Governor Laura Kelly sent a letter to President Joe Biden through the Federal Emergency Management Agency on September 8, requesting a major federal disaster declaration for the state due to damages sustained in multiple Kansas counties by several rounds of severe weather. From June 27 through August 8, Kansas was hit with multiple severe thunderstorms that included strong damaging winds, heavy rainfall, flooding, large hail, and tornadoes.

“Over that two-month period, many Kansas counties experienced some sort of severe weather,” Governor Kelly said. “The damages inflicted by these storms have severely affected the safety and livelihoods of Kansans across the state. I have ordered the adjutant general to activate the disaster response and recovery portions of the Kansas Response Plan and to use all available resources of the state to cope with the disaster, as necessary.”

The governor is seeking public assistance for the following counties to repair vital infrastructure: Allen, Barber, Barton, Chautauqua, Cheyenne, Clark, Comanche, Cowley, Edwards, Finney, Ford, Franklin, Graham, Gray, Greely, Jefferson, Jewell, Johnson, Kearney, Marshall, McPherson, Meade, Mitchell, Nemaha, Norton, Osborne, Pawnee, Phillips, Rawlins, Republic, Rice, Rush, Russell, Seward, Sherman, Stafford, Sumner, Thomas, Wallace, Washington, Wichita, Woodson, and Wyandotte.

Governor Kelly said the total federal expenditure is expected to meet or exceed $18,687,000.