The Biden administration is providing federal funds to help eastern South Dakota counties after severe flooding affected many communities.
President Joe Biden approved a major disaster declaration for South Dakota, the White House announced on Thursday night.
Four counties—Davison, Lincoln, Turner, and Union—are eligible for individual assistance. This means that residents and businesses in these areas can receive grants for temporary housing and home repairs, low-cost loans for uninsured property losses, and other support from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA).
Those who suffered losses in the affected areas can apply for assistance at DisasterAssistance.gov or by calling 800-621-FEMA (3362).
Federal funding will also be available to state, tribal, and eligible local governments, as well as certain nonprofit organizations, to help with emergency work and repairing or replacing facilities damaged by the flooding.
The eligible counties for this support include Aurora, Bennett, Bon Homme, Brule, Buffalo, Charles Mix, Clay, Davison, Douglas, Gregory, Hand, Hanson, Hutchinson, Jackson, Lake, Lincoln, McCook, Miner, Minnehaha, Moody, Sanborn, Tripp, Turner, Union, and Yankton.
The federal government will cover 75% of the costs, while the state will pay 15%, and the counties will be responsible for the remaining 10%.
Governor Kristi Noem requested federal aid on July 26 after declaring a disaster through an executive order.
“South Dakota has worked very hard to get to this point, and we will continue working to rebuild our communities. I am so proud of our people,” Noem said in a Thursday night press release. “This event was unprecedented, but our response was typical of South Dakota—we come together to help our neighbors get back on their feet.”
The flooding began in mid-June and lasted until July 8, affecting eastern South Dakota. The National Weather Service described the rainfall that caused the flooding as a “1,000-year event.”
The flooding damaged communities and infrastructure across eastern South Dakota. In North Sioux City’s McCook Lake community, floodwaters from the Big Sioux River on July 23 destroyed about 30 homes and damaged roads.
A BNSF railroad bridge used for transporting goods between South Dakota and Iowa also collapsed on July 23 due to the flooding.
Parts of Canton received over a foot of rain between June 20 and June 22, nearly a decade after the 2014 flood that hit the area.
One person died in the flooding. The state Department of Public Safety reported that 87-year-old Merlyn Rennich from Harrisburg died after crashing a UTV on a closed road near Lake Alvin, 5 miles east of Harrisburg. The road was damaged by floodwaters, and he died after reversing into a washed-out section of the road while trying to turn around.