Three more counties declared disaster areas

[June 23, 2008]  SPRINGFIELD -- On Sunday, Gov. Rod R. Blagojevich added Monroe, Randolph and Whiteside counties to a state disaster declaration that will help those areas respond to and recover from flooding along the Mississippi River. To date, 24 Illinois counties in the western, southeastern and northern parts of the state have been declared state disaster areas due to flooding and severe storms.

"As the floodwaters move downstream, we need to make sure communities have the help they need to keep homes and critical infrastructure safe," Blagojevich said. "I remain committed to helping flood-impacted areas along the Mississippi River and in other parts of the state with both their flood fight and recovery once the waters recede."

The governor's disaster declaration will allow the state to expedite assistance needed to help Whiteside County recover from recent flooding and Monroe and Randolph counties prepare for floodwaters expected soon. The state has personnel and assets that can be mobilized to help local government officials with disaster response and recovery, including such things as sandbags, National Guard troops and inmate crews to assist with filling sandbags, boats for evacuations and security patrols, road barricades, pumps, trucks, and a variety of heavy equipment.

In addition to Monroe, Randolph and Whiteside counties, the governor has also declared the following counties as state disaster areas: Adams, Calhoun, Clark, Coles, Crawford, Cumberland, Douglas, Edgar, Hancock, Henderson, Knox, Jasper, Jersey, Lake, Lawrence, Madison, Mercer, Pike, Rock Island, St. Clair and Winnebago.

The state's support for the flood fight along the Mississippi River continued throughout the weekend, with nearly 470 Illinois Army and Air National Guard troops assisting with sandbagging, levee patrols and other activities on Sunday. In addition, nearly 50 inmates from the Illinois Department of Corrections assisted with sandbagging efforts on Sunday in western Illinois. The State Emergency Operations Center in Springfield continues to be manned around the clock to ensure state assistance can be quickly deployed in response to requests from local officials, and two state Unified Area Commands are operating in Quincy and Alton to coordinate field operations.

To date, the state has deployed more than 5.5 million sandbags to help bolster levees and protect critical infrastructure along the Mississippi River.

[Text from file received from the Illinois Office of Communication and Information]