president biden says he'll approve a
disaster declaration for the u.s state
of texas
following a crippling winter storm at
least
two dozen people died of the unusually
cold weather
which also disrupted electricity and
water supplies
the snow and ice may have melted but
texans are facing a new hurdle
a shortage of clean water houston
residents
queued for up to three hours for just
that on friday
the water came on for a slight moment i
believe
on thursday or late wednesday but it
only came on as a trickle
i also wanted to get some for my
neighbor she's elderly and can't get out
at all and has no water at all
record low temperatures have led to
pumping problems
burst pipes and water mains across the
state
even flooding some homes
it's just the latest misery for
residents who are left without heat or
electricity
for days i'm just
overwhelmed everything's you know the
corona virus i lost my job you know
my mortgage you know i have a business
and i have a lot of stuff that you know
a lot of
and i don't know i'm just upset
it's overwhelming
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seven million people are currently under
orders to boil tap water before drinking
or cooking
as low water pressure could have allowed
bacteria into the system
[Applause]
the state's governor has appealed for
help from the u.s president
i talked to the federal emergency
management agency fema
the administrator this afternoon i'm
going to ask him to accelerate our
response and request
for a quote it's a different declaration
a major disaster
declaration so that we can get
everything done that we need that's
possible to get done
the declaration would allow for more
federal funds to be distributed for the
relief effort
which would be welcomed by the thousands
who are still without power
and water