NRIS is posting the Montana Disaster and Emergency Services 2011 Flood Declarations Map. As changes with the flooding situation are occurring rapidly, the map will be updated daily. A link to the map is here:
nris.mt.gov/new/displayRelease.asp?relNum=316&referrer=whatsnew.asp
The Governor has requested a Presidential Disaster Declaration for Montana, and Preliminary Damage Assessments (PDAs) being conducted statewide by FEMA, state and local representatives are ongoing.
Additionally, Senator Jon Tester launched an online resource center for Montanans affected by historic flooding across the state: tester.senate.gov/flood.
That website includes hard-to-find information about resources available to Montanans and information for people willing to volunteer in aid efforts, including:
· Key phone numbers and links to disaster resources offered by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), the U.S. Farm Service Agency’s crop insurance program, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, the U.S. Small Business Administration, the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation, the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, the Montana Department of Public Health and Human Services, the Montana Department of Revenue, the Montana Department of Environmental Quality and the Montana Disaster and Emergency Services Division.
· Information for Montanans interested in volunteering for relief efforts.
Tester is a member of the Senate Homeland Security Committee, which oversees FEMA. Immediately after Montana communities reported severe flooding last week, the Senator and his Montana staff scheduled 12 outreach meetings in Montana’s hardest-hit communities, in an effort to get them the help they need. Last week, Tester and Governor Brian Schweitzer took an aerial tour of flooding in Southeast and Central Montana.