Kansas granted FEMA disaster declaration extension

TOPEKA (KSNT) – Governor Laura Kelly requested an extension to file a federal disaster declaration in late August due to rounds of severe storms, flash flooding, tornadoes, high winds, large hail and lightning.

In an Aug. 18 letter to the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), Kelly requested an extension on submitting the request to Sept. 15, 2023. The declaration is for the time period starting on June 27, 2023 to the present.

In a press release issued Sept. 1 2023, the Adjutant General’s Office announced Kansas had been granted the extension.

On July 14, a storm consisting of 70 mph winds blew across much of northeast Kansas bringing with it hail and flash floods in some areas. Evergy reported nearly 3,000 outages left more than 130,000 of its customers in a massive blackout.

City crews worked for four weeks cleaning up debris. An estimated 1,600 miles of roadway were covered during the operation, according to a press release from the City of Topeka. More than 500 service requests were made to the city’s call center related to storm debris cleanup.

“We are grateful for this extension to file our request,” Kelly said. “The additional time will allow personnel from the Kansas Division of Emergency Management, National Weather Service, and FEMA to gather all the necessary information to corroborate the incident period and the damages caused by the storms.”

Kansas is currently managing four open FEMA-declared disasters, according to the press release.