Governor Terry Branstad’s request for a presidential disaster declaration for 19 Iowa counties, including Des Moines and Lee county Governor Terry Branstad’s request for a presidential disaster declaration for 19 Iowa counties, including Des Moines and Lee counties, affected by severe storms in May was approved by the Federal Emergency Management Agency yesterday.
Des Moines County Secondary Roads Engineer Brian Carter says that a number of places in the county suffered serious road damage.
“As far as our extensive damage, we had a couple of bridges damaged. The Flint Creek [bridge], when it came up debris got stuck against the bridge which caused the water to become more turbulent and create more damage. It’s not in danger of collapsing or anything but it needs significant repairs underneath,” Carter told KBUR.
The Flint Creek bridge alone may take around $200,000 to repair.
Branstad requested the support after the counties were damaged by winds, tornadoes, rain, hail and thunderstorms from June 20 to June 25.
The declaration means the counties will get federal funding to help with rebuilding efforts, such as repairing property, removing debris and other emergency work.
