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On Sunday, US President Joe Biden declared a major disaster in New Jersey as a result of last week’s destructive Hurricane Ida that hit the state on Wednesday night into Thursday. The declaration will make federal funding available to state residents in 6 counties including Bergen, Gloucester, Hunterdon, Middlesex, Passaic, and Somerset. It provides grants for temporary housing and home repairs, low-cost loans to cover uninsured property losses, and other programs to help individuals and business owners recover from the effects of the disaster. Moreover, US federal funding will also be made available to tribal and eligible local governments along with certain private nonprofit organizations on a cost-sharing basis for emergency work and the repair or replacement of facilities damaged by the storm.

However, statewide residents and businesses spent the holiday weekend trying to clean up damage from the storm. The rescue workers resumed the search for 2 friends whose car was caught up in the floodwaters. Nidhi Rana, 18, and Ayush Rana, 21, were last seen on Wednesday evening when their car started floating toward a spot where the water flows underground toward the Passaic River. Passaic Mayor Hector Lora said on Sunday that a dozen search boats were taking part in the search with the aid of a state police air unit. In Bloomfield in Essex County, one victim who died the day after the storm was apparently electrocuted while trying to plug in a generator. Aventino Soares, 58, was found dead on Thursday on the side of an Ampere Parkway house.

One New Jersey school damaged by flooding will likely remain closed for the remainder of the calendar year. Superintendent Michael Burke said there was little chance that the Cresskill Middle/High School in Bergen County, which houses about 1,000 students, will remain close until 2022. He said the district has gotten permission from state education officials to conduct virtual classes when the school year starts on Wednesday. State officials are looking for off-campus locations to serve as classrooms and hope to have in-person learning for at least some grades by November. On Saturday, Gov. Phil Murphy said the death toll in the Garden State had reached 27. At least 4 people remained missing following a historic storm. He said he had already sought federal assistance and would continue to ask for more because we need it.