PORT ARANSAS, Texas — The University of Texas Marine Science Institute in Port Aransas is still recovering from Hurricane Harvey.
A major grant recently will go a long way to help in the process.
The campus is ready to start the second phase of recovery to repair damages caused by Harvey two years ago.
"The first phase of recovery, we're really focused on getting our graduate students back in housing and getting our scientists back in the laboratories, but now we can focus on the auxiliary support and the visitor center impacts,” said Sally Palmer, UT Marine Science Institute communications coordinator:
Back in August, the MSI campus was awarded a separate grant of $5 million from the U.S. Department of Commerce.
But now, a new supplemental grant is helping them rebuild.
"We just received a grant from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration for $11.7 million dollars.”
The UT Marine Science Institute campus was hit with more than $45 million in damages.
"Harvey hit all of our buildings,” she said. “We have about 80 buildings on campus give or take, and we replaced about three football fields worth of roof."
The funds will also repair an Exhibit in the Bay Education Center in Rockport, an Amos Rehabilitation Keep area and the pier.
"The pier behind me is one of the first things that we got started on,” Palmer said. “Our new pier, our research pier that's going to go out into the Port Aransas Ship Channel."
