Sununu seeks federal relief for flood damage
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Sep. 20—CONCORD — State officials are asking the Biden administration to approve federal disaster aid for $3.2 million in damages from flash flooding to small towns in Cheshire and Sullivan Counties last month.
Gov. Chris Sununu said two rounds of storms on July 29 through Aug. 2 should be treated as a "single disaster" with damages made much worse by record-setting rains that had preceded it in July.
"This area of the state typically sees around 4-5 inches of rain throughout the entire month of July, meaning the area had already received two (2) times the amount of precipitation it normally would when the first half of this event occurred," Sununu said in his request to the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA).
The floods washed out roads, left homes with more than four feet of water, caused the evacuation of 25 people from a flooded campground and resulted in the isolation of many residents, he said.
Concord registered 13 inches of rain in July, the wettest month since the state began record keeping in 1868. Rainfall amounts in the western part of the state were even higher including Jaffrey (19 inches) and Keene (17 inches).
This volume of monthly rainfall was a 200- to 500-year event, Sununu said.
Prior to the heavy rains, Sununu said 64% of rivers and streams with gauges were already reporting "much above normal" levels.
Much of the damage caused to roads and bridges will not be eligible for federal assistance.
Significant damages not eligible to get federal aid
Sununu said in the tiny town of Acworth, with fewer than 900 residents, there were 12 washed-out roads that can't receive Federal Emergency Management Agency assistance.
Estimates are the cost for the town to make all its emergency repairs are at least $7.8 million, he said.
"The town is unable to absorb the cost of the immense damages," Sununu wrote. "The town faces the mammoth task of trying to recover from a disaster that could easily exceed more than 10 times their entire annual budget, a cost that the local residents and businesses simply cannot fund."
State officials estimate 75% of the town's road infrastructure was washed out and the closure of one street, Crane Brook Road, has hurt the town's two biggest employers, Cadillac Dairy Farms LLC and Bascom Maple Farms Inc.
The dairy farm lost milk from some of its locations because there was no way to transport it within required deadlines.
The maple tree farm employs 80 and is a leading national maker of syrup.
The road's closure blocked access to 50% of its taps and if repairs aren't made soon, Sununu said the farm could lose $1 million in revenue.
"The economic impact to this small community caused by this event cannot be overstated," he added.
Other especially hard hit towns from this storm were Alstead, Walpole and Washington.
