Overview

• Governor Sarah Huckabee Sanders has formally appealed to President Trump to reconsider FEMA’s denial of disaster aid following severe March storms in Arkansas.
• The storms on March 14-15 caused widespread destruction, killing three people, injuring many, and leaving significant debris and property damage across the state.
• A second wave of severe weather, including tornadoes and flooding, struck less than three weeks later, compounding the state’s recovery challenges.
• The Trump administration denied Arkansas’s initial request, asserting that the state could handle the damage without federal assistance.
• The appeal comes amid broader discussions within the Trump administration about potentially abolishing FEMA and shifting disaster response responsibilities to individual states.