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President Joe Biden declared a state of emergency today for the areas of Suffolk County impacted by the catastrophic storms that tore across Long Island seven days ago, the White House said.
The declaration means that federal funds will be on the way to help alleviate “the hardship and suffering caused by the emergency on the local population, and to provide appropriate assistance for required emergency measures … to save lives and to protect property and public health and safety,” according to a statement from the White House.
The President’s action authorizes the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to coordinate all disaster relief efforts. Lai Sun Yee of FEMA has been appointed to coordinate Federal recovery operations in the affected areas.
The coming federal aid will help fund emergency relief efforts in Suffolk County, particularly in communities along the North Shore, which was hit hardest by the severe storms and flooding on Aug. 18 and 19. Gov. Kathy Hochul issued an emergency declaration on Friday for Suffolk.
“I commend the hardworking damage assessment teams on the ground who provided information to secure this important federal disaster assistance,” Hochul said. “I thank President Biden and FEMA Administrator Deanne Criswell for their continued support in helping Suffolk County residents get the assistance they need.”
The storms’ heavy rainfall caused widespread flash flooding in Suffolk County late on Sunday, Aug. 18, and continued through the morning of Aug. 19. The trail of destruction included multiple flooding rescues, a dam failure in Stony Brook, severely damaged roads, major road closures, and emergency evacuations due to flooded residences and buildings.
The weather event was classified as a “thousand-year” storm because it was a 1-in-1,000-year rain event for the impacted area.
Over 2,000 residents and business owners experienced flood damage in some capacity, the governor’s office said.
Suffolk County Executive Ed Romaine in a statement thanked Sens. Chuck Schumer and Kirsten Gillibrand for helping to secure the federal emergency declaration.
“We can now move forward and begin to help families and communities begin to rebuild,” Romaine said.
Top photo taken by Andrew Theodarakis.
