I don't believe the parent poster was saying the govt was to blame. I have no problems holding them accountable, but the local govt can only do so much in a scenario such as this. They are limited by resources available. Self-responsibility is not anti-government, it is the appropriate adult response. Some situations are out of your control, but that doesn't mean you can't safely care for you and yours along with making sure your neighbors are helped at the same time.
Gov. Abbott contradicted local officials with his off-the-cuff suggestion people in Houston should flee. Metro Houston is 6.5M+ people. Where would they evac to? San Antonio and Austin were already swamped with people from Victoria, Corpus Christi and further south evacuating there under mandatory evac notifications. I45 to Dallas in no feasible way could handle 6.5M people fleeing. I was here when hurricane Rita came through and everyone evac'd. More people died on highways evacuating days before the hurricane made landfall than those died because of the hurricane.
Majority of people in metro Houston have power and while the flooding is catastrophic (exceeding 500 and 1000yr flood levels), the fatalities have been less than a handful (at the moment). Houstonians and Texans are coming to each other's aid, helping with rescues, etc. Even the Cajun Navy is coming in to help.
Edited: I completely agree with your sentiment about not waiting for the govt. Resources are already strained and even if they were willing, many roads/highways are completely impassable at the moment.