Governor Lynch Wants Major Disaster Declaration for New Hampshire

After meeting with agency heads at the state’s Emergency Operations Center this morning, Governor Lynch said he’s requesting federal assistance for homeowners and individuals hit hard by Thursday’s tornadoes.
But by the afternoon, Lynch stepped up that request to include public assistance to help the state and communities cover emergency operations and repair costs.
(My immediate concern is really to help the families who need our help with regard to shelter, food or clothing, and we’ll be coordinating among state agencies heads to make sure that those needs are met. :17)
Lynch and Federal Emergency Management Officials made stops in Epsom and Barnstead and continue to assess damage to homes.

FEMA officials say of the 116 homes inspected so far, only 15 are still habitable, 46 have minor damage, and 36 have major damage.
But FEMA Regional Director Art Cleaves says it gets worse from there.
( in homes that were actually destroyed, a home is total loss and repairs aren’t economically feasible, there were 19 in that category, we’re still going to be evaluating individual homes today as there were 35 that were inaccessible because of road crews and power crews working looking at those today)
Cleaves says, in total, the tornadoes and lethal storms affected 151 homes.
And Governor Lynch says FEMA is now in the process of assessing damage to roads and public buildings as well.
( Clearly they’ll be a financial impact to communities which have spent a lot of money making sure the roads are open, spent money cleaning up debris and helping families get back into homes.)
State officials are also worried about residents, volunteers and emergency crews who have spent days cleaning up.
Department of Homeland Security and Emergency Management Director Chris Pope says they should watch out for hazardous sites and keep an eye on the unpredictable weather.
Just this weekend severe thunderstorms knocked out power in several areas.
(when you’re fatigued and you’re operating a chain saw, there’s a much higher likelihood of an accident, same with generators, fueling generators, moving heavy equipment around, just very basic safety standards, we want folks to just take their time and be safe.)
State officials say they’ve made some progress in recovering from the disaster.
The major utilities have completed the task of resetting utility poles and lines along the rights-of-way and roadways.
But the process of attaching downed wires to homes could take several more days.
The state’s insurance commissioner says he will issue emergency licenses to out-of-state insurance adjusters so more will be available to help property owners.
And Governor Lynch says if anyone wants to make a financial donation they can contribute to the New Hampshire Disaster Relief Fund – which was set up to help flood victims.
It could be several weeks before the state receives a response to the federal disaster assistance request.
For NHPR news, I’m Amy Quinton.