President Joe Biden To Meet With Marshall Fire Victims, Tour Devastation In Boulder County
BOULDER COUNTY, Colo. (CBS4)- President Joe Biden will visit Colorado on Friday. The president will tour the destruction left behind by the Marshall Fire in Boulder County and meet with some of the families who are impacted in the afternoon.
Regional Administrator Nancy Dragini says FEMA will be on the ground as well.
"When the president, the first lady, the administrator of FEMA, actually come to their community it really puts a point on the fact that this is a national priority," she said.
RELATED: Resources For Marshall Fire Victims
FEMA representatives toured inside the burn area with Gov. Jared Polis and other local officials over the weekend. The fire destroyed 1,084 homes and the value of residential damage is estimated at more than $500 million.
Mayor Clint Folsom of Superior hopes the visit will bring more federal assistance to their recovery.
"Having the president here help continue to spotlight the severity of what happened and help us get the support and resources we need," Folsom said.
The Biden administration was quick to declare the event a disaster for Colorado, the first step in that direction.
"We got that declaration and that allowed us at the federal level to begin working with our state and local partners on recovery."
FEMA is currently operating out of the Disaster Assistance Center and encourages every family impacted in any way by the far to apply for help.
"We want them to get in the system, just in case, as you said, there are things that they're not thinking about right now that may become a challenge in the future," Dragini said.
