City of Midland Awarded $5.5 Million for Flood Recovery
“The City of Midland is extremely grateful to HUD for this generous support,” said Midland Mayor Maureen Donker. “Midland has seen significant tragedy and triumph in recent years, with devastating flooding events in 2017 and, more recently, the Edenville and Sanford dam failures in 2020. These events impacted the lives of residents, derailed businesses, and even affected our municipal operations. We’ve listened to the community to identify unmet needs, and, with these funds, we will improve infrastructure, address post-flood housing challenges, and become more sustainable and responsive to these events as we continue to grow and change as a community. ”
“We will work tirelessly to get communities hit hard by natural disasters the help they need to recover and rebuild,” said Gov. Whitmer. “I am grateful that our federal partners at the Department of Housing and Urban Development are sending $5.5 million to help Michiganders in Midland rebuild from May 2020’s severe storms and floods. We have a lot of work to do to make lasting investments in our infrastructure to make it more resilient. I know that we can come together to put Michiganders first and get it done.”
“Communities thrive when they are able to withstand climate impacts and natural disasters,” said Deputy Secretary Todman. “That is why I am pleased that HUD is awarding $5.5 million in new federal funding to assist the Midland community in their recovery from the severe storms and floods of May 2020. With this funding, Midland will have the resources it needs to improve the community’s climate resilience and the lives of those most-impacted by the flooding, particularly low- and moderate-income families and individuals.”
On Tuesday, May 19, 2020 heavy rainfall in mid-Michigan led to the breach of the Edenville and Sanford Dams and destroyed public infrastructure, homes, and businesses. Governor Whitmer declared a state of emergency on May 19, 2020 for Midland City and Midland County and later expanded the declaration to include additional impacted counties of Arenac, Gladwin, Saginaw, and Iosco. On May 20, 2020 Gov. Whitmer sent a letter to President Trump urging him to approve a federal emergency declaration for Midland County, which was approved on May 21, 2020. Governor Whitmer directed the Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy (EGLE) to investigate what caused the Edenville Dam and Sanford Dam to fail. On July 9, 2020, FEMA issued a major disaster declaration for Arenac, Gladwin, Iosco, Midland, and Saginaw Counties.
