State files request for aid from storm damage

OLYMPIA – Washington has filed a formal request for federal disaster aid to help with damage from November’s windstorms and floods that hit most of the state’s counties.

The 21-page letter from Gov. Jay Inslee to President Barack Obama details some $21.7 million of damage from the storms, more than half of it in Spokane and Snohomish counties. It was the third major disaster to hit the state in six months, coming on the heels of summer wildfires and a severe windstorm in August.

The Nov. 17 windstorm produced the largest outage in the 126 years Avista has been supplying power to Spokane, with some 700 miles of downed lines, 180,000 customers in the county without power and more than 800 trees downed in the city, some of which are shown in a map included with the request.

The request also details damage from winds around the state and major flooding of six rivers in Western Washington. In all, 31 of the state’s 39 counties had damage from the winds and floods. The state is asking for federal aid to help cover some of the state and local government costs of storm damage.

Damage was so extensive the state needed an extension to the standard 30-day deadline to compile data and cost estimates before filing its request for aid from the Federal Emergency Management Agency.