This Declaration Would Open Access To Federal Funds To Help Protect Nevadans’ Homes And Businesses
WASHINGTON, DC – Today, U.S. Senators Jacky Rosen (D-NV) and Catherine Cortez Masto (D-NV), and Congressman Steven Horsford (D-NV) sent a letter in support of Governor Joe Lombardo’s request urging President Biden to issue a Major Disaster Declaration for Nevada in the wake of a series of severe winter storms. The storms have resulted in devastating damage across parts of Nevada, causing widespread flooding, rockslides, and landslides that have threatened communities and contributed to more than $10 million in damages to public infrastructure. This declaration would provide Nevada with federal resources to protect residents, property, local businesses, tribal communities, and public infrastructure while the state experiences unprecedented flooding.
“In anticipation of expected flooding from snowmelt derived from recent winter storms, we write in support of a Major Disaster Declaration for the State of Nevada. Between March 8th and March 31st, 2023, Nevada experienced a series of severe winter storms that resulted in devastating damage across the northern and eastern parts of the state,” the Senators wrote. “We therefore respectfully request that you swiftly declare a major disaster so our State has access to the federal resources it needs to address these conditions and protect our residents, their property, local businesses, tribal communities, and Nevada’s counties, cities, and related infrastructure.”
“Widespread flooding, rockslides, and landslides have threatened communities, and state officials are expecting the impacts of this storm to continue to be felt as temperatures warm and the snowpack begins to melt,” the Senators continued. “Three counties are being disproportionately impacted by the storms and the subsequent flooding: Eureka County, Lincoln County, and Churchill County. In Eureka County, officials estimated that water was rushing to flood the community at a rate of over 600,000 gallons per minute during the March storm; and, in Churchill County, the Bureau of Reclamation has indicated that 1.1 million acre feet of water could flood the community as the snowpack melts.”
The full letter can be found here.
Senators Rosen and Cortez Masto, and Rep. Horsford are committed to ensuring Nevadans have access to federal resources in the face of natural disasters that threaten the state. Senators Rosen and Cortez Masto previously sent a bipartisan letter with of group of their colleagues to urge the Federal Emergency Management Agency to provide federal assistance to address extreme heat in Nevada. They also joined their colleagues in asking the White House for federal funds to help Nevada fight wildfires and extreme drought.
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