Gov. Jared Polis on Saturday announced he has formally requested an expedited major disaster declaration (MDD) from President Donald Trump through the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to support recovery from devastating flooding and debris flows in southwestern Colorado.
WATCH: Federal Highway Administration approves $6.5M in quick release funds for southwest Colorado flood repairs Federal Highway Administration approves $6.5M in quick release funds for southwest Colorado flood repairsThe request seeks FEMA Public Assistance (PA) and Hazard Mitigation Grant Program (HMGP) funding for Archuleta and Rio Grande counties following severe storms that occurred from Oct. 22-25, according to a release.
If approved, the declaration would provide federal assistance to help repair damaged infrastructure and reduce future flood risks.
Devastating flooding has damaged homes and businesses, washed away roads, and disrupted the basic services Southwestern Colorado families depend on. Colorado has deployed rescue teams, delivered supplies, quickly restored use of roads, and committed state funding to help communities respond and recover. The damage documented so far exceeds what state and local resources can address alone. I am asking President Trump to swiftly approve this request to help restore essential services, rebuild damaged infrastructure, and support these communities on their road to recovery, said Polis.
Polis said the state worked quickly with FEMA and local partners to validate almost $27 million in PA-eligible damages in Archuleta and Rio Grande counties alone.
The governor said the state will continue the joint damage assessments with FEMA and local governments in additional impacted counties and will add those to the request as those damages are identified.
The catastrophic damage from this disaster has had widespread impacts on community members and local, state, and Tribal infrastructure. This request will help to rebuild this infrastructure, and speed up the recovery process, said Trevor Denney, Director of the Colorado Office of Emergency Management.
This request comes after Polis declared a disaster emergency on Oct. 22 for Alamosa, Archuleta, Dolores, Hinsdale, La Plata, Mineral, Montezuma, Ouray, Rio Grande, San Juan and San Miguel counties and amended the declaration on Oct. 23 to include Conejos County.
These declarations activated the State Emergency Operations Plan, authorized emergency spending and purchasing, and authorized Colorado National Guard support for flood response, evacuations, and search and rescue.
Polis said Colorado mobilized nearly 100 National Guard members with aviation and ground resources, rescued 48 people and 31 animals, deployed incident management teams and state field personnel, and delivered food, water and supplies.
The governor said that joint damage assessments conducted by state, federal and local officials have already identified $26.989 million in PA-eligible costs across Archuleta and Rio Grande counties alone.
However, Polis said the preliminary estimate reflects only sites that assessment teams could safely inspect during the initial assessment period. Approximately 100 homes in Archuleta County remained inaccessible as of Oct. 29, meaning that additional damage and cost estimates will be documented as access in the area improves.
The governor said that state, federal and local officials are continuing the work to identify damages in the other impacted counties.
Polis said that the Southern Ute Indian Tribe, whose lands were also impacted by severe flooding, will pursue FEMA assistance independently from the states request.
The governor added that Colorado has worked closely with Tribal leadership throughout the flood response and recovery planning and supports the Tribes chosen path to securing federal assistance, and added that state officials and resources remain available to assist with coordination of recovery needs.
Polis said that Colorado has also committed state resources to emergency repairs in the region, including approving the Transportation Commission request on Oct. 26 for $5 million in contingency funds for the initial transportation response.
Additionally, Polis said that on Oct. 28, CDOT requested approximately $65 million in Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) emergency relief funding based on preliminary estimates of damage to federal-aid roadways.
On Oct. 30, Polis said the FHWA approved CDOTs request, authorizing $6.5 million in quick-release funding for repairs to U.S. 160, U.S. 550 and Colorado Highway 151 before winter.
Polis added that these highway costs are separate from the FEMA PA costs included in the governors MDD request.
The MDD request is awaiting federal approval. The governor added that residents are encouraged to document damage and submit reports through county damage-reporting systems, and clarified that submitting a damage report is not an application for financial assistance.
Polis stated that further information on the status of the states request, and updates to any request for Individual Assistance, will be shared as soon as they become available.
Resources for affected Coloradans Sign up for emergency alerts: Sign up to receive emergency alerts [dhsem.colorado.gov]in your area. Assistance, shelter and temporary lodging information: Call 2-1-1, text your ZIP code to 898-211, or visit 211 Colorados disaster response page [mars.colorado.gov]. Road conditions and closures: Visit COtrip.org [cotrip.org] or use the COtrip Planner app. Volunteer cleanup assistance: Call Crisis Cleanup at 970-283-7325 to request free volunteer help. Local updates, damage-reporting links and additional resources: Visit DHSEMs regularly updated State Emergency Operation Center Updates page [dhsem.colorado.gov]. Immediate emergencies: Call 911.Polis told Denver7's Tyler Melito the damge toll is expected to climb, which is why the state is moving quickly to request federal help.
"It's going to be a lot more, and that's why we're requesting a federal emergency disaster declaration today from the president of the United States to really get that help that is traditional for these kinds of emergencies to help rebuild a lot of this infrastructure that's been damaged and destroyed," Polis explained.
While not often, there have been times where President Trump has denied communities this type of funding, including southwest Colorado after flooding in 2025.
Polis acknowledged the uncertainty, despite the Trump Administration's approval of funding following the Aspen Acres Fire over the summer of 2026.
"Traditionally these have been granted when they meet the criteria, but with this president, it's been a bit of a mystery at times," Polis shared. "This meets the criteria. I'm hopeful that he'll act on it. But you're absolutely correct. He's also turned down applications that met the criteria as well."
For the families caught in the flooding, the damage has been overwhelming. Kodi and Josh Trujillo, owners of the Pagosa Springs RV Park, said the flooding has been unlike anything they imagined.
"I'm gonna try to do without crying, it's indescribable. Like we just never imagined it would, it would do this," Kodi said.
"I feel like every day it's like you find another level of damage,:
The family has now faced repeated evacuations.
"This is our third evacuation in roughly a year," Kodi told Melito.
They described how the floodwaters carved an entirely new path this year, throwing them off guard. The floodwaters overtook the family's property.
"My parents' house sits on that corner by the entrance to the RV park, our house sits on the back end of the property, at the end of the RV park, and it filled just everything. You can see where it went up to our fence, and filled the whole RV park, and just kind of ate away the whole bottom half," Kodi described.
Now, they face the threat of a storm forecast to be even worse.
"Surely it can't be as bad as it just was, you know. But there, we just saw an updated forecast where they're saying it. It's going to be worse than last time," Josh said.
"I'm not looking forward to round two. I'm like, we already did this. Can't we be done with this? I don't understand," Kodi added.
The colder weather brings added dangers.
"It's getting cold enough now where it's like we we can't be without power for too long, or then we look at freezing pipes and you know that kind of stuff," Josh detailed.
"It's just a different life down here in the mountains with all these adverse conditions and things to think about," Kodi Trujillo said.
The impact reaches close relatives.
"My sister's house is unlivable, and she's having a baby in April. Like, how do you fix that in time?" Kodi Trujillo asked. "Our story is times by multiple, a lot of people can't get to their homes. The roads are. It's like so much damage that if we don't have help, we might like some people might not make it."
Karen Evans, another flood victim, described the disaster in stark terms.
"I have been describing to everyone this flood of biblical proportions," Evans told Melito. "It's nothing that I've ever seen. It's definitely extraordinary from anything I even expected when I knew that we were expecting flooding."
Evans said she faced a frightening uncertainty about where she would live.
"My own cabin was flooding already, and I was so nervous about where I was going to be after the shelter," Evans recalled. "It's just been extremely stressful, like just trying to know where I'm gonna be living in 28 days with the winter coming. "I'm worrying about all of my belongings in my apartment. It's flooded in there."
As she evacuated, Evans said her health needs were her top priority.
"The most important thing for me personally was to grab my medication. I'm diabetic. I have a sleep apnea machine and oxygen at night time. So those were the most important to grab," Evans detailed. "I had forgot one of my diabetic medications, so I had been really nervous about obtaining that, knowing that insurance won't cover. Typically, an extra dose."
She made a direct appeal for help.
"If there was ever a reason to send Help that the damage done to this area, and the fact that we're continuing to look at flooding, this would be a reason," Evans said.
