After deadly floods, the Rio Grande Valley rallies amid a limited state response

On Saturday, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott issued a state-level disaster declaration for Cameron, Hidalgo, Starr and Willacy counties.

According to a news release from the governor’s office, state resources will “remain engaged” in support of local operations. However, no new major deployments of personnel or supplies were specified in the signed declaration or the release.

Catastrophic flooding swept across the Rio Grande Valley and northern Tamaulipas this week after a slow-moving storm dumped historic amounts of rain on the region. Neighborhoods were inundated, roads became impassable, and emergency crews responded to hundreds of calls for help. Three people lost their lives during the first 24 hours of rescue efforts.

While Abbott’s latest declaration emphasized support for local officials, the response has drawn scrutiny from some local residents. Under Operation Lone Star, the governor has previously committed more than $10 billion to repeatedly deploying thousands of state troopers and National Guard personnel to the same South Texas region.

During the disaster, neither the Republican governor nor President Donald Trump has mentioned the Rio Grande Valley by name—a region instrumental in helping put them in power. In a striking twist, Trump is pushing to dismantle FEMA, the very agency responsible for federal reimbursements to residents in the Valley.

But cities and counties in the Rio Grande Valley have responded to the record-breaking level of rain this week with collaborative force.

Harlingen Mayor Norma Sepulveda, whose city and surrounding areas have been particularly impacted, published updates on emergency response operations via Facebook Live on Saturday. The mayor said she is working closely with the Texas Division of Emergency Management (TDEM) to make sure required documentation for federal reimbursements is in place.

All of the counties and several cities in the Rio Grande Valley have filed their own disaster declarations.

The local and state declarations are part of an administrative process that helps with federal reimbursements once damage has been assessed. They do not necessarily mobilize state resources, which continue to be made available at the governor’s discretion.

The Harlingen police and fire departments responded to 500 disaster-related calls by 11 a.m. Saturday, according to Sepulveda, but the city had “zero calls for rescues” from residents at that time. The mayor specified she was referring to residents who needed to be removed from their homes and relocated on an emergency basis.

“If that is not accurate, and you are watching this, and you need rescue, please call 911,” Sepulveda said via livestream. She confirmed that emergency vehicles were available to transport people to the Harlingen Convention Center, where food and water are available for those in need.

Shelter is currently available across the Rio Grande Valley for those affected by severe flooding.

Many neighborhoods across the region remain inaccessible, as stories of emergency rescues by good samaritans litter social media. Churches, local family businesses and individuals are stepping in to provide desperately needed food and supplies. A semi-trailer truck driver, traveling back home to the Rio Grande Valley from Colorado, delivered the baby formula urgently needed by the family in my last story for The Border Chronicle.

Sepulveda said she is working closely with the irrigation district to pump water out of neighborhoods and into canals, where possible. However, the city’s vactor trucks, equipped with high-powered vacuum pumps, are first serving areas where water remains inside homes.

One of the central challenges has been finding places to dump the vast amounts of water.

“There’s nowhere to drain that water, so we are working closely with the irrigation district,” Sepulveda said. She added that she is coordinating with city departments “to help that water out and have somewhere for it to go.”

Cities and counties have mobilized personnel and resources to where it’s needed in the region.

Sepulveda urged residents to document all damage by filing an online assessment report on the TDEM website, available here: https://damage.tdem.texas.gov. The form is available in English and Spanish.

The mayor said the region needs to reach a threshold of $1.5 million in reported property damage to qualify for FEMA reimbursement, but emphasized that it depends on residents submitting damage reports.

“We need to help one another and be good neighbors,” Sepulveda said. “Check on your neighbors. Together we can make sure we take care of everyone.”

County Emergency Management coordinators in Cameron and Hidalgo were not immediately available for comment.