President Declares A Major Disaster For Minnesota 

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security's Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) announced that federal disaster aid has been made available to Minnesota to supplement the state and local recovery efforts in the area struck by severe storms and flooding beginning on March 16, 2011, and continuing. 

Federal funding is available to state and eligible local governments and certain private nonprofit organizations on a cost-sharing basis for emergency work and the repair or replacement of facilities damaged by the severe storms and flooding in Big Stone, Blue Earth, Brown, Carver, Chippewa, Clay, Grant, Lac qui Parle, Le Sueur, Lyon, McLeod, Nicollet, Redwood, Renville, Scott, Sibley, Stevens, Traverse, Wilkin, and Yellow Medicine counties.

Federal funding is also available on a cost-sharing basis for hazard mitigation measures statewide. 

Paul J. Ricciuti has been named as the Federal Coordinating Officer for federal recovery operations in the affected area.  Ricciuti said that additional designations may be made at a later date if requested by the State and warranted by the results of further damage assessments.