Residents of the American state of Texas faced a huge natural disaster, hitting the coast of the state with a powerful hurricane "Harvey" led to catastrophic destruction, floods, as well as three victims and more than ten injured, according to the Washington Post.
Despite the fact that Hurricane Harvey has weakened to the level of a tropical storm (it was almost the maximum on Friday), the most dangerous consequences may lie ahead. We are talking about floods, which forecasters have classified as "life-threatening". A state of emergency has been declared in 50 counties of the state, almost 350 thousand people are left without electricity, and authorities believe that Texas recovery from a hurricane could take years.
The elements will also be the first test for US President Donald Trump of how successfully he can cope with the consequences of a natural disaster. Last August, Trump, while still a presidential candidate, sharply criticized former US President Barack Obama, accusing him of playing golf during a devastating flood in Louisiana.
First casualties and destruction
The hurricane quickly swept along the coast of the southern state, demolishing roofs, fences, trees. He cut off power to almost 350 thousand citizens. In addition, the first reports of casualties began to arrive on Saturday. At his press conference, Texas Gov. Gregg Abbott said there was no information yet on the victims. However, shortly thereafter, the mayor of Rockport reported the death of one person. In addition, on the air of CNN, the Aransas County judge added that more than 10 people were slightly injured.
Then the Los Angeles Times, citing a spokesman for the Rockport Fire Department, Roy Laird, reported that the number of victims of the hurricane increased to three people. Abbott also announced a state of emergency in 20 more counties in the state on Saturday, so the state of emergency is currently in force in 50 counties in Texas. Almost two thousand military personnel were involved in search and rescue operations. As US President Donald Trump said, the consequences of the hurricane will still manifest themselves in the coming days in the form of heavy rains and floods.
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Years to recover
Federal Crisis Management Agency (FEMA) Director Brock Long said it will take years for Texas to recover from the devastating Hurricane Harvey. “This will be an unprecedentedly long and difficult process for the state of Texas … It will take years to recover from this disaster,” Long said on MSNBC.
According to the Daily Mail, cleaning up the aftermath of Harvey could cost the state $ 40 billion. Of course, the economic impact of the hurricane has yet to be assessed as the future development of the disaster is unknown. But business losses are already obvious. In addition, the hurricane will affect the country's oil sector.
Thus, oil production in the Gulf of Mexico decreased by almost 25% due to Hurricane Harvey. The US Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement (BSEE) reported that US oil and gas companies operating offshore the Gulf of Mexico have evacuated over 110 offshore production platforms and rigs.
The data is based on the reports of 30 operating companies submitted to the bureau on August 26 at 11.30 local time (19.30 Moscow time). “Oil production in the Gulf of Mexico decreased by about 24.49% from the current production level of 1.75 million barrels per day, that is, by 428.568 thousand barrels per day. In addition, natural gas production in the Gulf of Mexico decreased by about 25.94% from the production level of 3.22 billion cubic feet per day (about 91 million cubic meters - ed.), Or 835 million cubic feet per day (about 23 million cubic meters - ed.) , - the message says.
The bureau also says the companies have evacuated personnel from 112 production platforms in the Gulf of Mexico (15.2% of the total), as well as from five fixed rigs (50% of the total). In addition, one mobile unit was relocated (4.7% of the total).
Trump's first "spontaneous" check
On Saturday morning, Trump and US Vice President Mike Pence held a teleconference on Hurricane Harvey with members of the administration. The President stressed the importance of the involvement of all ministries and agencies in helping to eliminate the consequences of Harvey.
According to him, the consequences of Hurricane Harvey will manifest themselves in the coming days in the form of heavy rains and floods. It is currently unknown if Trump intends to visit the stranded state. In the meantime, he spends his weekends at his country residence at Camp David, near Washington. Harvey has become the most powerful hurricane in the United States in 12 years since storm Katrina hit the country in 2005, which flooded the city of New Orleans, Louisiana.
Effects
This is just a tin of course. It is said to be the worst hurricane in 13 years
Tatiana Kalmykova