Volunteers are delivering bottled water in Houston on the 20th amid an unusual winter cold hitting Texas, USA. Houston = AFP Yonhap News
U.S. President Joe Biden approved the declaration of a major disaster in Texas, which suffered massive blackouts from an unusual winter storm and cold wave. The approval of a major disaster in Texas opens a way for the federal government to spend more money on the state’s damage recovery efforts.
The White House and the US Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) announced on the 20th (local time) that President Biden had approved the declaration of a major disaster in Texas. According to Bloomberg News, the approval allows the federal government to expedite the federal budget to recover damage in Texas. The Hill, an American political media outlet, predicts federal funding will go into 77 out of 254 Texas counties. Support measures such as provision of temporary shelters for the victims, housing repair costs, and low-interest loans are in operation.
In Texas, the largest oil and gas producer in the United States, not only have factories stopped due to a power outage due to an abnormal climate, but almost half of the residents are still unable to receive adequate water supply. Power plants across the state have resumed operation, but Reuters reported that more than 195,000 households are still not receiving power. The cold wave killed more than 60 people across the United States, and more than 20 people died in Texas alone.
Some predict that President Biden could visit Texas himself. The purpose is to check the state of disaster response at the federal level. President Biden said he was planning to visit Texas in the middle of next week, but he believes that his visit may interfere with the state’s recovery efforts and is considering it carefully.
Jinwook Kim reporter [email protected]
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