Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders is requesting federal assistance to help the state with recovering from wind storms that swept across Central Arkansas and the Delta on June 25.
In a news release Tuesday, Sanders said she is seeking a presidential Major Disaster Declaration in response to the storms.
“The storms that hit Arkansas in late June caused severe damage across Central Arkansas and the Delta,” Sanders said in the news release. “As these communities continue to recover, my administration has determined that the disaster’s impact was widespread enough to qualify our state for a federal Major Disaster Declaration. The additional assistance this declaration would provide will prove critical to Arkansas’ rebuilding efforts.”
According to the National Weather Service in Little Rock, winds from the June 25 storm ranged between 60 and 80 miles per hour and caused widespread power outages in Pulaski, Lonoke and Faulkner counties.
According to the news release a preliminary assessment conducted by the state and the Federal Emergency Management Agency concluded the storms caused enough damage for communities in Arkansas to qualify for FEMA’s Public Assistance Program.