Tens of thousands of Iowans are still living without power and many without an actual roof over their heads a week after hurricane-force winds swept through a third of the state. This weekend, Kelly McMahon, a kindergarten teacher in Cedar Rapids, spoke with K-C-R-G T-V amid the rubble of an apartment complex where some of her students are living in tents or sleeping in cars with their families.
Early Sunday evening Governor Reynolds announced she filed an expedited request for a presidential major disaster declaration. A news release indicated nearly 83-hundred homes in the state were damaged or destroyed by the derecho — and the governor said it will require nearly four BILLION dollars in federal aid to fully recover from the disaster. Steve Langrud is manager of the Mayflower Retirement Community and says there was no part of Grinnell left untouched by the derecho.
School officials in areas hit by last Monday’s storm are sorting through damage to buildings and deciding when the school year may start. On Friday, Newton’s School Board unanimously voted for a two week delay.
