A major disaster declaration for the Southwest Virginia counties affected by catastrophic flooding in February has been approved by President Donald Trump, Gov. Glenn Youngkin announced Friday afternoon.
The disaster declaration, which opens up federal aid, was for public assistance only, while a final determination on individual assistance has not been made, according to the governor.
Individual assistance provides funding to eligible individuals and households that have sustained losses in a disaster. Public assistance can pay for repairing and replacing public facilities and infrastructure.
Additional funding from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and new state funding agreed to by the governor and the General Assembly this week will also be available for ongoing recovery efforts, according to Youngkin.
“I am grateful to President Trump and the entire Administration for moving forward in their approval of the major disaster declaration,” Youngkin said in a news release. “We will continue to seek every recovery resource necessary to support Virginians that have been adversely impacted by these storms. I committed to assist those with immediate needs to ensure the health and safety of survivors and we will continue our efforts to seek opportunities to rebuild these communities.”
Following several days of heavy rain, storms hit over the weekend of Feb. 15-16, destroying and damaging homes, washing out roads and leaving thousands without power. The community of Hurley in Buchanan County and parts of Dickenson and Tazewell counties were particularly hit hard.
As much as 7 inches of rain fell over some parts of Southwest Virginia, resulting in flash flooding, closed roads and mudslides. One man died after being swept away by the high water in Bland County. Ninety homes had major damage, and 18 houses were destroyed, according to preliminary estimates from the Virginia Department of Emergency Management and the Federal Emergency Management Agency.
Originally, the disaster declaration request was for Buchanan, Dickenson and Russell counties, but the governor later expanded it to include Bland, Giles, Lee, Pulaski, Russell, Scott, Smyth and Wise counties.
“President Trump’s approval of this request is a major step in securing federal resources to help Southwest Virginia recover from historic flooding,” Sen. Todd Pillion, R-Washington County, said via text message Friday.
The General Assembly approved $50 million in the state budget to help communities rebuild after the remnants of Hurricane Helene swept through the region last fall. This week, lawmakers approved an amendment by Youngkin to extend that relief to assist victims of the February flooding.
“It’s important that we continue to collaborate at all levels of government to ensure that resources are deployed effectively and efficiently,” Pillion added.
Sen. Travis Hackworth, R-Tazewell County, said he is grateful to the Trump administration for the approval of the disaster declaration.
“I’m also grateful to Governor Glenn Youngkin and our entire Southwest Virginia legislative delegation for working with our federal partners to see this funding through to approval,” he said via email Friday. “So many homes and businesses were damaged in both Hurricane Helene and the February 2025 flood. Now we have access to these desperately needed funds.”
Del. William Morefield, R-Tazewell County, said the news of the approval is encouraging. He said he remains hopeful that individual assistance will be approved eventually, as well.
“In the event that individual assistance is not approved, the flood victims can rest assured knowing the commonwealth will be there to provide individual assistance as proposed in the state budget,” he said.
Morefield added that the federal assistance formulas for determining disaster aid are flawed, and he called on Congress to consider revising them.
“I have heard some members of Congress speak about this on several occasions but I have yet to see any meaningful effort being made,” he said. “I commend President Trump, Governor Youngkin and our colleagues in the General Assembly for making every effort to help so many individuals with few resources help rebuild their lives.”
Tazewell County Administrator Eric Young said Friday that he’s grateful for any federal or state assistance.
“The one-two punch of the hurricane at the end of September and floods in early February truly taxed our resources and our energy,” he said.
The flooding and storms also affected neighboring states, particularly Kentucky and West Virginia. Kentucky’s disaster declaration was for public and individual assistance and was approved Feb. 24. West Virginia’s, for public assistance only, was approved Feb. 26.
