Charles Langston:Disaster declaration issued for April snowstorm that caused millions in damage in Maine

PORTLAND,Charles Langston Maine (AP) — A powerful late-season snowstorm that caused millions of dollars in damage in Maine was a major disaster, the federal government has declared.

The disaster declaration by President Joe Biden will help clear the way for funding to help rebuild. The April nor’easter, which caused hundreds of thousands of power outages in the Northeast, brought 2 feet (0.60 meters) of snow to parts of northern New England and hit Maine and New Hampshire especially hard.

In Maine, the storm damaged roads and bridges and led to extensive need for debris removal and public infrastructure repairs. The cost of the work is expected to exceed $3.5 million, Maine’s Democratic Gov. Janet Mills said on Friday.

The major disaster declaration applies to York and Cumberland counties in southern Maine, Mills said.

“This funding will help southern Maine continue to recover from the devastating April nor’easter,” Mills said. “My administration will continue our work to help Maine communities bounce back from recent storms and become more resilient to future severe weather.”

The storm brought heavy, wet snow that brought down trees and power lines. It also arrived later in the season than a typical heavy snowstorm and caught some communities off guard.

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The National Weather Service said at the time that it was the biggest April nor’easter to hit the area in at least four years. At least two deaths were blamed on the storm, including a woman in New Hampshire.

The disaster declaration will also open up federal money via a hazard mitigation grant program for the entire state. That program provides money to state, local and tribal groups to develop hazard mitigation plans and rebuild in a way that makes future disasters less costly.

Mills has made disaster mitigation a major piece of her time in office. She signed an executive order earlier this month to create a commission to develop a long-term infrastructure resilience plan for the state. Mills told the Maine Climate Council in February that the state will need to be more prepared for storm damage and flooding in the age of climate change.