Kim Kardashian West pledges $500,000 to Hurricane Harvey victims

ByMICHAEL ROTHMAN ABCNews logo
Wednesday, August 30, 2017

Celebrities including The Rock, Kim Kardashian West, Kevin Hart and Beyoncé have all pledged to help the victims of Hurricane Harvey.



The storm made landfall in Texas on Friday night as a category 4 hurricane and lingered as a tropical storm over the weekend.



At least 11 people have died as a result of Harvey.



On Tuesday, Kardashian West tweeted, "Houston we are praying for you! My mom, sisters & I will be donating $500,000 to @redcross and @salvationarmyus today #HoustonStrong."



Beyoncé also released a statement on Monday to The Houston Chronicle, saying, "My heart goes out to my hometown, Houston, and I remain in constant prayer for those affected and for the rescuers who have been so brave and determined to do so much to help ... I am working closely with my team at BeyGOOD as well as my pastor (Rudy Rasmus at St. John's in downtown Houston) to implement a plan to help as many as we can."



Drake took to Instagram to say he was "working with local relief groups to aid and assist the people of Texas in anyway we can and in the most immediate way possible."



Hart on Sunday challenged the biggest names in Hollywood to step up and donate to the ongoing relief efforts.



"I'm calling this the Hurricane Harvey Relief Challenge....Lets go @therock @beyonce @chrisrock Jay Z Dave Chappelle @jerryseinfeild @iamsteveharveytv @justintimberlake #HurricaneHarveyReliefChallenge #prayforhouston .....I am getting a link together now people. Help me help Houston," he wrote.



Hart posted a video saying that even though there have been other challenges in the past, "some meaningful" and some not, he wanted to start a "real challenge" now to save lives.



He also donated $25,000 to the Red Cross.



The Rock matched Hart's donation of $25,000 and encouraged his Instagram followers to "donate a buck or two to our Houston families in need."



D.J. Khaled and Nicki Minaj also pledged $25,000 in light of Hart's challenge.



"I wanna thank people like Kevin Hart, who's already indicating and asking people to give," Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner said Monday at a press conference.



"The American Red Cross is helping the people affected by Hurricane Harvey in Texas and all across the Gulf coast. Shelters are open, truck loads of supplies are being distributed and volunteers in place," a statement on the organization's website said.



Others have stepped up as well, including Houston Texans star J.J. Watt, who posted a link to YouCaring.com for donations to help.



On Monday night, he said fundraising had hit $1 million within the first day. His goal as of Tuesday evening is to raise $5 million.



Country singer Chris Young also created a GoFundMe page with a goal of $500,000. It's raised more than $273,100 and he personally gave $100,000.



Others have joined on the hashtag "#HoustonStrong" to spread the word and connect folks looking to help.



ABC News' Michael Hayden contributed to this report.

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