Gov. Gretchen Whitmer and several Michigan lawmakers have asked President Donald Trump to declare a major disaster declaration following the dam failures in the Midland area.
The “500-year disaster” resulted in catastrophic flooding in Arenac, Gladwin, Losco, Midland and Saginaw counties after the Edenville and Sanford dams failed at the end of May.
Whitmer sent a letter to the president asking for federal assistance.
“Last month’s flooding and dam failures upended the lives of thousands of Michigan families and business owners at a time when we were just beginning to reopen our economy following weeks of working to mitigate the spread of COVID-19,” Whitmer said in a news release. “This natural disaster, coupled with a global health pandemic, has created enormous stress and emotional trauma for these residents, and they need the federal government’s help to begin rebuilding their lives.”
The governor’s office said the flooding resulted in $190 million in losses to residents and over $55 million in immediate response costs and damage to public buildings.
State Rep. Annette Glenn, a Republican from Midland, also sent a letter to the president Monday asking for federal assistance. The letter was signed by six Republicans and one Democrat.
“Moving forward, our communities certainly need further assistance,” the letter reads. “As you know, we had multiple dam failures resulting in devastating flooding. Not only are our communities faced with two lakes that are now nearly drained and millions of dollars in dam repairs, but we also had roads and bridges completely wiped away, homes that floated off their foundations, a village’s entire business district in ruins, and more. The destruction caused by this flooding is unimaginable.”
From May 17 to 19, there was a prolonged period of rainfall in Michigan, which flooded the Tittabawassee River. The high water levels led to the Edenville Dam failing, which prompted a rush of water to flow downstream to the Sanford Lake.
This caused the embankments of the Sandford Dam to be breached. Glenn said in a news release that many families in the area did not purchase flood insurance because they were told they were not in a flood zone.
If the president declares a major disaster, it would make additional resources available beyond his original emergency declaration on May 21.
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