Gov. Lamont submits request seeking major disaster declaration after flooding

Gov. Ned Lamont has formally submitted a request to President Joe Biden seeking a major disaster declaration after historic flooding that impacted Connecticut last month.

The governor’s office said the request comes after towns in Fairfield, Litchfield and New Haven counties sustained massive damage after severe flooding on Aug. 18.

In the weeks after the flooding, the Federal Emergency Management Agency, or FEMA, conducted a tour of damage in areas hit hard by the storms.

The major disaster declaration which would unlock funding sources specifically for home and business owners.

In his request, Lamont specifically requested approval of the Individual Assistance Program, which reimburses homeowners and businesses for some of the costs of repairing damage to uninsured private property.

The governor also requested funds through the Public Assistance Program, which reimburses state and local governments for some of the eligible costs of repairing damage to public property, including local roads, bridges, rail lines, critical infrastructure sites, schools, parks and other facilities.

In additional to these programs, Lamont also requested the implementation of FEMA’s Hazard Mitigation Grant Program, which helps state agencies and local governments take actions that can reduce or eliminate long-term risk to people and property from natural disasters.

Detailed assessments to document damages typically take several weeks to complete in order to calculate whether damage to infrastructure surpasses the required federal threshold. Lamont and his administration started the process immediately after the flooding, according to the governor’s office.

“People who live in the communities impacted by this historic storm are shaken as many of them have experienced significant damage to their homes and businesses and need support to rebuild and recover,” Lamont said. “My administration continues to work with the impacted areas to take the steps we need to ensure a speedy and full recovery.”

In his letter to Biden, Lamont notes that the FEMA preliminary damage assessment determined that the storm destroyed 19 homes.

Additionally, 170 homes suffered major damage, with an additional 133 homes deemed inaccessible, and 615 homes were found to have suffered minor damage per FEMA guidelines, with an additional 1,049 homes affected, the letter states.

The Small Business Administration’s preliminary damage assessment found that 77 businesses suffered major damages and 51 businesses received minor damages.

Connecticut Congressional delegation wrote to the president, asking him to grant the major disaster declaration.

“As the Governor’s disaster declaration request makes clear, the state and affected counties can demonstrate that they meet or exceed cost threshold requirements for a disaster declaration. We therefore urge you to swiftly grant Connecticut’s major disaster declaration request in order to help our state recoup losses and carry out the process of recovering,” the delegation wrote.