Houston Alcohol and Drug Rehab Facility Navigates Hurricane Ike

Following a well-developed disaster plan, Houston drug and alcohol rehab center 'The Right Step' transports its Houston clients safely to its Dallas facility.

Houston, TX -- In the early morning hours of September 13, 2008, Hurricane Ike struck the Texas Gulf Coast. Packing winds of over 100 miles per hour and pouring 15 inches of rain on the area, the storm caused immediate dangers for those in its path. In the aftermath, an estimated 3 million people were without electricity, and the State of Texas is expecting a repair bill of over $8 billion. Parts of Houston were flooded and debris and glass littered the streets.

"After being headquartered in Houston for 18 years, the Right Step is always prepared to take action in these situations. With disaster plans in motion, we were able to safely transport all of our Houston clients to the Right Step in Dallas. In addition, with our call center being based in Houston, we transported key staff to the Dallas / Fort Worth facility to ensure that all lines were still being answered diligently," said George Joseph, CEO of the Right Step (http://www.rightstep.com).

The Right Step places the greatest importance on the safety of all its clients and staff members. Both have now returned to the Houston facility as the power is re-instated and the safety of all structures has been verified.

"We are so fortunate that our building's main campus in Houston sustained minimal damage. We had one large tree fall into our admissions building which flooded our conference room. Our maintenance team went to work right away to clean and repair. The campus looks beautiful; we were without power and have now re-admitting our in-patient clients. Several of our intensive out-patient offices had significant damage also. We, however, were able to move our clients from the damaged offices to our working offices to begin our out-patient services by Tuesday," said Joseph.

"Lastly, I cannot go without commending all of our employees who have stepped up and have worked diligently through these conditions with dedication and creativity. This included taking their inpatient clients from Houston, who wanted to be transported to our facility in Dallas/Fort Worth, to our Houston clinical staff meeting without power working. Our maintenance director, Robert Wingate, who lost his home in a tornado during the hurricane, has been to work everyday to get our facilities ready for our clients once the power is turned on. He refused to take days off, stating he wanted our facility to be fully ready for our clients. I am so proud of our team," explained Joseph.

About The Right Step: The Right Step (http://www.rightstep.com) is the largest private provider of chemical dependency treatment in the Southwest, with seventeen drug and alcohol addiction recovery facilities throughout Houston, Dallas/Fort Worth, Midland, Baton Rouge, and Lafayette. The Right Step offers a full continuum of care from detoxification, drug rehab, alcohol rehab, and residential treatment through transitional living and aftercare. For more information, please call (713) 528-3709.

Media Contact:
Jennifer Prause
4701 Westgate Blvd, Suite D-404
Austin, TX 78745
1-512-665-3342
http://www.rightstep.com

This release was published on openPR.