GREENFIELD, Iowa (WHO) — Gov. Kim Reynolds toured the tornado-ravaged town of Greenfield Wednesday morning.
The Governor held a news conference after her tour and praised the emergency response efforts. She also spoke about plans for recovery in the community.
She said the state is already working on putting together information to submit for an expedited Presidential Disaster Declaration. That will allow for the use of federal resources from multiple agencies, not just FEMA, in recovery efforts.
Gov. Reynolds is confident the declaration will be granted. She said, “Especially after looking at the amount of devastation, the community is flattened, and the debris.”
No confirmation on the number of fatalities and injuries was provided because officials are still considering the operation a search and rescue.
“And we don’t want to give out any misinformation. And so, that’s one of the reasons we’re keeping the site secure. When we have those numbers we’ll be sure to get them to the media but at this point, we’re not prepared to address that because it’s still a search and rescue,” said Gov. Reynolds.
The governor offered praise for the multiple law enforcement and emergency response agencies, local and statewide, that responded to the disaster.