Ohio Governor Issues Emergency Declaration for 17 Counties
Photo by Madalyn Wood.
COLUMBUS, Ohio – On Feb. 23, 2018 Ohio Gov. John R. Kasich issued an emergency declaration for 17 counties along the Ohio River and in southern Ohio due to dangerous conditions resulting from severe storms and heavy rain.
An emergency declaration allows the governor to use state resources, including activating the National Guard, to help local officials keep Ohioans safe.
Impacted counties include Adams, Athens, Belmont, Brown, Clermont, Columbiana, Gallia, Hamilton, Hocking, Jackson, Jefferson, Lawrence, Monroe, Meigs, Muskingum, Scioto and Washington.
“Ohioans do a good job of looking out for each other and we’re doing it again now also. Teams at the local level are hard at work and state teams have been coordinating with them and supporting them over the past week. As the weather and flooding is expected to get worse we’re staying ahead of things by taking our readiness up to the next level and declaring an emergency where we expect the worst conditions. We’ll quickly add to those areas as it’s needed. I urge people to stay safe by staying informed, not taking any chances and checking in on your neighbors, especially seniors and families with young kids. Call your local city, county or Red Cross if there’s anyone who needs help. We’ll get through this as we always do, by working together,” said Kasich.
So far, Ohio storm and flood preparation efforts include deploying National Guard troops in response to local requests to help install floodgates along floodwalls. National Guard troops have not been deployed in Meigs County. The have in other areas and their efforts include:
- Providing water pumps to Scioto and Lawrence counties
- Holding coordination calls with National Weather Service and state and local response partners
- Installing flood gates in the City of Portsmouth
- Providing situation awareness reports to federal, state and local partners
- Delivering sandbags to Athens County
