Hurricane Harvey Fisheries Damage
Assessment — Preliminary Results
HURRICANE HARVEY made landfall near Rockport, Texas on August 25, 2017 as a Category 4 storm with damaging

winds of 130 mph. Further, prolonged heavy rains associated with the storm resulted in extreme flooding events throughout
Texas and into Louisiana. Texas Governor Greg Abbott estimated the damage from Hurricane Harvey at $150 billion to
$180 billion for his state alone.

THIS STUDY

Texas Parks & Wildlife Department, with assistance
from NOAA Fisheries, conducted a rapid appraisal
of damage from Hurricane Harvey through
in-person, online and phone surveys along the
Texas coast from Nueces to Jefferson County.
A total of 817 businesses and individuals
participated in the surveys through November 17,
2017. Of those businesses that participated 53%
reported some damage and 23% of vessel owners
had damages. Total damages estimated to vessels
and businesses exceeded $58 million.
Damaged docks in Rockport, Texas over 5 weeks after Hurricane Harvey.
Photo Credit: NOAA Fisheries

WHAT’S AT STAKE?

Commercial and recreational fisheries are an important economic driver of many Texas coastal communities. In 2016,
commercial fishing alone accounted for $195 million in landings revenue and saltwater anglers spent $425 million on
fishing trips.

WHAT WERE THE DAMAGES TO FISHING OPERATIONS AND FISHING-RELATED BUSINESSES?
Vessel / Facilities Damages
Operation / Business Type
% Damaged

Total Damages

Immediate Job
Losses

Total Revenue
Losses

Commercial
& Fishing
Businesses

Commercial Fishing Operations

25%

$12.2 million

673

$16.6 million

Seafood Processors & Dealers

30%

$11.2 million

380

$6.7 million

Seafood Retailers

26%

$0.7 million

152

$0.6 million

For-Hire &
Recreational
Fishing
Businesses

For-Hire Businesses

21%

$27.7 million

266

$9.1 million

Bait & Tackle Shops

54%

$3.3 million

193

$1.7 million

Marinas & Other Related Businesses

41%

$2.8 million

42

$1.4 million

$58.0 million

1,705

$36.2 million

Total Damages & Job Losses

Hurricane Harvey Damage Assessment — Preliminary Results   1

 Commercial Fishing & Seafood Businesses
WHAT’S AT STAKE?

The Texas commercial and seafood industry had revenues of $1 billion in 2016 and directly employed 16,000 workers.
The commercial fishing fleet employed 3,400 fishermen.

P J Shrimp Co in Fulton, Texas over 5 weeks after Hurricane Harvey. Photo Credit: NOAA Fisheries

DAMAGES BY OPERATION / BUSINESS TYPE
Type

Summary

Commercial
Fishing
Operations

Commercial fishing operations that were affected by Hurricane Harvey included a
few Gulf fishing vessels that sustained damage or sunk, but the larger impact was
upon the small inshore fishing fleet that saw many more vessels damaged, sank
or destroyed. Commercial vessels surveyed had an average damage of $10,000/
vessel. One of the primary concerns for many oyster fishermen was whether they
would have their vessel ready for the November 1st opening of the oyster season.
Interviews with those fishermen who had damaged vessels suggested that difficulty
in finding funds to repair their vessel in time was a primary obstacle as most
vessels lacked insurance and applying for a disaster loan from the Small Business
Association was too cumbersome or required documentation they did not possess.

Seafood
Dealers &
Processors

Seafood dealers and processors suffered losses from Hurricane Harvey through
damage to facilities, loss of seafood, damage to equipment and piers and docks.
However, some of the higher losses from expected revenue loss may continue to
grow as a result of lack of product being available. Many oyster businesses are
projecting even larger losses in the future as oyster reefs were devastated by
freshwater inflows and may take years to recover. Some dealers lost power and lost
product as a result of the storm. Overall, those surveyed saw average total damages
of $82,000 and average revenue loss of $106,000.

Seafood
Retailers

Reported Damages

Seafood market and restaurants were one of the least impacted business sectors
included in the surveys and were a small portion of the total sample. Retail seafood
businesses that were affected saw power outages affecting refrigerated and frozen
product and had an average of $9,000 in total damages and $25,000 in lost revenue.

Vessels & Gear
Facilities

Facilities
Seafood
Equipment
Pier / Dock

Facilities
Seafood
Equipment

$5.7 M
$6.5 M

$1.6 M
$7.4 M
$1.3 M
$0.9 M

$0.0 M
$0.6 M
$0.1 M
M = million

Hurricane Harvey Damage Assessment — Preliminary Results   2

 For-Hire & Recreational Fishing Businesses
WHAT’S AT STAKE?

Saltwater anglers spent $425 million on fishing trips in 2016, which directly supported 3,600 jobs. For hire operations
alone directly employed 500 workers.

Aransas Bait Co in Fulton, Texas over 5 weeks after Hurricane Harvey. Photo Credit: NOAA Fisheries

DAMAGES BY OPERATION / BUSINESS TYPE
Type

Summary

For-Hire
Businesses

The Texas’ for-hire fleet surveyed sustained damages averaging $27,000/vessel.
Hurricane Harvey had a significant impact upon fishing operations as many
experienced a high number of cancellations in the wake of the storm. Damaged docks
and a lack of fuel and bait further curtailed fishing operations. Overall, respondents
indicated that they were shut down an average of 32 days, with many respondents
indicating they were not open over the lucrative Labor Day Weekend. With many docks
and marinas and hotels still not repaired or re-built, these losses may continue to mount.

Bait &
Tackle
Shops

At least 54% of bait and tackle shops surveyed sustained damages, with damages
averaging $56,000 per shop. These damages were often not covered by insurance
due to either lack of insurance, wrong insurance or high deductibles that exceeded
the damage level. In addition, 92% of shops surveyed were closed in the days
immediately following the storm. On average, shops were closed for 22 days
resulting in a $28,000 loss in revenue.1

Marinas
& Other
Related
Businesses

1

Reported Damages

Marinas and other businesses were very sparse in the sample, so figures here
may not be representative of complete impacts along the coast. These businesses
included marinas, large charter fishing operations, boatyards and marine supply
along with other related business types. Approximately 41% of the businesses in the
survey sustained damages, with building damages averaging $134,000 per business
and pier and dock damages averaging $119,000. Substantial damage was seen
to have occurred to dry storage facilities along the coast primarily in Aransas and
Calhoun Counties. On average, marinas and related businesses reported a $94,400
loss in revenue.

This is a lower bound estimate; excludes a number of shops that were totally destroyed but no damage estimate was available.

$4.1 M
$23.6 M

Vessels & Gear
Facilities

Facilities
Bait & Seafood
Equipment
Pier / Dock

Facilities
Bait & Seafood
Equipment
Pier / Dock

$1.9 M
$0.3 M
$0.3 M
$0.8 M
$1.2 M
$0.1 M
$0.8 M
$0.7 M

M = million

Hurricane Harvey Damage Assessment — Preliminary Results   3

 Total Damages by County
Jefferson

Harris
Chambers
Galveston
Brazoria
Matagorda
Calhoun
Refugio
San Patricio
Nueces

Aransas

Commercial & For-Hire Damages
$0 – $300 thousand
$300 thousand – $3.0 million
$3.0 million – $7.5 million
$7.5 million – $10.0 million
$10.0 million – $12.6 million

Map Credit: NOAA Fisheries

Over 5 weeks after Hurricane Harvey: A handmade sign on Seaworthy Marine Supply in Fulton, Texas (left); Debris in a residential area in Rockport, Texas (middle); A
semi-trailer truck hauls away debris in Port Aransas, Texas. Photo Credit: NOAA Fisheries

Hurricane Harvey Damage Assessment — Preliminary Results   4