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Gov.
Blagojevich directs state to offer assistance to western Illinois
counties hard-hit by severe storms Thursday
Four
counties in northeastern Illinois declared disaster areas due to
flooding
State
coordinating with responders throughout northern part of state
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[August 25, 2007]
SPRINGFIELD -- Gov. Rod R.
Blagojevich said Friday that the State Emergency Operations Center,
already activated this week to monitor rising floodwaters in
northeastern Illinois, is coordinating with emergency management
officials in several counties to assess damage, determine response
resources and offer assistance following a series of severe storms
that moved across northern Illinois on Thursday. The storms downed
trees and power lines, damaged homes and businesses, and cut power
to nearly 300,000 homes. On Friday, the governor also declared Cook,
Lake, Kane and McHenry counties state disaster areas due to flooding
that worsened following Thursday's storms.
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"The weather dealt some cruel punches yesterday to northern Illinois
along a path from the Iowa border to the Indiana border, leaving
behind a path of destruction, debris and power outages," said
Blagojevich. "Today I declared Cook, Kane, McHenry and Lake counties
state disaster areas to ensure they get the state help they need.
The SEOC will continue to work closely with emergency management
officials so they get the resources needed to ensure the safety of
their residents and recover from these storms." Representatives
from several state agencies are manning the State Emergency
Operations Center in Springfield to coordinate with local response
officials to determine if state assets or personnel are needed for
response and recovery efforts. Staff members from the Illinois
Emergency Management Agency were sent to the Knox and Warren
counties in western Illinois following the storm and worked
throughout the night to help local officials assess assistance
needs.
So far, Knox County and Warren counties have requested equipment
from the Illinois Department of Transportation. Those assets will be
deployed on Monday to assist with debris removal.
Blagojevich said the State Emergency Operations Center will
continue to operate to coordinate response to the severe storms, as
well as ongoing efforts related to flooding in northeastern
Illinois.
[Text from file received from
the
Illinois Office of
Communication and Information]
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