"It’s hard to believe the devastation," Trump said. "Trees that are 100 years old just ripped out of the ground. I've never seen anything like this, and I've seen a lot of bad ones."

Mr. Trump and Abbott promised to rebuild the devastated region, although the president recognized that what was lost can never be recovered.

President Donald Trump toured the devastation from catastrophic flooding in Texas and lauded local officials amid mounting criticism that they failed to warn residents quickly enough that a deadly wall of water was coming their way.

"The first lady and I are here in Texas to express the love and support and the anguish of our entire nation in the aftermath of this really horrific and deadly flood," Trump said as he spoke at a roundtable event with first responders and local officials.

President Trump and first lady Melania Trump visited Central Texas Friday to survey the devastation wrought by last week's deadly flooding.

Just weeks ago, President Donald Trump said he wanted to begin “phasing out” the Federal Emergency Management Agency after this hurricane season to “wean off of FEMA” and “bring it down to the state level.

Joined by first lady Melania Trump and officials, Trump surveyed the devastation and met with victims' families and emergency responders.