Over the weekend, Hurricane Harvey devastated southeast Texas, likely impacting the lives of more than 450,000 people, according to the director of the Federal Emergency Management Agency. And they need your help.
“We need citizens to be involved,” Brock Long, head of FEMA, said in a press conference on Aug. 28. “This is a landmark event.”
In the briefing, Long put out a request for help to anyone who can volunteer, whether it’s donating money and supplies or getting involved through the National Voluntary Organizations Active in Disaster, a site that lists opportunities for others to get involved.
Harvey barreled over the Texas coast Friday night as a Category 4 hurricane, making its way as far as north as Corpus Christi. It is the first major storm to make landfall on Texas in 12 years, according to the Los Angeles Times.
More than a dozen injuries were reported, and the death toll is at five, according to the New York Times. Tens of thousands have been forced from their homes by flooding, and even more are without power.
“This shelter mission is going to be a very heavy lift,” Long reported to CNN. “We are anticipating over 30,000 people being placed in shelters temporarily to stabilize the situation and provide for their care.”
Harvey isn’t finished yet. Now downgraded to a tropical storm, it is still expected to dump still more rain on Houston. As of this morning, more than 13 million people have been placed under flood watch between Corpus Christi and New Orleans, CNN reported.
“We have not seen an event like this,” Long said. “You couldn’t draw this situation up.”
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