DENVER — Gov. Jared Polis on Saturday announced he has formally requested an expedited major disaster declaration (MDD) from President Donald Trump through the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to support recovery from devastating flooding and debris flows in southwestern Colorado.
WATCH: Federal Highway Administration approves $6.5M in quick release funds for southwest Colorado flood repairs
The request seeks FEMA Public Assistance (PA) and Hazard Mitigation Grant Program (HMGP) funding for Archuleta and Rio Grande counties following severe storms that occurred from Oct. 22-25, according to a release.
If approved, the declaration would provide federal assistance to help repair damaged infrastructure and reduce future flood risks.
“Devastating flooding has damaged homes and businesses, washed away roads, and disrupted the basic services Southwestern Colorado families depend on. Colorado has deployed rescue teams, delivered supplies, quickly restored use of roads, and committed state funding to help communities respond and recover. The damage documented so far exceeds what state and local resources can address alone. I am asking President Trump to swiftly approve this request to help restore essential services, rebuild damaged infrastructure, and support these communities on their road to recovery,” said Polis.
Polis said the state worked quickly with FEMA and local partners to validate almost $27 million in PA-eligible damages in Archuleta and Rio Grande counties alone.
Southwestern Colorado
Archuleta County residents in low-lying areas urged to evacuate due to floods
The governor said the state will continue the joint damage assessments with FEMA and local governments in additional impacted counties and will add those to the request as those damages are identified.
“The catastrophic damage from this disaster has had widespread impacts on community members and local, state, and Tribal infrastructure. This request will help to rebuild this infrastructure, and speed up the recovery process,” said Trevor Denney, Director of the Colorado Office of Emergency Management.
This request comes after Polis declared a disaster emergency on Oct. 22 for Alamosa, Archuleta, Dolores, Hinsdale, La Plata, Mineral, Montezuma, Ouray, Rio Grande, San Juan and San Miguel counties and amended the declaration on Oct. 23 to include Conejos County.
These declarations activated the State Emergency Operations Plan, authorized emergency spending and purchasing, and authorized Colorado National Guard support for flood response, evacuations, and search and rescue.
Polis said Colorado mobilized nearly 100 National Guard members with aviation and ground resources, rescued 48 people and 31 animals, deployed incident management teams and state field personnel, and delivered food, water and supplies.
The governor said that joint damage assessments conducted by state, federal and local officials have already identified $26.989 million in PA-eligible costs across Archuleta and Rio Grande counties alone.
However, Polis said the preliminary estimate reflects only sites that assessment teams could safely inspect during the initial assessment period. Approximately 100 homes in Archuleta County remained inaccessible as of Oct. 29, meaning that additional damage and cost estimates will be documented as access in the area improves.
The governor said that state, federal and local officials are continuing the work to identify damages in the other impacted counties.
Polis said that the Southern Ute Indian Tribe, whose lands were also impacted by severe flooding, will pursue FEMA assistance independently from the state’s request.
The governor added that Colorado has worked closely with Tribal leadership throughout the flood response and recovery planning and supports the Tribe’s chosen path to securing federal assistance, and added that state officials and resources remain available to assist with coordination of recovery needs.
Polis said that Colorado has also committed state resources to emergency repairs in the region, including approving the Transportation Commission request on Oct. 26 for $5 million in contingency funds for the initial transportation response.
Additionally, Polis said that on Oct. 28, CDOT requested approximately $65 million in Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) emergency relief funding based on preliminary estimates of damage to federal-aid roadways.
Local
South Fork flooding hits Fun Valley Family Resort
On Oct. 30, Polis said the FHWA approved CDOT’s request, authorizing $6.5 million in quick-release funding for repairs to U.S. 160, U.S. 550 and Colorado Highway 151 before winter.
Polis added that these highway costs are separate from the FEMA PA costs included in the governor’s MDD request.
Southwestern Colorado
CDOT seeks $65M in federal relief funds following southwestern Colorado floods
The MDD request is awaiting federal approval. The governor added that residents are encouraged to document damage and submit reports through county damage-reporting systems, and clarified that submitting a damage report is not an application for financial assistance.
Polis stated that further information on the status of the state’s request, and updates to any request for Individual Assistance, will be shared as soon as they become available.
Resources for affected Coloradans
- Sign up for emergency alerts: Sign up to receive emergency alerts [dhsem.colorado.gov]in your area.
- Assistance, shelter and temporary lodging information: Call 2-1-1, text your ZIP code to 898-211, or visit 211 Colorado’s disaster response page [mars.colorado.gov].
- Road conditions and closures: Visit COtrip.org [cotrip.org] or use the COtrip Planner app.
- Volunteer cleanup assistance: Call Crisis Cleanup at 970-283-7325 to request free volunteer help.
- Local updates, damage-reporting links and additional resources: Visit DHSEM’s regularly updated State Emergency Operation Center Updates page [dhsem.colorado.gov].
- Immediate emergencies: Call 911.