Rep. Joe Miller Joins Lawmakers Urging Governor DeWine to Declare State of Emergency Following Severe Storms in Northeast Ohio

COLUMBUS – State Rep. Joe Miller (D-Amherst) today joined lawmakers from Cuyahoga, Geauga, and Lake County in a letter to urge Governor DeWine to declare a state of emergency. This request is following the damages and power outages resulting from the severe weather system on Tuesday, August 6th, including two EF-1 tornadoes that touched down in Avon Lake to Rocky River and Brook Park to Bedford, respectively. 

“Due to the current heat and lack of access to air conditioning and refrigeration for many caused by the storm and power outages, declaring a state of emergency is necessary to speed up the clean-up process. This will allow the massive number of trees and debris from the storm that have affected power lines to be removed, and power will be able to be restored to our constituents more quickly,” said Rep. Joe Miller. 

In declaring a state of emergency, the governor would call for services, equipment, supplies, and personnel to assist in providing support to all affected communities. Immediate emergency response activities could be opening shelters, clearing roadways, directing traffic, and restoring power. 

Additionally, the legislators from the House and Senate are requesting FEMA Damage Assessment Teams to survey the impacted areas, which would determine the extent of damages to homes and businesses and assess whether federal resources are needed to supplement local and state resources. 

EDITOR’S NOTE: A copy of the letter to Governor DeWine is attached here.