Gov. Janet Mills has requested a federal disaster declaration for the damage seven counties sustained in a late December storm that left tens of thousands of Mainers without power on Christmas weekend.

In a letter to President Biden on Thursday, Mills said that the storm’s strong winds and gushing rain caused significant flooding, road washouts and closures, widespread power outages, and infrastructure damage that the state is unequipped to handle.

A severe storm slams Maine with high winds and major coastal flooding on Friday, December 23, 2022. Gregory Rec/Staff Photographer

The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) has validated damage assessments for Knox, Oxford, Somerset and Waldo counties. The agency is still validating assessments in Cumberland, Franklin and York counties.

A Joint Preliminary Damage Assessment last month identified $3,280,380 in public infrastructure damages, a figure Mills’ office expects to rise as assessment validation continues.

“All damaged infrastructure that has completed the validation process has been verified as not eligible for commercially available insurance coverage, and therefore, all repair costs must be covered by local government taxpayers if Federal assistance is not obtained,” Gov. Mills wrote in her letter to the president.

If Mills’ request is approved, the Major Disaster Declaration would make federal assistance programs available for public infrastructure spending.

The Dec. 23 storm knocked out power for more than 270,000 households in Maine. Almost 40,300 Central Maine Power customers remained without power on Christmas night, while contending with bone-chilling temperatures.

The storm brought historic wind gusts – measured at 64 mph in Portland and as high as 80 mph near Rockland – and flooding that damaged property, felled trees and took down power lines.

Mills’ requests are specifically for the Public Assistance Program and the Hazard Mitigation Grant Program. FEMA’s Public Assistance Program provides supplemental grants to state, local and tribal governments so communities can quickly respond to and recover from major disasters or emergencies.

The Hazard Mitigation Grant Program provides funding so governments can develop hazard mitigation plans and rebuild in a way that reduces future disaster losses in their communities.