Dell CEO pledges $36mn to hurricane Harvey relief efforts

Washington, Sep 2 (IANS) The founder and CEO of Dell electronics has pledged to donate $36 million towards hurricane Harvey relief efforts, the largest aid till date, the media reported.

Michael Dell and and his wife Susan made the announcement on Friday along with the launch of the Rebuild Texas Fund with Texas Governor Greg Abbott, reports CNN.

The couple has already donated $17 million to launch the fund. The goal is to raise more than $100 million for immediate relief efforts, as well as longer-term recovery and rebuilding.

"This disaster is personal to everyone who has roots in Texas," Michael and Susan Dell said in a statement.

"Both of us were born and raised in Texas, and the street Michael grew up on in Houston is under water now."

The Michael and Susan Dell Foundation will also match $1 for every $2 donated to the new fund for the first $36 million raised. The matching campaign started on Friday and will continue through midnight on September 4.

Corporate giants have contributed $113 million to disaster relief efforts as of Thursday, according to the US Chamber of Commerce, CNN reported.

Fifty-two companies had donated $1 million or more as of that time. These figures are constantly growing as pledges continue to pour in.

Department store chain Walmart pledged up to $20 million in cash, products and matching donations. Meanwhile, Verizon Communications contributed $10 million.

So far, some 311,000 people, who were affected by the catastrophic hurricane that made landfall on August 25 in Texas, have registered for government disaster assistance.

The massive floods in Texas, one of the most devastating in US history, have forced more than 30,000 people to evacuate and the death toll has increased to 47, although it is feared that it will continue to rise.