Hurricane Harvey has been blamed for at least 47 deaths, and about 43,000 people are currently housed in shelters.
President Trump and his wife visited Texas earlier in the week but stayed clear of the disaster zone, saying they did not want to divert resources from rescue work.
However, the president was criticized for not meeting victims of the flooding and for focusing largely on the logistics of the government response.
Visiting Texas again on September 2, President Trump and the first lady made a point of meeting flood survivors and volunteers in Houston. They took part in food distribution at a shelter, handing out packed lunches, and posed for photographs with victims when they requested it.
During a tour of a shelter, President Trump said: “I think people appreciate what’s been done. It’s been done very efficiently, very well, and that’s what we want. We’ve very happy with the way things are going. A lot of love. There’s a lot of love.”
The president and his wife then traveled to Lake Charles, Louisiana, which also suffered flash floods, before flying back to Washington.
Amid the destruction, stories have been shared of people opening their homes and businesses to others, and forming human chains to save people from treacherous rising waters.
However, many are also now returning to destroyed homes without the insurance to fix them.
Experts estimate that only about 20% of those in Houston’s worst hit areas have flood insurance.
President Trump has asked Congress for $7.8 billion as an initial payment to help with recovery efforts following the flooding in both Texas and Louisiana, which has also hit production at America’s main petrol and oil refining centre.
On September 2, the White House said that the president had authorized an increase in the level of federal funding available for debris removal and emergency protective measures.
Texas Governor Greg Abbott has said the state may need more than $125 billion in aid.
The president has declared Sunday, September 3, a “National Day of Prayer” for victims of Hurricane Harvey.
Administration officials say there will be further requests for funds when the full impact of Hurricane Harvey becomes known.
Hurricane Harvey dumped an estimated 20 trillion gallons of rain on the Houston area.
Governor Greg Abbott has warned that the recovery program will be a “multi-year project”.
“This is going to be a massive, massive clean-up process,” he told ABC News.
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has warned that floodwater can contain bacteria and other contaminants from overflowing sewers. It said the biggest threat to public health was access to safe drinking water.
Authorities in flood-hit Orange County, east of Beaumont, imposed a curfew on September 2 to give its residents “peace of mind”, officials said. Looting in Houston earlier in the week led to a curfew being implemented.
Thousands of homes and businesses remain without power, and many schools are expected to remain closed on September 4.
Houston, America’s fourth most populous city, has implemented a night-time curfew to prevent looting from abandoned homes as authorities and volunteers battle to rescue stranded people and provide shelter for those made homeless by the rising waters.
The curfew runs from 00:00-05:00 local time for an indefinite period. Relief volunteers, first responders, and those going to and from work are exempt.
According to the National Weather Service, the rainfall in Texas set a new record for the continental US. A rain gauge in Cedar Bayou recorded nearly 52in of rain since August 25.
President Donald Trump visited Texas on August 29 to survey the damage brought by Harvey.
He arrived in Corpus Christi, where Hurricane Harvey first made landfall last week, accompanied by First Lady Melania Trump.
President Trump said he wanted the relief effort to stand as an example of how to respond to a storm.
“We want to do it better than ever before.
“This storm, it’s epic what happened. But you know what, it happened in Texas and Texas can handle anything.”
President Trump will not be visiting Houston.
According to the White House, the president did not want his visit to disrupt the emergency response.
President Trump has declared a federal state of emergency in both Texas and Louisiana. The move releases emergency government funding and other assistance.
Harvey was the most powerful hurricane to hit Texas in more than 50 years when it made landfall at Corpus Christi, 220 miles south-west of Houston. The storm is expected to continue dumping huge amounts of rain in the coming days over already flood-hit areas.
Texas Governor Greg Abbott has said he fears of severe flooding as the rains from Tropical Storm Harvey continue to lash the state.
The governor said the cities of Houston and Corpus Christi had already received as much as 20in of rain.
Greg Abbott said another 40in of rain could be due before the storm subsides midweek.
Rescue efforts are being hampered by strong winds and thousands are without power. Two deaths have been confirmed, in the Rockport area and Houston.
In Aransas County, where Rockport is the chief town, a person died in a house fire on August 25.
A woman died in Houston as she drove through flooded streets on August 26.
Houston, the fourth biggest city in the US, could see 2in-3in of a rain an hour on Saturday night, Mayor Sylvester Turner said.
According to officials, about 4,500 inmates from prisons south of Houston are being evacuated to other prisons in east Texas because the Brazos River nearby is rising significantly.
Harvey began as a major category 4 hurricane – the first to make landfall in the US in 12 years – before it was downgraded to a tropical storm later on August 26.
Governor Abbott warned of the “potential for very dramatic flooding” from the storm while expanding a declaration of emergency in the state from 30 counties to 50.
He has mobilized 1,800 military personnel to help with rescue and repair operations.
Forecasts say that up to 40in of rain could fall in some areas of the middle and upper Texas coast, the hurricane center (NHC) warned. Such precipitation could trigger flooding in low-lying areas and near water outlets and rivers.
The National Weather Service cautioned that the storm was so severe that many areas could be uninhabitable for months.
Harvey has now mostly moved inland, officials say, with several places already reported to have received well over 10in of rain.
However, coastal areas will also be flooded by storm surges during high tide, the NHC said.
Meteorologist Wendy Wong told the Houston Chronicle that at least seven tornadoes stemming from the hurricane had struck the Houston area between Friday evening and Saturday afternoon.
The tornadoes destroyed buildings and homes and are likely to continue throughout Sunday and Monday.
Earlier, Hurricane Harvey made a double landfall: north-east of the city of Corpus Christi initially late on Friday local time, then just north of Rockport a few hours later.
When Harvey struck close to Corpus Christi it had winds of up to 130mph, but by noon its sustained winds had dropped to 70mph – therefore becoming a tropical storm.
It was moving at an extremely low speed – 2mph.
The port of Corpus Christi – which closed on August 24 in preparation for the storm – only received “minor damage”. Its navigation channel is due to reopen after a survey is completed by engineers.
Texas City also expects to open its port within 48 hours.
Utility companies say nearly 300,000 customers have been without electricity.
President Donald Trump has freed up federal aid for the worst-affected areas and Governor Greg Abbott praised the administration for “stepping up”.
In a teleconference with cabinet members, President Trump “emphasized his expectations that all departments and agencies stay fully engaged and positioned to support his number one priority of saving lives”, the White House said.
At least 18 people have been rescued from vessels in distress by Coast Guard helicopters. ABC News has tweeted a video of four people being rescued off the coast of Port Aransas.
Rockport, normally home to about 10,000 people, appears to have been the hardest hit town.
Port Aransas, a city on Mustang Island, near Corpus Christi, is also reported to have extensive damage. Local media reports say a search and rescue operation is under way at a trailer park.
Harvey is the first major storm of the Atlantic hurricane season. It is forecast to meander across south-east Texas until Wednesday.
President Trump is likely to visit Texas early next week, the White House said.
According to the Houston Chronicle, Harvey is the strongest storm to hit the US since Charley in August 2004 and the most powerful to hit Texas since Hurricane Carla in 1961, which killed 34 people.
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