A McKinney man returned to Port Aransas on Tuesday to find the getaway home he calls the "Love Shack" destroyed by Hurricane Harvey.
Billy Tate, a Collin County developer, said he has no choice but to demolish the house.
"God created Mother Nature, and God's got lots of power," Tate said.
He bought the home on the popular tourist island near Corpus Christi three years ago. The house — made of wood and located on the main street through town — was known as "Hippie Shack" for years, Tate said.
He and his family renamed it.
"We're not altogether hippies, but we've got a lot of love, so we thought we'd call it the 'Love Shack’ instead of the 'Hippie Shack,'" he said.
A colorful sign out front which blares the name largely survived the storm.
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Much of Port Aransas, and island of about 3,500 residents, is situated near Harvey's landfall and is now a disaster zone.
Large boats litter parking lots where they came to rest blocks from the water.
Electricity may not be restored for weeks.
Tate and his two sons added they hoped to help others after they finished dealing with their own disaster.
"I know the community," Tate said. "They'll come back and rebuild. Everyone here is Texans. They are going to dig right in."
