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Governor Whitmer requests disaster declaration from President Biden in wake of June flooding

Detroit Flooding
Posted at 4:43 PM, Jul 13, 2021
and last updated 2022-03-17 20:15:17-04

(WXYZ) — Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer has requested President Joe Biden declare a major disaster in the wake of the storms that flooded parts of Michigan in June.

The request comes after a survey of the damages to the areas most affected in Washtenaw and Wayne counties.

“We are working as quickly as possible to speed up the timeline for this request that Michigan families need so desperately to recover from these historic floods,” said Governor Whitmer in a news release. “The flooding on June 25-26 had devastating impacts on Wayne and Washtenaw Counties residents who suffered damage to their homes and loss of personal property. If granted a presidential declaration, additional federal sources will become available to assist Michigan residents as they continue to recover from this disaster.”

A disaster declaration by President Biden would release federal aid to those affected by the storms. That aid could include grants for temporary housing and home repairs, low-cost loans to cover uninsured property losses and other programs to help people and businesses recover from the effects of flooding.

The request will not be reviewed by the Federal Emergency Management Agency, which will advise the president on whether or not to grant the declaration.

You can read Governor Whitmer's letter to Biden below:

Letter, Gov. Whitmer to Pres. Biden, Re Pres Dec (7.13.21) by WXYZ-TV Channel 7 Detroit on Scribd