“The European Union knows very well how devastating natural disasters can be and our thoughts and solidarity are with all the American people affected by this deadly hurricane. The US can count on the European Union as a strong and an historic ally for all our support.” Said High Representative/Vice-President Federica Mogherini.

The European Commission’s 24/7 Emergency Response Coordination Centre has recently been in regular contact with the US Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) over Hurricane Harvey and any EU support that could help the US authorities. The EU’s emergency Copernicus Emergency Management Servicehas been activated at the request of FEMA and it is now providing damage assessment maps to several affected areas in Texas.  Commissioner for Humanitarian Aid and Crisis Management Christos Stylianides said: “Our EU emergency centre is giving a helping hand to our American friends as they work tirelessly to deal with the devastation of Hurricane Harvey. The EU’s emergency mapping service has been put into action and we stand ready to help further in any way we can.”