President Donald Trump has approved a major disaster declaration for McDowell, Mercer, Mingo and Wyoming counties over severe flooding that swept southern West Virginia beginning Feb. 15. Announced Wednesday, the declaration opens the region to financial aid through the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA).
Several communities in the state’s southern coalfields were devastated by flash flooding and river overflow. The extreme weather claimed at least three lives in southern West Virginia, and killed at least 23 people in neighboring Kentucky.
All 55 counties in the state were placed under a state of preparedness Feb. 6 over prior flash flooding, with Cabell and Kanawha counties also placed under a state of emergency.
Roughly one week later, with water levels still high, local officials reported decades-high levels of flooding from another bout of rainfall. On Feb. 15, Morrisey placed 13 counties under another state of emergency over the weather, which opens an area to emergency funds and mobilizes emergency personnel.
Morrisey requested that Trump issue the region a major disaster declaration on Feb. 17. Major disaster declarations make federal relief funds accessible to residents and businesses affected by disaster events, but first requires approval from the president’s office.
“The Major Disaster Declaration will supplement the work being completed on the ground and provide relief to recovering communities in southern West Virginia,” Morrisey said in a press release Wednesday evening.
Resources made available to the region by the federal major disaster declaration include FEMA’s Individual Assistance program and Hazard Mitigation Grant program, which provide financial aid to individual residents and public infrastructure, respectively.
For more information on how to apply for disaster aid, visit the FEMA website. For more information on Wednesday’s major disaster declaration, visit the FEMA webpage for the declaration.
