Remember the hurricane-force winds that hit the Wasatch Front last September? President Donald Trump late Tuesday formally declared Utah a disaster area to trigger extra federal assistance for recovery efforts.
A White House statement said, “President Donald J. Trump declared that a major disaster exists in the state of Utah and ordered federal assistance to supplement state, tribal, and local recovery efforts in the areas affected by straight-line winds from September 7 to September 8, 2020.”
It said that federal funding is available to help cover the cost of emergency work or repair by local governments and some nonprofits in Salt Lake, Weber, Davis and Morgan counties.
Federal funding is also available on a cost-sharing basis for hazard mitigation measures statewide, it added.
Pete Gaynor, administrator of the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), named Kenneth G. Clark as the federal coordinating officer for federal recovery operations in the affected areas.
The White House statement said additional emergency designations may be made at a later date if requested by the state and warranted by the results of further damage assessments.
