DAYTON, Ohio — Senator Sherrod Brown and Dayton Mayor Nan Whaley spoke regarding the damages of the Dayton-area tornadoes on Wednesday, as the second day of cleanup efforts stretched on.
Thousands in the Dayton area are still without power and water, as they focus on trying to move forward with the clean-up and recovery efforts.
When asked, Whaley said she believed as many as 60,000 people were still without running water access.
"More have been turned on since then, but we are working on putting together a new update," she said.
More than 30,000 Dayton Power and Light customers are without power, nearly two days after a record amount of tornadoes touched down in the Miami Valley on Memorial Day.
Volunteers, businesses and neighbors have banded together to provide food, water and supplies to the hardest hit areas -- something Brown praised during his visit.
"When you go to the site of where things are happening, it is so uplifting and inspiring to see how communities come together," said Brown.
Bill Flaute, mayor of the city of Riverside, added that communities are in dire need of basic utilities.
"What we really need right now is electricity, and we need water," he said. "The water is almost nonexistent."
Following a tour of the Dayton Water Supply & Treatment Facility and a visit to a Red Cross shelter in the area, Brown plans to tour damage in Trotwood.
Brown said he hopes to work with Sen. Rob Portman and Gov. Mike DeWine to secure federal assistance, if DeWine seeks to declare a national emergency for the affected Ohio counties.
DeWine, as the governor of Ohio, must declare a state of emergency and officially request federal aid before Senators Portman and Brown can begin moving the process along at the federal level.
"Our offices are talking to each other, but it's up to the governor to do it first," said Brown.
