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Elk County emergency manager reports hundreds of calls after flash-flood warning; officials say event did not meet FEMA disaster threshold
Summary
Roseanne, an emergency-management official, told commissioners a flash-flood event produced a peak hour with 71 calls, roughly 290 incoming calls between 5 p.m. and midnight, and about 120 fire responses in St. Mary's; she said damage was widespread but short of FEMA thresholds for a municipal disaster declaration.
Roseanne, the county emergency management official addressed the Elk County Board of Commissioners with a timeline and operational update after a fast-moving storm triggered multiple flash-flood warnings.
She said the National Weather Service issued a flood watch in the afternoon and flash-flood warnings later in the evening. "Between the hours of 05:00 in the afternoon and midnight, we took over 2 90 some calls," Roseanne said, and reported a peak hour in which dispatchers took 71 calls. She said St. Mary's fire units alone responded to about 120 incidents during the event.
Roseanne described how emergency staff and volunteers shifted duties at shift-change, added personnel to dispatch, coordinated mutual aid with nearby fire departments and used alternate radio channels to manage high call volumes. She said crews handled a variety of incidents including basement flooding, downed wires and trees, and vehicles in floodwater.
On the question of federal disaster assistance, Roseanne told the board that although many residents experienced substantial damage, the municipality did not meet FEMA’s threshold for a disaster declaration and that available federal assistance typically takes the form of low-interest loans rather than unrestricted grants. "There is no free money out there," she said, urging residents with questions to contact City Hall or the emergency management office.
Commissioners and multiple agency representatives praised the coordination between dispatch, local fire departments and police and thanked staff for sustained operations; no formal county action was requested in the briefing.
