TOPEKA – Yesterday, Governor Laura Kelly sent a letter to the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) asking for a major presidential disaster declaration due to damages caused by a series of severe thunderstorms accompanied by straight-line winds, tornadoes, and flooding during the period of May 18-19, 2025. Multiple counties sustained damage to utility infrastructure, roads, and government-owned buildings.
“Small towns like Plevna and Grinnell are the heartbeat of our state, and I am committed to providing and ensuring these communities, and the region, have the resources they need to rebuild and thrive,” Governor Laura Kelly said. “Since day one of the recovery process, my administration has coordinated the deployment of technical, logistical, health, and environmental resources, in addition to advocating for recovery needs to relevant federal agencies like FEMA and the SBA.”
Governor Kelly made the request to seek federal assistance through the Public Assistance Program. The program provides funds on a cost-share basis to repair damaged public infrastructure, such as roads and bridges.
In the month since the severe weather, the Kelly administration has been a proactive partner in the response and recovery efforts of the impacted communities. These efforts have thus far resulted in Governor Kelly visiting Grinnell on May 22; Governor Kelly requesting U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) loans be made available on May 28 which were subsequently made available on May 31; formally issuing a state of disaster emergency proclamation on June 4; initiating a joint Public Assistance Program Preliminary Damage Assessments (PDA) conducted by Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) on June 5; and on June 17, formally requesting a major presidential disaster declaration.
During the night of May 18-19, 2025, severe thunderstorms, straight-line winds, tornadoes, and flooding affected the counties of Bourbon, Cheyenne, Edwards, Gove, Kiowa, Logan, Pratt, Reno, Scott, Sheridan, and Stafford.
The Kansas Division of Emergency Management (KDEM) began their response in coordination with local officials on May 18, and continues to be an active partner to the impacted communities. KDEM is facilitating damage assessments, human service needs coordination with volunteer organizations, technical recovery assistance, and coordination with federal partners like SBA and FEMA.
The Kansas Department of Transportation (KDOT) quickly mobilized the night of the tornadoes to close Interstate 70 (I-70) to clear debris and downed powerlines. After removing debris, KDOT organized traffic control for I-70 lane reductions to facilitate the installation of new power lines until May 21.
The Kansas Highway Patrol provided augmentation to local law enforcement, traffic control, and aerial reconnaissance of the damage path from tornadoes.
The Kansas Department of Health and Environment (KDHE) on May 20, issued a Disposal Without a Permit (DWOP) to Grinnell for on-site burial of disaster debris; and in Plevna, KDHE issued a fee waiver to the Reno County landfill, waiving the $1 per ton state tipping fee for disaster related debris. On May 21, KDHE suspended fee assessments to obtain certified copies of birth and marriage certificates for impacted Gove County residents until July 18, 2025; and fulfilled a Gove County request for tetanus vaccines to be distributed through Gove County Emergency Management and KDEM. KDHE also provided staff to the multi-agency resource center created on May 22 to connect impacted residents with resources.
The Kansas Department for Children and Families (DCF) participated in the multi-agency resource center to assist residents in signing up for assistance programs administered by DCF.
The U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) announced on May 31, after receiving a request from Governor Kelly on May 28, a disaster declaration for Gove, Graham, Lane, Logan, Ness, Scott, Sheridan, Thomas, and Trego counties, which makes available low interest federal disaster loans to Kansas small businesses, private nonprofits, and residents to offset physical and economic losses from the May 18 storm and tornado. On June 6, SBA announced that Harvey County was eligible for SBA’s Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL) program, which provides working capital to small businesses, small agricultural cooperatives, nurseries, and private nonprofits impacted by financial losses directly related to the disaster.
Governor Kelly issued a state of disaster emergency proclamation on June 4 for Bourbon, Cheyenne, Edwards, Gove, Kiowa, Logan, Pratt, Reno, Scott, Sheridan, and Stafford counties, activating the disaster response and recovery portions of the Kansas Response Plan. The Kansas Response Plan outlines the process by which disasters are responded to, mitigated, and recovered from; a process which recognizes that disaster recovery efforts are led at the local level.
On June 5, Kansas initiated the joint Public Assistance Program Preliminary Damage Assessments (PDA), conducted by FEMA Region VII and KDEM. PDA teams assess damages to public infrastructure, such as roads, bridges, and utilities, to determine if those counties meet federal damage thresholds to qualify for federal disaster assistance. The PDA is the next step in determining if damage reaches the threshold needed for a state to formally request a Presidential disaster declaration.
On June 17, Governor Kelly sent a letter to FEMA asking for a major presidential disaster declaration.
