AUSTIN — Today Texas Land Commissioner George P. Bush announced he sent a letter to Dr. Ben Carson, Secretary of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), requesting a disaster recovery designation to congressional appropriations of Community Development Block Grants (CDBG) for the June 2019 flooding in the lower Rio Grande Valley of Texas. On July 17, President Donald J. Trump approved the disaster declaration for the counties of Cameron, Hidalgo and Willacy due to severe flooding along the Rio Grande watershed.

"The lower Rio Grande Valley has endured back-to-back flood disasters," said Commissioner Bush. "In May of this year, Congress appropriated, and your department awarded, $46 million to these three counties for the impact of flooding which occurred in 2018. Many of the communities in these counties are still attempting to recover from the 2018 flooding event when severe thunderstorms and heavy rainfall inundated them again in June 2019."

In the letter, Commissioner Bush described the destructive flooding conditions the RGV endured. He informed Secretary Carson that rainfall records were broken across the region, some dating back 100 years. Bush stated that, in just a six-hour period, between 6 and 12 inches of rain fell on the area and that measuring stations in the city of Harlingen recorded 10 inches of rain or more. Commissioner Bush also noted that the impact of repeat flooding takes a significant toll on storm survivors, mentally as well as physically.

"I want to thank you and your department for all you have done for the storm victims of Texas, and I look forward to continuing to work with you as we help Texas recover from the June 2019 severe weather event," Bush concluded.