Federal Emergency officials have arrived in New Hampshire and are conducting damage audits.
Governor Lynch says he expects the President to declare parts of New Hampshire an emergency disaster area within the next 24 hours.
New Hampshire Public Radio's Dan Gorenstein reports.
Governor John Lynch lauded the state for making remarkable progress in communities throughout the state.
He listed a number of projects going smoothly, including establishing a bridge in Hinsdale and restoration of power and phone service to most of Alstead.
The governor's spokesperson Pam Walsh says, Lynch is expecting the President to sign off on an aid package in the next 24 hours.
If and when that happens, Walsh says the state will get up to five million dollars in assistance.
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At the same time, five FEMA teams are fanning out across western New Hampshire to assess the extent of the damage.
If the destruction is severe and expensive enough, the federal government will cover 75% of the cost of public projects like road and bridge repairs.
FEMA crews were already making contact with Alstead residents like Almut Jakoblef Wednesday.
4:36 can you talk to FEMA for a minute about your house ? Yes I would love to. Well, show us the way.
4:57 right now we are just kind of going around, gathering data on what the extent of the damage was, and this information we turn it...
The FEMA worked explained to Jokoblef that she would gather information and send it to Washington.
Jokobef walked the property with the team, and detailed the impact.
7:11 the septic is right here, it's a little moister than it should be...
But what the Alstead resident is most concerned about is her backyard.
After the flood, the river has overtaken a chunk of her property, and she is concerned about the possibility of more flooding later this week.
2:57 right now, what I wish would happen is they would divert the elbow that goes right at my house, seal it off, with whatever means seem necessary to encourage the river to go back to its original channel.
But Emergency Services Director Bruce Chenney says that isn't going to happen, at least in the next few days.
4:13 she has to rely on the fact that we've done everything we can to draw down the dam to make it safer. But look none of us can guarantee this can't happen again. What we can say is we have done everything we can to prevent this from happening again.
Jakoblef says that answer doesn't leave her feeling too safe.
She, and a number of her neighbors have questions.
Despite the National Guard troops all around, the omni-present work crews, and even the governor walking through her front yard, Karen Playstead says she doesn't know what's going on.
:48 how safe are we to stay, with Warren Lake and the dam should we leave with all of the flooding, no one has talked to us about the water. Should we be drinking it? should we be boiling it? what should we do? We are just standing around and no one has talked to us. we listen to the news to find out what is going on.
Playstead says, given the weather forecasts, she doesn't know if she should stay in town.
Governor Lynch says there is no need for any evacuations in Alstead.
8:32 the rain may impede some of the work we have scheduled, but the town is safe, the dam is safe, so we are not asking anybody to do anything but stay in their homes and be safe themselves.
For NHPR News, I'm DG.
