CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas (AP) — A Coast Guard official says helicopters rescued 18 people from boats and barges that were in distress because of Harvey.
Capt. Tony Hahn, commander of the Corpus Christi sector, said Saturday that the two helicopters managed to rescue the people when it became safe enough to do so. He says they retrieved three people from a fishing boat, four from a barge and 11 from two tugboats.
He says several boats sank in the Port of Corpus Christi and there will be a lot of work to do before it can reopen. Hahn also says that since Corpus Christi is the third largest petrochemical port in the nation, there is the potential for chemical and crude oil spills, so they’ll be watching for that.
He says the Port of Brownsville reopened Saturday morning and they haven’t yet been able to assess the Port of Victoria.
Harvey came ashore as a Category 4 hurricane Friday night but has since been downgraded to a tropical storm.
The White House says President Donald Trump has met with his Cabinet and other senior administration officials to discuss the federal response to the flooding and damage caused by Hurricane Harvey.
It issued a statement Saturday saying that Trump held a video conference from Camp David in which he instructed the relevant departments and agencies to “stay fully engaged and positioned to support his number one priority of saving lives.”
It says Trump also reminded his department heads that the full impact of the storm won’t be apparent for days, as residents of Texas and Louisiana recover from the heavy flooding and wind damage.
Harvey came ashore in Texas on Friday night as a Category 4 hurricane but has since been downgraded to a tropical storm as it weakens while moving inland. Forecasters warn of the possibility of catastrophic flooding, including in Houston, the nation’s fourth largest city.
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott says there have been no confirmed deaths linked to Tropical Storm Harvey.
