The Biden administration has approved a federal disaster declaration for Addison County tied to severe rain and flooding in early August.
That means towns there can access federal aid to recoup some of the costs of repairing public infrastructure. That's significant because a prior disaster declaration for July's historic flooding did not extend to August.
Ben Rose with Vermont Emergency Management says the total cost of damage in Addison County in August was assessed at just over $1 million, with varying impacts depending on the community.
He says Middlebury, for example, had insurance coverage for its wastewater treatment plant.
"But the town of Hancock really got clobbered," Rose said, "and they would have been looking at hundreds of thousands of dollars of cost without federal assistance had we not gotten this declaration."
Cornwall and New Haven also suffered damage in the storms, Rose said.
The Federal Emergency Management Agency will now reimburse 75% of costs related to debris removal, road and building repair, and staff overtime, with the state picking up the rest.
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