Emergency declaration includes Bartholomew, Brown counties

Indiana Gov. Mike Braun is declaring a state of emergency for several area counties after last week’s devastating storms and flooding.

According to the governor’s office, the declaration is in effect for 30 days. He said the move allows allows the Indiana Department of Homeland Security to begin providing financial assistance to impacted communities who have eligible expenses under the State Disaster Relief Fund program.

Among the 18 counties covered in the declaration were Bartholomew and Brown counties, along with Clark, Crawford, Dearborn, Delaware, Gibson, Hamilton, Harrison, Lake, Madison, Marshall, Martin, Owen, Perry, Posey, Spencer, and Warrick counties.

Braun said in the statement that it is his hope that residents, businesses, and local governments will be able to access needed resources and assistance as they assess and recover from these devastating weather events.”

Bartholomew County officials are reminding you to make reports on any flood-related damages you have had on your property.

According to Bartholomew County Emergency Management, homes or businesses that have been damaged during the flooding that started last Wednesday, are urged to report the damage. You can file a report by calling emergency management at 812-379-1680 or by leaving a comment on the Bartholomew County Emergency Management Facebook page.

You can also file damage reports through the statewide 211 system, by calling 211 or 866-211-9966, Monday – Friday, 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. to complete a damage report over the phone. You can also go online to file a report at IN 211 dot org and clicking on Damage Reporting.

Photo: State Road 11 during the weekend flooding. photo courtesy of Bartholomew County Sheriff’s Department.