CHARLESTON, W.Va. — A request for federal disaster assistance for the Mountain State was pending Monday following flooding from storms that started on July 28th in northern West Virginia.
In a submitted request, Governor Jim Justice asked President Donald Trump to issue a Federal Disaster Declaration for 12 counties, according to information from the state Department of Military Affairs and Public Safety.
The request was for all categories of individual assistance in five counties: Harrison, Marion, Marshall, Ohio and Wetzel.
If approved, FEMA will provide temporary housing and some financial benefits to people in those counties based on the type of loss that they had.
Public assistance was also sought in seven counties: Doddridge, Monongalia, Preston, Randolph, Taylor, Tucker and Tyler.
Jimmy Gianato, director of the state Division of Homeland Security and Emergency Management, said they need all the help they can get at this point.
“That will give reimbursement to the state and particularly the smaller municipalities that don’t have the financial resources to be able to recover from an event like this,” Gianato told MetroNews.
As of Monday morning, Gianato said the state is looking at nearly $12 million worth of damage from the flood. He expects that number to grow.
“Every day, as we continue to do assessments, we’re seeing more damage,” he said.
The declaration, Gianato said, is meant to cover the costs for agencies that responded to the flood, help repair damaged roads, bridges and sewer system.
“This will provide a 75 percent reimbursement to those communities,” Gianato said.
In a statement Monday, Justice said:
“Although it has not garnered the national attention of last year’s catastrophic disaster,” Governor Justice wrote in reference to the June 2016 Flood, “The survivors of this event absolutely need the Stafford Act and other federal agency assistance that can only be provided by your declaring this event a Major Disaster.”
State damage assessments previously indicated nearly 160 homes were considered damaged in major ways or completely destroyed in July flooding.
In all, state officials reported damage, in some form, to more than 790 homes.
The Federal Disaster Declaration request does not include damage from July 23 flooding.