06 September, 2017
Trump acknowledged the "long term" recovery plan needed for cities impacted by Harvey's destruction.
At Minute Maid Park, the Houston Astros opened a double-header against the New York Mets, the first time the team played at home since Harvey struck. He is returning to Washington Saturday night. The storm killed as many as 60 people, dumped more than 50 inches (127 cm) of rain and caused damages estimated as high as $180 billion, including to 203,000 homes.
National disasters generally don't have silver linings.
Damage will be in the billions, and FEMA is approving rush recovery money, including advancepayouts from $5,000 to $20,000 to homeless Harvey victims. Before the storm hit, he was knocked unconscious in a fight he can barely remember.
On his second visit to the devastated state this week, the president was accompanied by his wife Melania Trump, who wore a baseball cap emblazoned with the word "Texas", green khaki pants and walking shoes.
"Houston, we've got your back". Later, they helped load trucks with relief supplies at a suburban church.
The mayor ordered the mandatory evacuation amid concerns that emergency responders couldn't reach those areas, if needed. District officials said that when students return they will receive a free meal three times a day for the entire year, NBC affiliate KPRC reported.
As Trump prepared to depart he said: "Good luck everybody" and "Good stuff".
"With the match deadline looming, I encourage those who can to contribute to this fund that will help those affected by Hurricane Harvey rebuild their lives", Abbott said in the statement. "It's been attractive", the president told reporters before he began passing out lunches.
Congress returns Tuesday from August recess, with assurances from Republican leaders of the GOP-controlled House and Senate that they will promptly start work on the president's request.
He also praised a person in a Red Cross vest saying, "fantastic job, great group". At the last three of 28 Texas coast ports still closed to ship traffic, the U.S. Coast Guard said it was monitoring water currents for when shipping might resume.
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott, Texas Sen.
"Really, I think people appreciate what has been done", Trump told reporters. He called the coordination between federal, state and local officials "terrific".
"They know what it took them through and we went right in the middle of it", he said.
Some of the heavy lifting will need to be done by the federal government, which is already providing security and offering relief services. He was heard asking one man about his military service.
"These organizations and the many other non-profits involved represent the generosity, determination, and unbreakable spirit of the American people", he said. People are donating in small numbers and celebrities are also donating hundreds of thousands of dollars.
Texas city struggles to restore water service in Harvey aftermath
"You can't hardly comprehend all the water that's around", Lawrence said.
Kevin Hipolito, 37, an unemployed Houston resident rescued from the roof of his vehicle two days earlier when his first-floor apartment was flooded, said he saw the Trump visit to the fourth-most populous US city as a show of support.
"I hope it provides a break from what's going through these people's minds", Astros manager A.J. Hinch said. They are posing for photographs and shaking hands as they listen to people's stories. Trump lifted one little girl into his arms and gave her a kiss. The Trumps brought coloring books and crayons and sat with families that had been displaced.
"If you weren't white or had your own money, it's nearly as if they didn't want you there".
Melania Trump will not be shamed into sneakers.
Dallas is the only city in Texas with a higher percentage. On her visit to Texas on Tuesday, she donned stilettos as she left the White House. "We've practiced this many times before". Earlier in the week, her hat read "Flotus", or First Lady of the United States.
The president will soon meet with Harvey victims at the air field before heading to a relief center. Later Saturday, the president heads to Louisiana.
The trip may have political implications for Trump. "America is with you!"
Abbott said the Texas spirit displayed during the storm has kept him motivated.
Earlier this year, an official count required by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development found about 3,400 homeless people in Houston, without doubt an undercount of the problem in a city of 2.3 million but still the best official data available.
"Keep fighting and we'll bounce back", Drummond said. We will help you recover. We're having to make decisions on what we do day by day. "The state of Texas will have plenty of gasoline", he said.
Some flooding in western Houston happened because the US Army Corps of Engineers intentionally released water from two reservoirs, Turner said.
When President Donald Trump made his first visit to Texas after Harvey, he brought plenty of optimism and swagger.
That made Saturday something of a do-over.
Trump is set to stop in Houston and Lake Charles, Louisiana, to survey the damage.
Those elements were missing from his first visit to the region on Tuesday.
