Governor Greg Abbott today toured a resource staging area at NRG Park in Houston and thanked first responders who have worked around the clock to help their fellow Texans throughout Hurricane Beryl. Following the tour, Governor Abbott held a briefing and a press conference with state and local officials at NRG Arena to provide an update on the state’s continued response and recovery efforts to Hurricane Beryl.
“I had the opportunity today to visit with more than a hundred emergency responders from the state’s Emergency Medical Task Force who came to this region to assist and support their fellow Texans,” said Governor Abbott. “Working collaboratively with our local partners is crucial for an effective response to any severe weather event, and Texas was able to work a week in advance with the City of Houston and other local officials to be ready for Hurricane Beryl. Everyone should be prepared for severe weather events, including during hurricane season. That is why the lack of power provided by CenterPoint compromises our No. 1 goal: protecting life. Texas will continue our efforts to work with local officials to provide resources and assistance—including water, ice, and ready-to-eat meals—to Texans in need until CenterPoint gets the power back on.”
The Governor was joined by Mayor John Whitmire, Texas Division of Emergency Management Chief Nim Kidd, Public Utility Commission of Texas Chairman Thomas Gleeson, and other state and local officials.
The Governor also announcedthe suspension of the seven-day waiting period for certain unemployment insurance claimants. This will expedite the process for workers and employees who are finding themselves partially or totally unemployed due to Hurricane Beryl to receive benefits if eligible.
Yesterday, Governor Abbott demanded CenterPoint take immediate action to improve their hurricane preparation and response efforts following their repeated and ongoing power failures in the Greater Houston area. The Governor requested CenterPoint provide the Office of the Governor with the following action plan by July 31, 2024 to address power issues:
- CenterPoint must provide in detail how it plans to remove all vegetation that threatens any power line.
- CenterPoint must specify how it will prepare in advance of any tropical storm that enters the Gulf Coast.
- CenterPoint must specify action it will take to pre-stage enough linemen and other personnel to be able to immediately respond to any power outages that may occur for any tropical storm that hits their service region.
Texas continues to support local communities by providing resources and assistance to affected areas, including personnel, generators, tarps, fuel, ready-to-eat meals, water, and ice. To date, Texas has distributed more than 5,362,000 bottles of water, more than 834,000 hot meals and ready-to-eat meals, and more than 216,000 bags of ice to Texas communities.
Texans are urged to submit online damage surveys to report damage to homes and businesses using the Individual State of Texas Assessment Tool (iSTAT) damage survey. iSTAT surveys can be filled out in English and Spanish by visiting damage.tdem.texas.gov and clicking “July 7th – Ongoing Hurricane/Tropical Storm Beryl.”
Information entered into the iSTAT damage survey helps emergency management officials identify immediate resource needs and aids in determining whether the state meets federal requirements for various forms of federal disaster assistance. Reporting damage through the iSTAT tool is a voluntary activity, is not a substitute for reporting damage to your insurance company and does not guarantee disaster relief assistance. Tutorial videos in English and Spanish explaining how to fill out iSTAT surveys are available at damage.tdem.texas.gov.
The State of Texas continues to take action to provide all available resources to help support local communities from the impacts of Hurricane Beryl, including:
- July 2– Texas Emergency Management Officials Urge Texans to Keep an Eye on the Gulf this Holiday Week
- July 3– Governor Abbott Directs TDEM To Issue Hurricane Beryl Advisory Notice For Texas Emergency Management Council
- July 4– Governor Abbott Increases Readiness Level Of State Emergency Operations Center Ahead Of Hurricane Beryl
- July 5– Acting Governor Patrick Issues a Disaster Declaration for 40 Counties and Held a Press Conference
- July 6– Acting Governor Patrick Adds 81 Texas Counties To Hurricane Beryl Disaster Declaration
- July 7– Acting Governor Patrick Gives Press Conference On Texas’ Hurricane Beryl Preparations And Response
- July 8– Acting Governor Dan Patrick ProvidesUpdate On Hurricane Beryl Response Efforts
- July 9– Governor Abbott Provides An Update On Hurricane Beryl Response In Texas and Acting Governor Patrick Held a Press Conference and Media Availability
- July 10– Governor Abbott Announces 67 Counties Approved For Major Disaster Declaration and Acting Governor Patrick Holds Press Conference To Update On Hurricane Beryl Response
- July 11– Acting Governor Patrick Holds Press Conference On State’s Response And Recovery Efforts, requested additional federal disaster assistance for 15 Texas counties, and requested an extension of the incident period for Hurricane Beryl
- July 13– Governor Abbott Announces Approval Of Federal Disaster Assistance For 17 Texas Counties
- July 14– Governor Abbott Provides Update On Texas’ Ongoing Hurricane Beryl Response And Recovery Efforts