Riverstone homeowners file lawsuit over Harvey flooding

FORT BEND COUNTY, Texas – Homeowners in a Fort Bend County community are suing a company over flooding in their homes during Hurricane Harvey.

They said the company's actions affected the water levels in their neighborhood.

The lawsuit involves homeowners in the Riverstone subdivision.

On Thursday, legal action was announced.

What is the lawsuit about?

Homeowners from the Fort Bend Riverstone Community have joined in on a lawsuit claiming the engineering firm that built levees in their community mismanaged the water.

What happened?

Homeowners said during Harvey, things seemed to be fine at first, but that at a little after 2 p.m. Aug. 28, they received a mandatory evacuation notice. Once they received the notice, they say they had about 20 minutes to get out. The water rose fast and stayed for several days.

The lawsuit claims that Costello, Inc., the engineering firm, botched the design for Levee Improvement District 19 and did not consider the consequences of removing a levee just north of that District, from LID 15. The suit says that rainwater from LID 15 drained into LID 19 and caused catastrophic flooding.

What communities does it effect?

This affects homes in five subdivisions in the Riverstone Development: Sweetbriar, Millwood, The Orchard, Lost Creek and Shadow Glen. All the homes that are affected are in Levee Improvement District 19.

What do they want to to see happen?

They are suing for damages to recoup the losses that the homeowners have suffered.

What does Costello, Inc. say?

We placed a call with Costello, Inc. but have not heard back from them.