Category: Crisis

8/31/2017

CRISIS/TEXAS: “Containers of unstable chemicals stored at a Texas plant near Houston heated up and caught fire early Thursday [8-31-17] morning, hours after the facility’s owner urged residents and others to stay away. Arkema SA, an industrial chemicals manufacturer, had warned earlier in the week that heavy flooding and the loss of power in the […]

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8/30/2017

CRISIS/MIKE PENCE: “Vice President Mike Pence is getting a chance to survey Harvey’s wreckage. Pence is traveling to the tiny coastal town of Rockport, Texas, on Thursday to see the devastation caused by the hurricane-turned-tropical depression that set a rainfall record and severely flooded the Houston area. Harvey’s five straight days of rain totaled close […]

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8/30/2017

CRISIS/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT: “First responders have been doing heroic work. Their courage & devotion has saved countless lives – they represent the very best of America! https://t.co/I0gvCQLTKO” -Donald Trump, Twitter.com, August 30, 2017 08:00pm […]

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8/30/2017

CRISIS/POLITICS/TEXAS: “As Texas continues to attempt managing the destruction from Hurricane Harvey, Congress is due to consider an appropriations package that, as is, would rescind nearly $876 million from the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s Disaster Relief Fund. But with the proposal written prior to Hurricane Harvey, lawmakers are now expected to pivot funding directives to […]

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8/30/2017

CRISIS/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT: “Texas & Louisiana: We are w/ you today, we are w/ you tomorrow, & we will be w/ you EVERY SINGLE DAY AFTER, to restore, recover, & REBUILD! https://t.co/YQb82K2VSB” -Donald Trump, Twitter.com, August 30, 2017 02:38pm […]

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8/29/2017

CRISIS/ENERGY/EPA/TEXAS: “Hobbled oil refineries and damaged fuel facilities along the Gulf Coast of Texas from Tropical storm Harvey have released more than two million pounds of dangerous chemicals into the air this week, adding new health threats to Houston’s already considerable woes. The big spike in releases, which include carcinogenic benzene and nitrogen oxide, will […]

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8/29/2017

CRISIS/TEXAS/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT: “President Donald Trump arrived in Texas on Tuesday [8-29-17] morning to survey the devastation from tropical storm Harvey, with scheduled stops in Corpus Christi and Austin. In Corpus Christi, a Gulf Coast city about 200 miles southwest of Houston, the president is scheduled to receive a briefing on relief efforts from local […]

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8/29/2017

CRISIS/PIPELINES/TEXAS: “Flooding in Texas has disrupted the flow of fuel on a major pipeline that moves gasoline, diesel and jet fuel to the East Coast. The Colonial Pipeline said its system, which runs from Texas to New Jersey, is starting to have problems stemming from Hurricane Harvey. The notice from the company adds to concern […]

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8/28/2017

CRISIS/FEMA/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT: “The Federal Emergency Management Agency is calling on Americans to help with the response to Hurricane Harvey through financial donations or by assisting with search and rescue efforts, as the rainfall continues over the next few days. The federal government was focused on rescue operations on Monday morning and expected about 30,000 […]

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8/28/2017

CRISIS/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT: “The brutal storm pummeling the Houston area is putting the brakes, at least for a time, on the area’s recent economic upswing. And the impact is quite likely to be especially deep given the crucial role the region plays in the nation’s energy, chemical and shipping industries. Despite wobbly oil prices, local […]

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8/28/2017

CRISIS/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT: “Water poured into hospitals. Ambulances were caught up in roiling floodwaters. Medical transport helicopters were grounded by high winds. Houston’s world-renowned health care infrastructure found itself battered by Hurricane Harvey, struggling to treat storm victims while becoming a victim itself. The coming days will inevitably bring more hazards for storm-damaged hospitals and […]

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8/28/2017

CRISIS/HEALTHCARE: “Doctors waded miles through Houston’s flooded roads to reach their clinics. Other medical staff camped out at their hospitals for days, catching some sleep on cots between shifts. One medical facility was forced to evacuate patients by boat. The health-care system in the nation’s fourth-largest city strained to deliver care as floodwaters thwarted cancer […]

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8/28/2017

CRISIS/FEMA/NATIONAL DEBT: “Tropical Storm Harvey leaves Congress with a pair of unexpected financial challenges: further shoring up a heavily indebted federal flood insurance program and providing emergency funding for uncovered damage. Lawmakers will be under pressure when they return to Washington next week to extend the National Flood Insurance Program after the flooding disaster crippled […]

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8/28/2017

CRISIS/NATIONAL DEBT: “Tropical Storm Harvey will take a financial toll on the nation’s economy, but how much of one depends on the extent of flooding in the coming days. Even after the immediate threat from Harvey has passed and the floodwaters receded, the Texas Gulf Coast faces tens of billions of dollars in property damage, […]

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8/28/2017

CRISIS/GOP/POLITICS/TEXAS: “Texas Republicans in Congress once stood nearly united against a bill to send billions of dollars in aid to Northeastern states recovering from Hurricane Sandy. Sen. Ted Cruz even ripped the legislation as ‘a Christmas tree’ with billions of dollars in extraneous goodies. New York and New Jersey Republicans haven’t forgotten the slight. And […]

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8/28/2017

CRISIS/NATIONAL DEBT/TEXAS: “U.S. lawmakers are expected to pass a large aid package for victims of Hurricane Harvey, but specifics of the plan and its price tag are unclear as Congress awaits a funding request from the Trump administration. Rain continued to pound Houston and the Gulf Coast on Monday [8-28-17] as President Donald Trump said […]

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8/28/2017

CRISIS/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT: “Tropical Storm Harvey was poised to re-enter the Gulf of Mexico Monday [8-28-17] and make another landfall closer to Houston roughly two days later, prolonging the slow-motion flooding disaster that already has crippled one of the nation’s largest metropolitan areas. The storm isn’t expected to regain hurricane strength as its eye moves […]

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8/28/2017

CRISIS/MIKE PENCE/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT: “President Donald Trump is ‘anxious’ to visit hurricane-ravaged Texas this week and convey to Texans that ‘we are with you,’ Vice President Mike Pence said Monday [8-28-17]. The White House announced Sunday that Trump will visit the state on Tuesday, and Pence said Monday that details of the trip will be […]

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8/27/2017

CRISIS/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT: “President Donald Trump will fly to Texas on Tuesday [8-29-17], the White House said, where he will see firsthand the damage from a deadly tropical storm that has flooded Houston, the nation’s fourth-largest city. Mr. Trump returned to the White House on Sunday afternoon after monitoring the storm from the presidential retreat […]

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8/25/2017

CRISIS/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT: “We will remain fully engaged w/ open lines of communication as #HurricaneHarvey makes landfall. America is w/ you! @GovAbbott @FEMA @DHSgov https://t.co/PryIqRxgLr” -Donald Trump, Twitter.com, August 25, 2017 11:47pm […]

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