More than 100 Texas counties lack plans to curb damage from natural disasters [Video]

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LUFKIN — More than 100 Texas counties do not have a hazard mitigation plan, federal data shows, cutting off access to billions in non-emergency grants to help rebuild infrastructure after natural disasters.

Of 254 counties in the state, 103 counties lack plans approved by the Federal Emergency Management Agency. Most of these are rural, with fewer than 50,000 residents, a Texas Tribune analysis of federal data found. A total of 3.5 million Texans — or about 12% of the state’s population — live in a county without a plan.

On average, counties with no hazard mitigation plan have a population of 34,315 people, roughly one fifth the population of counties with an approved plan. Most counties without a plan stretch from the Panhandle through West Texas and down to Rio Grande Valley.

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