国际英语新闻:Disaster state for Houston area extended for 2 weeks: official

HOUSTON, Sept. 1 (Xinhua) -- The state of disaster for Houston area was extended for two weeks, local officials said on Friday.

Harris County Commissioners Court on Friday held an emergency meeting to extend the county's state of disaster, as it grapples with the devastation from Tropical Storm Harvey which made landfall along the Gulf of Mexico as a hurricane in a category 4.

Harris is a county located in the U.S. state of Texas and its county seat is Houston.

The state of disaster allows County Judge Ed Emmett to declare curfews, prohibit travel in parts of the county as well as suspend county rules regulating contracting or suspend tolls on toll roads.

Commissioners Court also began working out how to pay employees who worked or could not get to work during the storm.

Governor of Texas Greg Abbott on Friday added three counties to the federal disaster declaration. This addition will bring the number of counties receiving federal assistance to 36.

Over 40 people dead or feared in flooding or circumstances connected to Tropical Storm Harvey in Texas, according to local officials.

Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner on Friday asked some residents who live near the Addicks reservoir to leave their homes as water will be released from the dam into the neighborhood for next 10 to 15 days.