Haskell County reviews letter asking Oklahoma OEM to extend DR 4776 to finish flood repairs

Haskell County commissioners reviewed and approved a draft letter asking the Oklahoma Department of Emergency Management and officials in Oklahoma City to extend the county’s funding window for Disaster Response 4776, the federally declared flooding event that occurred April 25–May 29. The extension would allow the county to adjust the project scope and seek additional funds to strengthen roadways damaged in the storms.

An unidentified board member presenting the letter said the extension is routine in multi‑phase road projects and argued the county should use the extra time to build “a stronger, more worthy function of the roadway.” The presenter said the scope change could expand the funding request and included a plan element to widen part of the corridor — described in the transcript as adding an “additional 10 horn” — to improve traffic flow and mitigation for future storms.

The board discussed the item and then reviewed and signed the approved extension letter; the speaker said copies would be posted to the county’s 4776BR file and forwarded to Oklahoma City for further processing. The transcript shows members voting in the affirmative to sign the document.

The record on the table notes DR 4776 as the local disaster number for the April–May flooding; the transcript does not specify the exact dollar amount requested, the precise roadway segments affected, or the legal deadline for the extension. Richard Siner of the Oklahoma Department of Emergency Management was introduced as a guest earlier in the meeting, but the transcript does not include a substantive on‑the‑record statement from Siner about the extension.

Next steps: the county signatory will forward the letter to Oklahoma City for approval and file a copy in the county’s DR 4776 folder. No timeline for the OEM’s decision appears in the transcript.