Over the last week, heavy rain and storms have occurred, causing many rivers in Indiana to overflow their banks. County-level response has been ongoing, and the State Emergency Operations Center has been providing coordination and resource support.
On February 24, 2018, Governor Eric J. Holcomb issued a disaster declaration for 11 Indiana counties due to flooding, including Carroll, Dearborn, Elkhart, Fulton, Lake, Marshall, Perry, St. Joseph, Starke, Switzerland and White counties. This flooding has destroyed or caused severe damage to homes, businesses, structures and infrastructure. On February 26, 2018 seven counties were added: Benton, Clark, Crawford, Floyd, Jefferson, Spencer and Warrick counties. Governor Holcomb signed a new executive order today, February 27, 2018, to include Harrison, Jasper, Ohio and Pulaski counties—making 22 total counties covered by this disaster emergency declaration so far.
County Emergency Declarations: The following 22 counties have issued county emergency declarations: Benton, Carroll, Clark, Crawford, Dearborn, Elkhart, Floyd, Fulton, Harrison, Jasper, Jefferson, Lake, Marshall, Ohio, Perry, Pulaski, Spencer, St. Joseph, Starke, Switzerland, Warrick and White counties.
If a county has issued an emergency declaration, this means the county board of commissioners has determined that conditions are such that emergency services may not be provided to the public in a timely fashion, and may be significantly delayed. A county emergency declaration initiates county emergency plans, and allows additional resources to be provided by the state to assist local response efforts.