Living ex-US presidents launch hurricane relief effort

By Canberk Yuksel

NEW YORK

All five living former U.S. presidents on Thursday launched a campaign to raise money for victims of the two recent hurricane disasters in the country.

The private "One America Appeal" by Presidents Jimmy Carter, George H. W. Bush, Bill Clinton, George W. Bush and Barack Obama was officially announced in a short video clip aired during the opening game of the National Football League (NFL).

“Hurricane Harvey brought terrible destruction, but it also brought out the best in humanity,” Clinton says in the video.

“As former presidents, we wanted to help our fellow Americans begin to recover,” Obama says.

Carter points out the relief efforts carried out by Texans, including the Bush family.

“People are hurting down here, but as one Texan put it, ‘we’ve got more love in Texas than water’," George W. Bush says.

His father, George H.W. Bush, then says, “We love you, Texas.”

“As the nation carefully watches the advance of Hurricane Irma, the presidents stand ready to expand their appeal to help those affected by that storm,” the statement said.

Last month, Hurricane Harvey caused major damage in the southern U.S. state of Texas and neighboring Louisiana, wiping out as many as 40,000 homes in the Texas city of Houston.

A week later, Hurricane Irma began churning over the Caribbean. It's expected to deal "life-threatening impacts" to the state of Florida once it arrives this weekend, according to Gov. Rick Scott.