ROGERS, Ark. — The Rogers Police Department (RPD) estimates around $33.6 million worth of damage to city buildings and parks after at least two tornadoes touched down on Sunday, May 26.
Police say this estimate does not include private property or businesses in Rogers that endured damage over the weekend, only city property.
Since the storm, city buildings like the Rogers Public Library, the Rogers Historical Museum, and the Adult Wellness Center have been closed due to storm damage.
According to the National Weather Service (NWS), an EF-2 tornado developed along SE Walton Boulevard in Bentonville around 1:46 a.m. It quickly widened as it crossed Interstate-49 moving southeast, and continued to widen. As it crossed South Dixieland Road and Highway 94, NWS said the tornado was over 1.5 miles wide. It moved northeast after crossing North Arkansas Street and dissipated in the hilly terrain east of Grambling Road.
This tornado was one of seven tornadoes that hit Benton County on May 26.
According to elected officials, they estimate around $6.4 million in damage to Benton, Boone, and Marion counties.
"At least 217 homes were destroyed with an additional 94 sustaining major damage," the letter said. "In total, over 478 homes were affected by the storms, leaving a large number of Arkansans displaced and many counties left without power for days."
How to get assistance
For now, county officials encourage victims of Sunday's storms to report the damage through the Citizen Damage Reporter on the county's website.
"Individuals should only report damage if debris, such as trees, has punctured their home," the county said.
Citizens will need to submit clear photos of the damage done to the home. The reports will be reviewed by the Division of Public Safety.
Upon review, they will send over the damage report information to the state and FEMA to determine the eligibility for Individual Assistance.
"Individual Assistance is to assist individuals with uninsured losses to their homes," they said. "It does not help with vehicular damage, downed trees, or fences; it is strictly for a person’s residential structure only."
If the assistance becomes available, the county will reach out to those individuals and share the next steps for applying for Individual Assistance through the state or through FEMA.
"Good, accurate public surveys speed up assistance timeframe," the county said.
Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders requested a federal disaster declaration from President Joe Biden on May 29.
FEMA officials confirmed that once Sanders submitted the request, they would process it immediately to get federal assistance to Arkansans impacted by the tornadoes.
Watch 5NEWS on YouTube.
Download the 5NEWS app on your smartphone:
Stream 5NEWS 24/7 on the 5+ app: How to watch the 5+ app on your streaming device
To report a typo or grammatical error, please email KFSMDigitalTeam@tegna.com and detail which story you're referring to.