By Pepper Fisher

CLALLAM COUNTY – President Joe Biden approved a disaster declaration on Wednesday for areas of Washington state hit hardest during the historic flooding in November.

The declaration makes federal funding available to affected people in Clallam, Skagit and Whatcom counties, including the Lummi Nation, Nooksack Indian Tribe and Quileute Tribe.

Undersheriff Ron Cameron had just heard the news when we did Thursday morning, and was trying to sort out what the declaration does, and what it doesn’t do.

“And the exciting part about this is, it appears that individual assistance might be available, too. Now what that looks like, we don’t know, because we haven’t dealt with that before. So, we’re working on that as we speak to see what individual assistance is available to private property owners. Frequently, every year we deal with public damage assessment so that, you know, we can get damage to public buildings like schools at the hospital or things like that. But very seldom do they come out and say, ‘Well, we’re going to help you, the individuals, with their problems’, and apparently that is in this package, so that’s a good thing.”

Assistance can include grants for temporary housing and home repairs, low-cost loans to cover uninsured property damage and other programs to assist individuals and business owners as they recover from the effects of the flooding.

Residents and business owners who sustained losses in the designated counties can begin applying for assistance by registering online at disasterassistance.gov or by calling 1-800-621-3362 or 1-800-462-7585 for the hearing and speech impaired.