El Paso County declares local disaster because of early May storms
The Chair of the El Paso County Board of County Commissioners signed a local disaster declaration Friday.
The declaration seeks state and federal help paying to repair infrastructure damaged by rain and flooding between May 3 and May 12.
In signing the declaration, Board Chair Dennis Hisey said, “It is such a difficult situation for the County to be in, to experience four local disasters in just four years. But with the assistance of our partners at the State of Colorado and the Federal Government we will be able to rebuild our damaged roads and parks.”
The previous three disaster declarations were for the Waldo Canyon Fire in 2012, the Black Forest Fire in 2013, and flooding that took place in September of 2013.
Friday’s disaster declaration outlines an estimated $2.4 million in damages to County roads and County parks. Fountain Creek Regional Park and Bear Creek Regional Park experienced significant trail damage. El Paso County needed to exceed $2.1 million in damage to be eligible for federal disaster assistance.
The local declaration now goes to the State of Colorado Division of Local Affairs for review and then to Governor Hickenlooper. If all the damage in Colorado totals over $6.9 million Governor Hickenlooper would be able to seek a federal disaster declaration for the State of Colorado.
If the President of the United States issues a federal disaster declaration for Colorado, El Paso County would receive 75% reimbursements from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) for repairs, based on receipts submitted, documenting the actual cost of repairs.
The Board of El Paso County Commissioners will be asked to approve the declaration for the County at its meeting on Thursday, May 21.
