Wisconsin tallies up storm damage as governor outlines initial recovery plans

MADISON, Wis. (Gray) – Wisconsin is working to assess damage from last week’s severe weather that brought extensive flooding, wind damage and 25 reported tornadoes across the state.

“We have pretty widespread damage, really in most areas of the state,” Greg Engel, a Wisconsin Emergency Management administrator, said.

As Wisconsin begins its path to recovery, Gov. Tony Evers is urging Wisconsin’s congressional delegation to start conversations with the Trump administration to “convey the importance of FEMA assistance.”

In a Friday letter to Wisconsin’s congressional delegation, Evers wrote, “It would be unfortunate if Wisconsin’s anticipated requests for emergency assistance are once again declined.”

The historic storms come after August’s thousand-year floods in Wisconsin, which particularly impacted Milwaukee. While FEMA approved homeowner relief funds, it denied Evers’ request for more than $26 million to support public assistance and hazard mitigation for six impacted counties.

Now, Wisconsin is still working to tally up the extent of the destruction from April’s storms. Some communities likely won’t complete their damage assessments until early next week, Engel explained.

Marathon County Emergency Management said they’ve already assessed nearly 150 damaged residences, and Outagamie County Executive Tom Nelson said recovery will be expensive.

“It is not an exaggeration to say that all those communities together will be millions of dollars worth of damage,” Nelson said.

After the end of these severe weather events, Evers will have 30 days to submit an application to FEMA for federal assistance. Engel said they’re working to collect as much information as they can for their report and will continue to provide resources for recovering communities.

A White House official said they “continue to monitor forecasted weather and flooding that is affecting Wisconsin.”

If you are an impacted homeowner, Rock County is encouraging homeowners to contact their insurance early, start a claim, ask what they are required to do or not do, ask about temporary housing or emergency coverage and not throw out major items until approved.

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