Feature: Bit by bit, post-hurricane Houston back to normal

HOUSTON, the United States, Sept. 17 (Xinhua) -- Ray Martin, a resident in Houston, Tx., said he had a bad dream on the night that Hurricane Ike hit the fourth largest U.S. city.
"I just woke up from a bad dream. Then I heard the crazy winds and huge sounds of blasts. Everything is shaking. That came the real bad dream -- hurricane," he told Xinhua in front of the 75-storeyed JP Morgan Chase Tower, the tallest building in the city. Martin lived just across the street so he watched how the skyscraper was hit.
"The sounds of blasts turned out to be the sounds of windows being broken. All the windows on the west side of skyscraper were torn apart," he said, pointing to the scattered glass fragments on the ground.
As for himself, Martin said it wasn't a huge impact because he has stored a lot of water and food in his home.
"I think a lot of people did it. Because the area we live is hurricane-prone. You know, there's an old saying in U.S. south: rice, water and potato are the three things you must always have at home," he said.
Aueva Mark, an education specialist at the Houston's City Hall, agreed with him. "I don't have electricity at home. But I have bought a lot of gas, food, water before the hurricane came. So it's just like a bad dream and everything will be OK," he said.
Indeed, at least in the downtown area, a sense of normalcy has come back bit by bit. The traffic lights are on and some businesses and restaurants reopened. City Hall resumed operation since Monday and even a few of people are jogging in the city center.
Dolly Marchena, a spokeswoman at the mayor's office, told Xinhua that authorities are racing against time to get things done.
Among the 2.2 million residents who had been left in dark immediately after the hurricane, in Houston, some 750,000 now have electricity again.
There are still long lines in a few re-opened gas stations but Marchena said more supply is coming from outside and three of the 14 major refineries in Houston will resume production very soon.
In Houston area, there are now 37 distribution centers which are offering free water, food and ice to residents. "The situation is improving day by day, though it will be a long process," said Marchena.
The hurricane not only triggered humanitarian issues, but also created new problems. Looting was reported in some areas and the government has to impose a curfew after dark for at least one week.
Some evacuees who lived in rental houses before the hurricane can't find a new one because they lost their jobs in the hurricane, too.
Furthermore, the supplies provided by the government, charities and the private sector are not always reaching those whoneed them most. Some residents complained that sometimes they waited for hours at the distribution centers but finally found supplies have run out.
"There are too many people and it has to be 'first come, first serve'. We have no choice," said Noel Pinnock, who supervised a distribution center at the Pinemont Drive on the west side of the city.
Some 2,000 residents come to the center to get the supplies everyday, he said.