Group 1 Automotive Inc. said all of its dealerships are intact and open in areas affected by Tropical Storm Imelda, despite significant damage caused by extensive flooding.
Damage is estimated at $12.5 million to $15 million, including insurance deductibles for damaged inventory and dealerships, along with disaster pay for employees.
Some areas of southeastern Texas received more than three feet of rain last week, according to Reuters.
The company's stores in Houston reopened Friday. Stores in Beaumont, Texas, are "open on a more limited basis," Group 1 said in a statement Monday.
"A significant number" of Group 1's 300 Beaumont employees "sustained major personal losses" from the storm last week, CEO Earl Hesterberg said in the statement. "Our hearts go out to all of those affected by this devastating storm."
"Our top priority is supporting our employees in the areas affected by Tropical Storm Imelda," Hesterberg said.
"Beyond helping our employees, we are also moving quickly to get our stores fully online to support the community's needs for replacement vehicles, which includes working with our OEM partners and other Group 1 dealerships to redeploy inventory to restock our operations in Beaumont."
Publicly owned Group 1, of Houston, ranks No. 4 on Automotive News' list of the top 150 dealership groups based in the U.S. with 170,517 new vehicles retailed in 2018.
