The Republican senator, who was on a planned family vacation, did not return to his state until 72 hours after the deadly disaster, which his spokeswoman said was as quickly as possible.

The Texas senator was seen touring the Parthenon in Athens. His staff said the senator booked the earliest flight back to Texas when he learned of the disaster.

GOP Sen. Ted Cruz was on a pre-planned vacation in Greece with his family when devastating floods hit central Texas, and he sought to travel back “as fast as humanly possible,” his office said.