Otter signs disaster declaration for Madison County due to spring flooding
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REXBURG — Gov. C.L. “Butch” Otter has signed a state disaster declaration for Madison County due to spring flooding.
The northeast Idaho county of roughly 39,000 residents is experiencing significant rural road washouts and destruction caused by sheet flooding due to rain and warmer temperatures.
“Access to homes, disruption to commerce, and limited first responder access are very real threats to the public in and around Rexburg,” Madison County Fire Chief and Emergency Manager Corey Child said. “Everyone is very sensitive to the needs of the community and the difficulty this flooding continues to cause. We’re not out of the woods yet either, as the forecast calls for additional moisture over the next few days.”
The National Weather Service has issued a flood watch for parts of Madison and Bonneville counties and all of Fremont, Clark and Teton counties for Wednesday and Thursday due to high snowmelt, runoff and expected precipitation. Flooding will potentially be the worst on Thursday. Areas of higher elevations are being hit the hardest.
Local officials say the ground has not thawed in the bench area east of Rexburg, and as temperatures warm, and rain falls the water simply cascades in sheets over roadways. The area is home to multiple dry farms, and sellers are having a difficult time getting semi-trucks of potatoes to manufacturing plants.
“We are grateful for the Governor’s Office and the Idaho Office of Emergency Management for their quick and sensitive response to our unique emergency,” Madison County Commissioner Jon Weber said in a news release. “State assistance is welcome and essential in mitigating the disaster we are experiencing.”
A state disaster declaration makes state matching funds available to counties to assist with response and repair efforts. Today’s declaration is the first weather-related declaration this year in Idaho.
The Idaho Emergency Operations Center (IDEOC) remains activated at Level III in support of Madison County. For a daily statewide synopsis of issues relating to current state declarations, please visit the IOEM website.
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