Sununu requests disaster declaration for late July storm

According to the letter, preliminary damage assessments — facilitated by the N.H. Division of Homeland Security and Emergency Management and the Federal Emergency Management Agency — have verified $3,260,519 worth of damage across Cheshire and Sullivan Counties.

That figure, however, is not the complete sum of what it will cost for the impacted municipalities to fully recover from the storm, as it does not include soft costs — such as engineering expenses — or mitigation expenses. Additionally, due to the storm’s magnitude, FEMA representatives were unable to evaluate every site where towns indicated there was damage and instead only viewed sites where damage was most severe, Sununu wrote.

New Hampshire typically sees between 4 and 5 inches of rain in July, according to the letter. By July 29, southwestern New Hampshire had already experienced about 10 inches.

The storm — which came at the end of an already unusually wet July — involved two rounds of rain, with the first occurring July 29-30. According to information from the National Weather Service in Gray, Maine, which was included with the letter, there were reports of 2 to 3 inches of rain across the state, with some areas seeing as much as 5 inches in six hours — or even less time.

The first round of rain was the “impetus” for the flash flooding that occurred Aug. 1-2, the letter says. In that second round, Sullivan County saw the heaviest rains, with some areas reporting 2.5 to 3 inches.

Of the more than $3 million in verified damage, more than 99 percent is associated with roads and bridges. The remaining costs account for emergency protective measures, according to the letter, dated Sept. 20.

In Cheshire County, Alstead, Keene, Marlow and Walpole conducted damage assessments with FEMA, according to Vanessa Palange, spokeswoman for the N.H. Division of Homeland Security and Emergency Management. In Sullivan County, Acworth, Charlestown, Goshen, Langdon, Lempster, Sunapee, Unity and Washington conducted assessments.

The communities that suffered the most damage include Acworth, Alstead, Walpole and Washington, the letter says.

“It is important to note that fewer than 10 towns within these two (2) counties alone met the entire state indicator threshold to request a Major Disaster declaration for New Hampshire, a fact that highlights the profound impact that this event has had on the communities,” Sununu wrote.

The state threshold for a major disaster declaration request is $2,040,529.

The letter reported that Acworth — which was the hardest hit of all communities known to be impacted by the storm — incurred $1,394,639 in verified damage.

Heavy rains washed out 75 percent of road infrastructure and culverts across town. Twenty-nine roads were damaged, and 12 of those were fully closed while several others were partially closed. According to the letter, an engineer said many sections of Crane Brook Road were not salvageable.

Twelve roads in Acworth were not evaluated by FEMA during the town’s damage assessment, but “current local estimates for emergency repairs alone are approximately $7.8 [million],” the letter says.

Sununu also described the impact the storm and ensuing damage have had on the town’s farms, including Cadillac Dairy Farms and Bascom Maple Farm. The closure of Crane Brook Road and other roads has barred the maple farm from reaching more than half of its taps and made transporting crops difficult for Cadillac Dairy Farms, according to the letter.

Alstead incurred $383,263 in storm-related damage. State roads and infrastructure also sustained damage, and the N.H. Department of Transportation had $152,127 in FEMA-verified costs.

In the letter, Gov. Sununu requested a designation of the Public Assistance Program for Cheshire and Sullivan Counties and a statewide designation of the Hazard Mitigation Grant Program.

If President Biden approves the request for a disaster declaration, it would allow eligible communities to apply for funds from those two programs.

Under the Public Assistance Program, municipalities would share the cost of work, with the federal government typically covering no less than 75 percent of the costs, according to Palange.

The Hazard Mitigation Grant Program helps communities fund long-term mitigation projects so they can rebuild in a way that reduces the risk of injury or property loss in future disasters, she said.