Arizona to Appeal Denial of Federal Disaster Aid

A federal government decision to deny disaster aid for winter flood and snowstorm damage is being appealed by the state of Arizona.

The Federal Emergency Management Agency says the damage from the January storms wasn’t bad enough to merit its intervention. State emergency officials told FEMA last week that they wanted 30 days to update their damage estimate.

The state’s first report says heavy storms that hammered the state destroyed 56 homes and caused major damage to 81 homes and 75 businesses. But Arizona emergency management chief Louis Trammell says in a letter to FEMA that a significant amount of unreported damage has now been documented.

The state wants FEMA to provide aid to help rebuild the damaged or destroyed homes and businesses.

Information from: The Arizona Republic