Disaster Declaration Approved for Missoula and Powell Counties

Missoula, MT (KGVO-AM News) - The office of President Joe Biden on Friday afternoon approved the federal disaster declaration sought for Missoula and Powell Counties after what the National Weather Service now terms a ‘derecho’ on July 24 wreaked havoc and caused millions in damage and counting.

I spoke with Director Adriane Beck with the Missoula County Department of Disaster and Emergency Services on Friday about the declaration.

President Biden Approves FEMA Funds for Missoula Disaster

“About two weeks ago, Governor Gianforte did put forward a request to the Biden administration, as is procedure, to request a federal disaster declaration for the severe storm that occurred in western Montana on July 24,” began Beck. “The counties that were eligible were Missoula County and Powell County.”

Beck said the word was received at her office early Friday afternoon that the request had been approved.

“That request was approved, we received word today at about 1:00 p.m. that the declaration had been signed,” she said. “What that does is it allows for the public assistance side of the FEMA (Federal Emergency Management Agency) grant program to be available for local government to recoup some of our eligible costs in our response to that event, as well as the recovery in the aftermath.”

Beck Said Her Office Continues to Quantify the Damage

Beck said the process to identify and quantify the amount of damage will continue for some time.

“It does just depend,” she said. “Obviously, we are still dealing with the debris and the aftermath of hazard trees, and that work will continue for some time. Once we have concluded that work, we will wrap up all of those costs and work directly with FEMA and the state of Montana to validate those costs. That process can take anywhere from 12 to 18 months before we actually see reimbursement, however, in some of these more acute disasters, that turnaround time can be much quicker.”

I brought up the fact that with so many trees that were weakened in the July 24^th storm that successive thunderstorms could bring down even more.

READ MORE: Governor Requests Federal Disaster Relief After Missoula Storm

Beck Said to Watch for Weakened Trees That May Fall During New Storms

“Every time we do see one of these storms come through, that is evidenced by damage that then presents itself by way of these weakened trees that were standing yesterday that then all of a sudden fail,” she said. “We are diligently in the process of trying to identify those trees so that we can begin the work of removing them and removing that hazard, and if we can attribute it to that first event on July 24, then it is eligible.”

Beck reminds anyone walking around Missoula to be especially aware of weakened or damaged trees and protect themselves from falling debris.