Whitmer expands emergency aid to 3 more Michigan counties with storm damage
- Gov. Gretchen Whitmer said the state will help communities with clean-up from last week’s devastating storms
- Eaton, Ingham and Livingston counties and city of South Lyon were added Monday to a state emergency declaration
- Whitmer extended emergency help to Wayne and Monroe counties last week
Last week’s disruptive storms have prompted Gov. Gretchen Whitmer to add three more counties — Eaton, Ingham and Livingston — to her initial emergency declaration.
The expanded order Monday afternoon comes after the counties, along with South Lyon in southwest Oakland County, asked the state for help with cleanup, saying they did not have sufficient local resources, according to the governor’s office.
Last Thursday a wide-ranging storm spawned tornadoes from Kent County to Wayne County, knocked out power to roughly 400,000 customers across the state and triggered flooding and other damage. On Friday, Whitmer declared a “state of emergency” for Wayne and Monroe counties.
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Her action Monday expanded that to the central Michigan counties and South Lyon.
Seven tornadoes were confirmed statewide, hitting Kent, Ingham, Livingston, Wayne and Monroe counties, according to the National Weather Service. Heavy rains pounded the area and led to flooding of roads and homes.
High winds of 60 to 80 mph were the main culprit in the damage, according to the weather service. The strongest tornado hit South Rockwood and moved for five miles, with top speeds of 105 mph.
As of Monday evening, a total of roughly 35,000 customers of Consumers Energy and DTE remained without power.
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