President Trump approved the emergency declaration Monday afternoon.
The counties included are Breathitt, Clay, Harlan, Knott, Lee, Letcher, Martin, Owsley, Perry and Pike Counties.
Earlier, on Monday, during a press conference, Governor Beshear said maximum grant award for individual assistance is just over $43,000.
“We would hope that as many people would qualify for as much of that as possible. This federal assistance is essential to those who have been harmed by this flood, and we know that number is in the hundreds.”
Governor Beshear explained how some of that money would be used.
“That's to help people, who, last week, lost so much, get through the next couple of weeks. It's to help them clean out their homes, if their homes weren't destroyed, but significantly damaged. Those cleaning supplies are really important and they help people do it safely.”
The death toll from Kentucky's recent flooding and winter storm now stands at 22. The most recent death was reported in Marshall County in western Kentucky.
Officials said the individual died of hypothermia. On Friday, five additional deaths were reported. Eric Gibson is Kentucky's director for emergency management. During a press conference Monday, he said the breadth of this disaster was massive.
“We continue to see that these deaths are scattered across the state. So this widespread flooding event affected eastern Kentucky in one way, and also the western Kentucky and southern counties as well.”
As the state moves into stability and recovery phases of disaster response, debris removal is becoming a priority. Gibson said it becomes a health and safety issue.
“That becomes a very quick issue because of spoiled food and meat and things on the side of the road, along with all the wet building materials and things that have been pulled out to the curb. So we've got to get onto debris management very quickly, and as we begin this, we're beginning our assessments now.”
FEMA officials will be in Kentucky Tuesday to further assess damages.
All counties in the Commonwealth of Kentucky are eligible to apply for assistance under the Hazard Mitigation Grant Program.
The declaration states additional designations may be made at a later date if requested by the commonwealth and warranted by the results of further damage assessments.
How to Apply for Assistance: Residents and business owners who sustained losses in the designated counties can begin applying for assistance at DisasterAssistance.gov, by calling 800-621-FEMA (3362) or by using the FEMA App. Anyone using a relay service, such as video relay service (VRS), captioned telephone service or other similar service, can give FEMA the number for that service.
When applying for assistance, make sure:
You upload your documents online via the FEMA App or by visiting DisasterAssistance.gov.
- Your damaged home is your primary residence.
- You haven’t received assistance for the same losses from another source, including insurance.
- You are able to be reached by FEMA at the contact information you provide in the application.
If you disagree with FEMA’s decision, you may appeal:
- Online at DisasterAssistance.gov.
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