HOUSTON _ President Donald Trump arrived in Houston Saturday on his second trip to Texas, to meet with victims of Hurricane Harvey.
After landing in midmorning at Ellington Field, Trump spoke to local legislators, handed out food to people forced from their homes by flooding, and sought to reassure families and children that his administration was engaged in Texas' recovery efforts.
"As tough as this was, it's been a wonderful thing," Trump said, praising the state's response. "It's been very well received."
"We're signing a lot of documents now to get money," he said, a reference to the White House's request to Congress Friday for $7.9 billion in immediate aid. Officials said this was only a down payment, a portion of a much larger funding request that could exceed $100 billion.
While communities to the east remain underwater, the flooding in Houston has largely receded, giving residents a chance to return to their homes to sift through the damage. The city's freeways are mostly clear, and traffic is flowing again. Electronic signs over the roadways warn that if there's water in your path, "Turn around, don't drown!"
Thousands of Texans are still without power or access to clean water. In the city of Beaumont, where flooding overwhelmed the municipality's water-pumping stations, residents remain under a boil-water notice.
Relief workers and volunteers continue to survey the wreckage of homes and neighborhoods, searching for survivors or bodies. More than 50 people have died, according to the Houston Chronicle.
Houston's 39.11 inches of rainfall in August is more than double its previous wettest month, June 2001, when the city got 19.21 inches, according to the National Weather Service.
The National Weather Service predicted dry conditions throughout the weekend.
The Houston Astros will play their first home game since the storm, returning Saturday for a doubleheader against the New York Mets at Minute Maid Park, less than half a mile from the George R. Brown Convention Center that is housing evacuees. The team announced it would provide 5,000 tickets to each game to volunteers, first responders and evacuees.
Inside Minute Maid Park, the Jumbotron above right field read: "Houston Strong" in blue, orange and white. "Dedicated to all those who lost their lives, property and were affected by the flood," it said.
"Strong" seems to have become the rallying cry of disasters. It echoed "Boston Strong," the slogan that emerged after the 2013 Boston Marathon bombing.
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