Hartford, CT— U.S. Senators Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.) and Chris Murphy (D-Conn.) and U.S. Representatives John Larson (CT-1), Joe Courtney (CT-2), Rosa DeLauro (CT-3), Jim Himes (CT-4), and Elizabeth Esty (CT-5), sent a letter to President Trump urging the administration to grant Governor Dannel P. Malloy’s request for a presidential disaster declaration arising from a series of powerful supercell thunderstorms that hit Connecticut on May 15, 2018.  

“The storms required our state and many of our municipalities to exhaust scarce resources responding to emergencies, clearing debris, and providing accommodations and other necessities for displaced persons.  These efforts strained budgets and forced our state and local communities to face large, unanticipated costs,” the delegation writes in the letter to President Trump.

The supercell included tornadoes, a waterspout, tennis ball-sized hail and a straight-line windstorm and caused significant damage in Brookfield, Danbury, New Milford, Newtown, Oxford, Ridgefield, Southbury, Winsted, Bethany, Hamden, Cheshire, Durham, Seymour, North Haven, Beacon Falls, and Wallingford. There were several injuries and two fatalities. 

On July 9, 2018, Governor Malloy requested a major disaster declaration for New Haven and Fairfield Counties and New Milford, Bridgewater and Roxbury in Litchfield County as a result of the May supercell.  The request also includes Hazard Mitigation Assistance for the state of Connecticut and the tribal lands of the Mashantucket Pequot and Mohegan Tribes.   

“As the Governor’s disaster declaration request makes clear, the state and affected counties can all demonstrate that they meet or exceed cost threshold requirements for a disaster declaration.  It is vital that you grant the request in order to help our state recoup losses and carry out the process of recovering from the May storms,” the delegation continues. 

The full letter is here and below:

July 9, 2018 

President Donald J. Trump
The White House
Washington, D.C.  20500 

Dear Mr. President:

We write to urge you to grant Governor Dannel P. Malloy’s request for a presidential disaster declaration arising from a series of powerful supercell thunderstorms that hit Connecticut on May 15, 2018.  This supercell included tornadoes, a waterspout, tennis ball-sized hail and a straight-line windstorm.    

The supercell caused significant damage in communities throughout Connecticut. These devastated communities include Brookfield, Danbury, New Milford, Newtown, Oxford, Ridgefield, Southbury, Winsted, Bethany, Hamden, Cheshire, Durham, Seymour, and North Haven.  According to state officials, there were injuries and at least two fatalities – one in Danbury and one in New Fairfield.  Power outages were reported at tens of thousands of homes.  One thousand eight hundred utility poles need to be replaced and 288 miles of power lines were downed.  The storms required our state and many of our municipalities to exhaust scarce resources responding to emergencies, clearing debris, and providing accommodations and other necessities for displaced persons.  These efforts strained budgets and forced our state and local communities to face large, unanticipated costs.

On July 9, 2018, Governor Malloy requested a major disaster declaration for New Haven and Fairfield Counties and New Milford, Bridgewater and Roxbury in Litchfield County as a result of the May supercell.  The request also includes Hazard Mitigation Assistance for the state of Connecticut and the tribal lands of the Mashantucket Pequot and Mohegan Tribes.   

The governor’s application is pursuant to the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act (P.L. 93-288), which provides financial aid and assistance for communities hit by major storms like the ones that affected Connecticut. As the Governor’s disaster declaration request makes clear, the state and affected counties can all demonstrate that they meet or exceed cost threshold requirements for a disaster declaration.  It is vital that you grant the request in order to help our state recoup losses and carry out the process of recovering from the May storms.

We appreciate your prompt consideration of this request.

                                                                 Sincerely,