Gov. Mike Rounds on Wednesday requested a presidential disaster declaration for 14 counties, including six West River counties, hit hardest by spring snowstorms and subsequent flooding.

If President Obama grants the declaration, up to 75 percent of the eligible costs could be reimbursed by the federal government.

Butte, Corson, Dewey, Harding, Perkins, and Ziebach counties were among the 14 counties listed. The governor also asked for help for the Cheyenne River and Standing Rock reservations.

According to preliminary assessments, the March storms caused more than $3.5 million in emergency protective costs and damages to public infrastructure.

Kathy Glines, Harding County auditor and emergency services manager, said county officials did not have a total dollar amount for storm damage in the county, but they're hoping the federal funding comes through.

"People are fencing, the livestock is kind of recovering," she said. "The grass is growing, which makes things a lot easier."

Glines said the county highway department staff has been putting in long hours to get the roads back in shape.

"We're doing pretty good up here," she said. "We have a very dedicated bunch."

According to preliminary estimates by Extension officials, livestock producers in much of western South Dakota lost tens of thousands of cattle and sheep in the spring blizzards and flooding. In Harding County, livestock losses were estimated at 20-25 percent.

Jamie White of the federal Farm Service Agency's South Dakota headquarters in Huron said the FSA would not have any hard numbers on the total number of livestock lost in the state until there was a disaster declaration.

The FSA has separate programs to help reimburse livestock producers for their losses.

Butte County's highway infrastructure took a $2.4 million hit because of the snowstorms, and there was an additional $6,500 damage within the Belle Fourche city limits.

The disaster declaration request is necessary for federal disaster funds to be made available to South Dakota.

Public assistance funds are used to reimburse the costs to repair eligible public infrastructure such as roads, bridges and sewer systems.

Rounds' request does not guarantee that federal funding will be made available in South Dakota. There is no deadline for the White House to either accept or deny the declaration request.

East River counties included in the disaster declaration request are Brown, Campbell, Day, Edmunds, Marshall, McPherson, Roberts and Spink.

Contact Jessica Kokesh at jessica.kokesh@rapidcityjournal.com.