Texas Secretary of State Rolando Pablos is denying he turned down a Canadian offer to aid victims of Hurricane Harvey, the Austin American-Statesman reports.
CBC News had quoted Quebec's Minister of International Relations Christine St-Pierre as saying Pablos had declined the aid offer for now and instead asked for "prayers from the people of Quebec."
But a spokesman for Pablos, Sam Taylor, told the Austin American-Statesman that Quebec's offer was simply referred to the state agency responsible for emergency response.
"They've connected with the proper contact," Taylor said.
And in a Twitter post, the secretary of state's office explained it is directing all offers elsewhere.
"Because our office does not have any emergency management authority, we are directing all offers to the Texas Department of Public Safety's Office of Emergency Management, which is the state agency that handles the challenging logistics of emergency response," the office wrote.
The account by Pablos, a Republican, is backed up by Ann-Clara Vaillancourt, press secretary for Quebec's minister of international relations.
"Contrary to what has been reported in the media, Secretary Pablos did not decline the minister's offer, but instead made sure Quebec made contact with the proper Texas state agency," she said.
"The Quebec Government's office in Houston is in constant contact with local authorities and is arranging for emergency supplies to be shipped shortly."
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