President Donald Trump signed off on a federal emergency declaration for Indiana over the weekend, freeing up FEMA money and manpower for a state buried under some of the worst flooding it has seen in more than 100 years. He approved it Saturday, August 15, after a morning phone call with Governor Mike Braun. The declaration covers Madison County and 52 others, more than 50 counties in all, stretching from the Chicago suburbs down toward the Ohio River.
What the $5 million actually pays for
The aid Braun requested is capped at up to $5 million, with the federal government covering 75% of the cost. This is not the big check that rebuilds houses. It is money for the emergency itself, the work happening right now while the water is still up. That means water rescues, sandbagging, evacuations, emergency shelters, medical transport, and hauling away debris. Braun declared a statewide disaster emergency on Thursday, then escalated the request to the federal level on Friday. He also activated the Indiana National Guard and named Darrin Ricketts as the Federal Coordinating Officer, the person running the federal side of the response on the ground. Senator Jim Banks confirmed the money too, posting that the president had agreed to send millions in federal disaster assistance to the state.
Seven Hoosiers didn’t make it
At least seven people died in the storms, which started Tuesday, August 11, and kept going for days. The youngest was a 4-year-old boy in Jennings County, killed when a tree crashed through his bedroom during high winds. The state’s homeland security department confirmed other deaths, including a 19-year-old man and a 58-year-old woman in Delaware County, a woman in Lake County, another in Porter County, and a man in LaPorte County. When Braun spoke Saturday, he counted five lives lost and asked people to keep taking the flooding seriously and stay away from floodwaters. The toll climbed as the week wore on.
The White River smashed a record from 1913
In Anderson, the White River rose to 24.9 feet, breaking a flood mark that had stood since 1913. Parts of the state got 11 to 15 inches of rain in three days. Indianapolis did not even catch the heaviest rain, but all that water rolled downstream into the city anyway. Mayor Joe Hogsett said it was the worst flooding Indianapolis had seen in more than 30 years, and officials in some of the hardest-hit spots went further, calling it a once-in-a-millennium event. The Yorktown Public Library in Madison County ended up with about a foot of water standing throughout the building. In Anderson, floodwaters swamped the intersection of Eighth Street and Raible Avenue and seeped into nearby homes.
Boats, kayaks, and 95 rescues in a single afternoon
As the water climbed along the White River in Indianapolis, first responders went house to house in boats. The Indianapolis Fire Department counted 91 people and 45 pets rescued by early afternoon Saturday, and the number rose to 95 people by evening. Dispatchers fielded hundreds of calls for service. In the Ravenswood neighborhood, floodwaters swallowed streets, submerged cars, and reached front doors while residents paddled around in kayaks and rowboats. Hundreds of homes wedged between the river and the parallel canals were evacuated. Hogsett’s message to people in Ravenswood, Rocky Ripple, and other flooded areas was blunt: leave your homes now.
Evacuations spread from Carmel to a Tipton County mobile home park
The order to get out was not just an Indianapolis story. More than 350 people evacuated in Delaware County alone. A senior mobile home community in Tipton County was cleared out. In Carmel, crews ran evacuations near 122nd Street and River Road, with response teams from Fishers and Noblesville pitching in. Local disaster declarations went up in at least 15 counties, Marion among them, plus cities like Carmel and Noblesville. The worst damage tracked the river corridor from Hamilton County into the northern suburbs of Indianapolis. One resident said his family lost 98% of what they owned and salvaged only their clothes.
Gary took 99 mph winds and a gunshot at a repair crew
Before the flooding, a derecho slammed the state on August 11, with wind gusts hitting 99 mph in Gary and topping 90 mph in other spots. That first punch tore up northwest Indiana, downing trees and cutting power to communities like Gary, Munster, and Hobart, where the National Guard was later deployed. Crews from the local utility were still working to restore power in Gary on Saturday when they briefly stopped after a worker’s vehicle was reportedly struck by gunfire. No one was hurt, but officials coordinated extra safety measures with police before the crews went back out.
Rocky Ripple built a sandbag wall by hand
In Rocky Ripple, a small town northwest of Indianapolis, hundreds of people showed up at a volleyball court with shovels and sandbags to shore up the town’s levee. Many of the volunteers did not even live there. Resident Margaret Brabant, wearing a yellow life jacket, directed the crowd as they worked. Scenes like that repeated across central Indiana while neighbors filled bags and checked on each other as the rivers crested. In New Castle, the Cornerstone Campground and Retreat Center reported five feet of water sweeping across the property, flooding its kitchen, banquet hall, and youth center.
Fake FEMA agents are already working the flood zone
With federal money flowing, con artists showed up fast. The Cambridge City Police Department warned that people were posing as FEMA agents around town. Attorney General Todd Rokita told residents to ask anyone offering flood relief for credentials, avoid wire transfers, and insist on written agreements. One point worth repeating: FEMA never charges an application fee. Anyone who needs help can call 211 for state and local resources, and people in Indiana’s 5th District can reach Representative Victoria Spartz’s office for help dealing with federal agencies.
The bigger federal check is still coming
The emergency declaration is the first step, not the last. Indiana planned to apply for a Major Disaster Declaration in the days that followed, which would open up longer-term recovery money for families and towns that lost homes and businesses. As of Sunday afternoon, roughly 130,000 utility customers were still without power, down from a peak near 300,000. More storms were in the forecast even as the cleanup began. There were small signs of relief too. Christine Altman, president of the Hamilton County board of commissioners, opened a Sunday briefing with a simple line: “I must admit it is a good morning. It’s not raining, and the water is receding.”
