FEMA denies disaster relief for bomb cyclone; WA to appeal

The federal government has denied Washington’s request for disaster relief after November’s bomb cyclone that killed two people and caused $34 million in damage, Gov. Bob Ferguson said Monday.

The Federal Emergency Management Agency did not offer an explanation for why it declined to issue a major disaster declaration for the bomb cyclone in its letter to the state, only saying the assistance is “not warranted.” The letter was addressed to former Gov. Jay Inslee, who first requested the declaration and aid in January.

The denial comes after President Donald Trump has talked of reshaping or even eliminating FEMA, and threatened to withhold disaster aid for those he sees as opposing him. Washington is also among 22 Democratic-leaning states and Washington, D.C. that earlier this year sued the Trump administration over federal FEMA money that states said were being held up.

“There are very clear criteria to qualify for these emergency relief funds. Washington’s application met all of them,” Ferguson said. “This is another troubling example of the federal government withholding funding.”

The bomb cyclone in November generated wind gusts up to 74 mph in places throughout Western Washington and led to the most severe power outage in Seattle since 2006, with hundreds of thousands across the region losing electricity, some for days.

Two women, both 65, died in the storm. In Lynnwood, Deborah O’Connor died after a tree fell on her tent in a homeless encampment. A Bellevue resident was killed when a tree smashed into her home while she was showering.

Inslee had asked for public assistance for six counties — King, Snohomish, Pacific, Grays Harbor, Wahkiakum and Walla Walla — and hazard mitigation across the state. The former governor declared a state of emergency in January that unlocked $1 million in state funding for recovery efforts.  

Ferguson said the state will appeal the denial. Emails and voicemails left with FEMA’s Region 10 office in Bothell were not immediately returned Monday afternoon.

The letter added that FEMA will communicate to the state whether there are other federal resources available.

King County Councilmember Reagan Dunn called the news disappointing given the “overwhelming” bipartisan support for the disaster relief.

“Helping citizens recover from a natural disaster like last fall’s bomb cyclone is the reason FEMA exists as an agency,” Dunn said in a statement. “… I am confident that the criteria to qualify for federal funds were met, and I support the decision to appeal.”

This is the first time in recent memory that Washington’s request for public assistance was denied after a disaster, according to Washington Military Department spokesperson Karina Shagren. The public assistance program has a clearly defined set of requirements to merit aid, whereas requests for individual assistance are more subjective.

FEMA considers several factors in evaluating requests for major disaster declarations, according to the agency. These factors include the estimated cost of the assistance; the localized impact of the disaster; insurance coverage; hazard mitigation; disaster history; and whether other federal agency programs are better suited to address the needs.  

FEMA also denied North Carolina’s request for an extension on a 100% match for disaster recovery from Hurricane Helene, a tropical cyclone that killed hundreds of people in September 2024.

“Six months later, the people of western North Carolina are working hard to get back on their feet; they need FEMA to help them get the job done,” North Carolina Gov. Josh Stein, a Democrat, said in a statement.

Washington has had 19 major disaster declarations over the past decade, according to FEMA data. The most recent was issued in November, when then-President Joe Biden approved a major disaster declaration for the Confederated Tribes of the Colville Reservation for recovery efforts in areas affected by summer wildfires.