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J.J. Watt raises $18M in Hurricane Harvey relief

J.J. Watt's fundraising campaign to aid Hurricane Harvey relief efforts surpassed $18.5 million in donations Sunday, the Texans star defensive end confirmed via Twitter.

On Thursday afternoon, Watt announced the drive has raised more than $12 million in donations. He passed the $13 million mark on Thursday night before hitting $15 million on Friday and passing $17 million on Saturday.

"I can't say thank you enough -- celebrities musicians, athletes, kids with their lemonade stands, people hosting fundraisers, business donating -- I cannot thank everybody enough," Watt said last week. "What's happening right now is my focus very much on getting this directly back to the people as I've said the whole time. We have the semi-trucks being filled up as we speak, coming down here to donate the supplies this weekend -- that's Phase One. It'll be the first phase of our operation to get an immediate of an impact as we can. We have things like water, food, clothing, generators, baby supplies, cleaning supplies. If there's something I'm not thinking of, please leave it in the comments because we want to make sure we get these people exactly what we need so we help rebuild as quickly as we can. Houston, we're thinking of you. Thank you to everybody who's donated."

Watt isn't the only one donating to hurricane relief efforts. The Texans have donated $1 million and the Titans gave $1 million to Watt's drive. The New England Patriots and New York Jets and the Johnson family also are donating $1 million each to relief efforts. Atlanta Falcons owner Arthur Blank pledges to match fan contributions up to $1 million to support Hurricane Harvey relief efforts.

The Green Bay Packers organization is donating $100,000 to J.J. Watt's Houston Flood Relief Fund. The Baltimore Ravens are donating $1 million to United Way of Greater Houston, with the funds distributed to the United Way Relief Fund for Hurricane Harvey, the Salvation Army of Houston and the Red Cross. The Lions also announced a $1 million donation to the Red Cross's relief efforts.

TV host Ellen DeGeneres surprised Watt with a $1 million donation to his fund on her show Wednesday. Pop star and actress Miley Cyrus announced she'd pledged $500,000 to hurricane relief efforts. Rapper Drake announced via Instagram he's donating $200,000 to Watt's initiative.

Click here to donate to Watt's flood relief fund, and here to donate to the Red Cross to help those affected by Hurricane Harvey.

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