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Wisconsin will receive nearly $30 million in federal disaster relief to aid victims of last month’s flooding.

President Donald Trump announced Thursday in a social media post that he had approved the state’s request to help Milwaukee and other parts of the state affected by floods. The total approved is $29.8 million.

The approval came one month after historic rainfall caused widespread flooding in southeastern Wisconsin and three weeks after officials from the Federal Emergency Management Agency were on the ground in Milwaukee to survey damage.

The storm left flooded streets and basements, downed trees and power outages in its wake. Some residents were left without basic services, and the flooding may have claimed the lives of some people who were homeless. 

State and federal officials found the floods caused more than $33 million in damages to private property in Milwaukee, Washington and Waukesha counties. The request by Gov. Tony Evers for a presidential disaster declaration also included a request to FEMA’s Public Assistance Program for Door, Grant, Milwaukee, Ozaukee, Washington and Waukesha counties. 

In a statement, Milwaukee Mayor Cavalier Johnson called the approval “a significant stride forward in this area’s recovery efforts.”

U.S. Rep. Gwen Moore, D-Milwaukee, spoke on the House floor Thursday to advocate for federal help for the city. In a statement, she said the funds “will help my constituents pick up the pieces, and I will keep fighting for the resources they need until they are made whole.”

U.S. Sen. Ron Johnson, R-Oshkosh, received the news of the declaration from Trump.

“Thank you to President Trump for continuing to deliver BIG TIME for Wisconsinites,” Johnson wrote on social media.

U.S. Sen. Tammy Baldwin, D-Madison, in a statement said she would “continue to closely monitor to make sure Wisconsin gets everything we need to be on the road to recovery and the whole-of-government recovery effort does right by all Wisconsinites.”

FEMA representatives are scheduled to return to Wisconsin this month to assess damage to public infrastructure. In addition to the damages to private property, initial reports collected by the state found more than $43 million in damage to public property across six counties.

This story was originally published by WPR.

Wisconsin to receive $29.8M in federal aid for flood victims is a post from Wisconsin Watch, a non-profit investigative news site covering Wisconsin since 2009. Please consider making a contribution to support our journalism.