths of an inch.

“Prerelease from Lake Houston does not accomplish much either since it always refills before maximum flows arrive,” said Jeff Bayless, speaking on Houston’s spillway. “Adding flood gates to Lake Houston is the only solution.”

Obviously, a coordinated effort is going to be needed between the City of Houston and the SJRA, to better anticipate and deal with future flooding concerns to avoid flooding along the San Jacinto River, which affects many residential homes and businesses like Vernon’s Kuntry Katfish. Also, more study is going to be needed by the authorities to understand La Nina and El Nino effects on Lake Conroe and Houston resources, to anticipate situations such as what happened with the recent flooding.

The Lone Star Honor Flight Veterans Group, which Ms. Mary from Vernon’s Kuntry Kat, brings breakfast once a month, has donated over $11,000 to the restaurant to help get it back up and running. In addition, the Go Fund Me page set up has raised nearly $20,000 so far. Vernon’s 40th Anniversary celebration is still going to happen, but it is yet unclear just how it will proceed.

Vernon's Go Fund Me Page: https://www.gofundme.com/f/help-revive-vernons-flooded-restaurant

Ruben can be reached at: ruben@montgomerycountynews.net

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