More than seven weeks after major flooding struck South and Central Texas in July, President Donald Trump has approved some federal aid for affected areas, including Kerr, Kendall and Uvalde counties.
Trump approved a major disaster declaration for the July storms and flooding, but has not yet released all federal funding requested by local and state officials.
The disaster declaration means public assistance is now available for local governments for “emergency work and the repair and replacement of facilities,” the Federal Emergency Management Agency said.
Individual assistance, a separate FEMA program that helps with residents with temporary housing, home repairs and other needs, has not yet been approved.
The request for that aid “remains pending,” according to a statement from the office of Gov. Greg Abbott, who requested the federal aid for 28 counties on July 17, after heavy rain caused flooding throughout the region earlier that week.
“I thank President Trump for his approval of this Major Disaster Declaration,” Abbott said in a statement Thursday. “Federal public assistance is now available in 19 Texas counties damaged by the July storms and floods. Local officials will now have needed resources to recover and rebuild.”
The declaration covers the following counties: Bandera, Crockett, Dimmit, Edwards, Frio, Gillespie, Kendall, Kerr, Kimble, Kinney, La Salle, Mason, Maverick, Menard, Real, Sutton, Uvalde, Val Verde and Zavala counties.
It does not include Bexar County, where a tornado touched down during the mid-July storms.
Kerr County was hit hard by flooding along the Guadalupe River for the second year in a row. Only one person died in Kerr County during this year’s flooding, after 119 were killed in 2025. But the property damage total could be larger this year. More than 800 homes were damaged in Kerr County alone, according to data collected by the Community Foundation of the Texas Hill Country.
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