Indiana has asked the federal government to expedite a major disaster declaration that could unlock additional aid for Hoosier residents and communities across 54 storm-damaged counties.
Gov. Mike Braun signed and submitted the request to President Donald Trump on Aug. 20, earlier than state officials had expected to complete their damage assessments.
Braun said Aug. 21 that a federal decision would typically take at least a week, but his administration is seeking a faster review by the Federal Emergency Management Agency.
“I would hope that it doesn’t take seven to 10 days,” Braun told reporters. “That is typical, and the other issue will be: does it reach the threshold of what other recent similar disasters have had to reach in terms of whether we get it or not? I’m optimistic.”
The request seeks both individual and public assistance. Individual assistance can help residents with uninsured or underinsured losses, while public assistance can help governments and certain nonprofit organizations pay for debris removal, emergency work and repairs to damaged infrastructure.
It follows a federal emergency declaration Trump previously approved for 53 counties. That declaration supports immediate response efforts but is capped at $5 million. The major disaster declaration would make substantially more federal help available.
Recent storms and flooding displaced more than 1,000 families and contributed to at least seven deaths around Indiana, according to officials.
Central Indiana experienced widespread flooding, while powerful winds caused heavy damage and prolonged power outages in the northwestern part of the state.
“This is a more granular approach that’ll help entities, families that were displaced, losing their home, underinsured, no insurance, that type of stuff,” Braun said of the latest request.
The governor’s office said Braun has also pressed utilities to restore power in Northwest Indiana, directed additional relief money to affected families and secured more time for eligible residents of Lake and Porter counties to seek replacement Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits for food lost during outages.
State emergency grants of up to $5,000 are available for displaced families to cover immediate needs such as food and clothing. Braun said earlier this week that Indiana had restored its State Disaster Relief Fund to $5 million using state reserves.
“If granted, this declaration will mean significantly more resources to accelerate Indiana’s recovery from the recent severe weather. I will do everything in my power to ensure Hoosiers have the resources needed to recover,” Braun said in an additional statement on X. “My commitment to every impacted Hoosier is that the state will continue working alongside them in the weeks and months ahead, deploying the resources they need to recover and rebuild.”
This story originally was published by the Indiana Capital Chronicle, which is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Indiana Capital Chronicle maintains editorial independence.
