By Julie Tomascik
Editor

Gov. Greg Abbott issued a disaster declaration for four counties in the Rio Grande Valley that were impacted by heavy rainfall and flooding last week.

The counties included in the declaration are Cameron, Hidalgo, Starr and Willacy.

“Texas continues to support local communities in South Texas impacted by heavy rainfall and flash flooding,” Abbott said. “I think the first responders and emergency management teams for their swift response to deploy crucial resources and assistance to local communities to save lives from severe weather threats across the state, including the wildfire danger in West Texas.”

Intense thunderstorms on Wednesday, March 26, brought torrential rains and severe weather to the region. Nearly two feet of rain fell in some areas of the region, triggering flash flooding and devastation to cities, homes and agriculture.

Barry Goldsmith, warning coordination meteorologist with the National Weather Service in the Valley, said the two-day rain totals last week in Cameron County were about two to three times the average for the month of September, which is the Valley’s wettest month on average.

“This is a devastating tragedy for our Valley community,” Texas Agriculture Commissioner Sid Miller said in a statement. “Texas is no stranger to natural disasters, but it’s important that Texans stand behind the Rio Grande Valley right now. While rain was desperately needed, the sheer volume that has fallen in this region has caused severe harm. The rain also fell downstream of the Rio Grande River and is unlikely to replenish water levels in Falcon Reservoir, where relief is still urgently needed.”

Texans impacted by the storms are encouraged to report damages to homes and businesses through the Individual State of Texas Assessment Tool (iSTAT) at damage.tdem.texas.gov.