KEATING asks Bush to declare a major disaster for 44 counties with storm damage

Tuesday, June 26th 2001, 12:00 am

By: News On 6

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) _ Gov. Frank Keating asked President Bush on Monday to declare a major disaster for 44 Oklahoma counties that received damage from tornadoes, severe winds and flooding last month.

According to preliminary damage estimates from the Oklahoma Department of Civil Emergency Management, Memorial Day weekend storms caused more than $9.7 million in damage, mainly to rural electric cooperative facilities.

If approved, the declaration could provide federal funds to help state and local governments pay for damage to public facilities caused by the storms between May 27 and May 30. Keating issued a state disaster declaration for the counties May 30.

The disaster declaration request does not include individual assistance because preliminary damage estimates show there was not enough uninsured or underinsured losses to warrant such a request.

Help is being sought for the following counties: Alfalfa, Atoka, Beaver, Beckham, Blaine, Bryan, Caddo, Canadian, Carter, Choctaw, Cimarron, Coal, Comanche, Cotton, Custer, Dewey, Ellis, Garfield, Garvin, Grady, Harper and Haskell.

Assistance also is being sought for Jackson, Jefferson, Johnston, Kiowa, Kingfisher, Latimer, LeFlore, Love, Major, Marshall, McClain, McCurtain, Murray, Muskogee, Okmulgee, Pushmataha, Roger Mill, Stephens, Texas, Tillman, Washita, Woodward and respective tribal governments in those counties.