Senator Chris Dodd (D-CT), Senator Joe Lieberman (ID-CT), and the entire Connecticut Congressional delegation sent a letter to President Barack Obama this week urging him to provide federal assistance to Connecticut's cities, towns, businesses, and residents affected by recent severe weather.

This letter is in support of Governor Rell's request for the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to declare a major disaster for CT as a result of the severe rainfall and hurricane force winds that hit Fairfield County and Southeastern CT during an 18-day period last month. The president declaring a major disaster will activate a number of federal programs that will assist in the recovery efforts of individuals and local governments.

The letter details the amount of rain and the time period it was received in, as well as the damage that was incurred.

FEMA has verified that the State and municipal costs associated with this storm would exceed $10 million and the severity of damage and the impact on families, businesses and towns is sizable.