Boyda, rest of Kansas delegation, urge President to approve FEMA aid

In another one of those "it doesn't matter what party you're in to know what correct," the entire Kansas delegation banded together to ask President Bush to approve FEMA aid for Kansans effected by this week's terrible ice storms.

The text of the letter, courtesy of WIBW-TV in Topeka, is as follows:

"We write today to once again ask that your attention be directed to the spate of disasters that have struck the state of Kansas this year.

"As you know, multiple large winter storms spread thick ice throughout Kansas this week. This event was made worse by consecutive days of precipitation and dropping temperatures, which quickly solidified ice on power lines and trees. The damage to date includes wide scale power outages and a great deal of damage to homes andbusinesses. Over 100,000 people are without power, a great deal more cannot leave their homes, and at least 4 people have died due to icy conditions. Currently, in many parts of the state, Kansans are making due without power and without access to supplies.

"As you might imagine, yet another disaster striking our state this year comes as disheartening news for Kansans who have already endured a blizzard that destroyed infrastructure and endangered livestock, a tornado that wiped an entire town off the map, and floods that compounded with an oil spill to destroy grave amounts of property and businesses.

"In the immediate wake of this most recent storm, the Governor of Kansas declared a state emergency. Today, she also requested that you authorize FEMA to provide public assistance to aid in the recovery. We wholeheartedly support this request and thank you for your support to date. The federal government, including FEMA and the National Guard, deserve endless amounts of credit for their rapid and effective responses in Kansas this year. This, combined with the can-do attitude and spirit of giving inherent in Kansans have mitigated the long term effects of the disasters we've faced this year to an incredible degree.

"Thank you in advance for your consideration."

Our hopes and prayers to out to everyone who is struggling through this storm, and we thank Governor Kathleen Sebelius, Congresswoman Nancy Boyda and the rest of the Kansas delegation for acting so quickly to secure federal aid.