The businessman told the US radio station NPR: “When the hurricane first hit down here, my thought was this is going to be a one-day event. Then I came into work the next day and I saw the devastation of the entire area and decided it would be best if we opened this 100,000-square-foot furniture store as a shelter.

“And we have another furniture store in west Houston, so we opened both stores as shelters. And now we have about 400 people that are living in both of these furniture stores, trying to get back on their feet.”

Initially volunteers were using the store’s furniture trucks to drive around Houston and pick up people in need of shelter. However both stores have quickly filled up.