After George Strait raised money for victims of this summer’s flooding in the Hill Country, Gov. Greg Abbott provided relief to some residents in the Austin area.
Abbott distributed relief checks on September 17 to families in the Austin suburb of Leander, according to a press release. Flood waters destroyed communities and killed at least 135 people starting July 4 across Central Texas, including a rural neighborhood in Leander.
“The financial assistance you leave with today will help you deal with the devastation left behind by the flooding,” Abbott told flood victims, according to the release. “Our hope is that this check will assist you all in a meaningful way in the rebuilding process.”
When Abbott presented the checks to families whose homes were damaged or destroyed, he was joined by Nim Kidd, chief of the Texas Division of Emergency Management, and officials from the Vaqueros del Mar Texas Flood Relief Fund.
Strait – a Texan known as the “King of Country Music” – held a benefit concert July 27 called “Strait to the Heart,” raising $6.25 million for flood victims through the relief fund, as The Dallas Express reported at the time. Abbott made an appearance, along with country artists such as Jamey Johnson, Randy Houser, and Riley Green.
A flood surged through a Leander neighborhood overnight between July 4 and 5, carrying away multiple homes. The Dallas Express visited the scene that morning and found widespread carnage – with flooding roads, abandoned cars, a damaged bridge, and twisted trees and metal.
Abbott also attended two previous events to distribute flood relief to victims, according to the release.
The governor distributed $25,000 checks in August to more than 60 families in Ingram, near Kerrville, the epicenter of some of the worst flooding, as The Dallas Express reported. Abbott also attended an earlier relief event.
“We know you’ve been challenged in extraordinary ways,” Abbott said at the most recent event. “We want to be able to be a part of the process, not just now but in an ongoing way, to help you respond to those challenges.”
