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The City of Houston has tapped the former head of Shell's US operations to lead the energy capital's recovery efforts from catastrophic floods caused by Hurricane Harvey. Marvin Odum, who led Shell Oil from 2008 until he retired last year, was named Houston's chief recovery officer, or recovery czar, by Mayor Sylvester Turner on Thursday.

"What I'm asking Marvin to do is to push us forward, to be a part of the rebuilding process, to push us to do more at all levels, to push us to make this city more resilient," Turner was quoted as saying by local media. Odum, a Houston native, will receive no salary for the job, Turner said. Turner said he wants Odum to "help us get out of our comfort zone and put those things out there that we know can make a difference and then help to drive the public and the private sector to get it done". Odum led the rebuilding of Shell's Gulf of Mexico facilities after Hurricane Katrina. He stressed the need for a brisk recovery. "This is an urgent situation for a lot of people. Those immediate needs won't be forgotten," he was quoted as saying.

Houston is slowly getting back to normal after the devastating floods left much of the US' fourth biggest city under water for days in late August and early September. The Energy Corridor to the west of downtown was hit especially hard, forcing many engineering firms and production companies from their offices. Some have yet to return. The recovery could cost upwards of $180 billion, according to some estimates, which would make Harvey the most expensive natural disaster in US history. Meanwhile, Governor Greg Abbott named Texas Land Commissioner George P Bush to head the state's housing recovering from Harvey.