While President Donald Trump headed to Texas and Louisiana on his second trip to the storm-ravaged region, rescue workers were desperately searching flooded neighbourhoods across Texas for survivors stranded by Hurricane Harvey, one of the most destructive storms in American history that claimed at least 50 lives.
More than 185,000 homes were damaged and 9,000 destroyed as 42,000 people remain in shelters amid overflowing rivers and reservoirs, Texas officials said.
Mr Trump left aboard Air Force One on Saturday from a military base in Maryland along with First Lady Melania Trump and he tweeted: “We will see you soon. America is with you!”
A fresh blaze broke out on Saturday at a chemical plant near Houston, sending a giant plume of thick black smoke billowing into the sky.
The White House’s request for nearly $8 billion in emergency storm aid — made in a letter late Friday to House Speaker Paul Ryan — was $2 billion more than what the White House was expected to request, suggesting a rapid rise in needed funding as the scale of the disaster becomes clear.
