WASHINGTON, D.C. (MyBellinghamNow.com) – Whatcom County has finally secured what local leaders called “stalled” recovery funds from the November 2021 flooding.
U.S. Representative Rick Larsen says FEMA released nearly $4 million in hazard mitigation grant funding for the county last Friday.
The funds, which were originally requested in 2022, will elevate 16 properties that are at a high risk for flooding in Sumas, Ferndale and Everson.
The announcement comes after the county council approved a resolution last month calling for state leaders to accelerate the release of the funds.
According to Public Works staff, the county had been waiting for approval from FEMA and the Department of Homeland Security since last summer.
Council member Jessica Rienstra said that this type of funding has to be released with more urgency moving forward, especially considering the impacts of last December’s flooding.
“Funding for recovery for the 2021 flooding that didn’t come through, from constituents that I’ve had a chance to learn from, would have prevented the recurrent damage that they have now seen from 2025,” Rienstra said at a committee meeting on Feb. 10.
The state is still waiting for FEMA to grant its request for at least $182 million to repair damaged infrastructure from the December flooding.
