HOUSTON, Sept. 29 (Xinhua) -- U.S. Texas state Governor Greg Abbott delivered a 50-million-U.S.-dollars check to Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner on Friday for urgent needs after Hurricane Harvey.
In a joint press conference held here on Friday, the governor explained that the 50 million dollars came from the 100 million dollars disaster relief fund appropriated during the last legislative session, with the biggest chunk going to debris removal and rebuilding.
Meanwhile, Turner announced that with this additional financial aid from the state, there will be no need for a tax increase or to raise the revenue cap, as he had previously considered as a means to finance the city's recovery.
The Mayor estimated that only debris removal would cost 263 million U.S. dollars, and stressed that the recovery is facing challenges.
Abbott also left open the possibility of having a Texas Legislature Special session to deal with Harvey damage, not just in Houston but in all areas affected by the strom.
Harvey blew ashore on Aug. 25 as the most powerful hurricane to hit Texas in more than 50 years, displacing hundreds of thousands of people and damaging some 200,000 houses in a path of destruction that stretched for more than 480 km. The Houston area was hit by severe flooding, after receiving heavy rain.
