Bush declares federal disaster for tornado-ravaged counties in Illinois

<br>UTICA, Ill. (AP) _ President Bush declared a federal disaster in four north-central Illinois counties Friday after a tornado badly damaged downtown Utica and killed eight people in the tavern where

Friday, April 23rd 2004, 12:00 am

By: News On 6

UTICA, Ill. (AP) _ President Bush declared a federal disaster in four north-central Illinois counties Friday after a tornado badly damaged downtown Utica and killed eight people in the tavern where they had sought refuge.

The eclaration makes LaSalle, Putnam, Will and Kankakee counties eligible for federal assistance, according to Mike Brown, an undersecretary for the Department of Homeland Security.

Brown toured Utica's downtown _ the hardest hit area _ Friday morning with Gov. Rod Blagojevich and other officials. The governor already had declared a state disaster.

The twister Tuesday night badly damaged about 80 percent of downtown Utica, a federal disaster official estimated.