“Unusual”, “phenomenal”, “unprecedented” and “extraordinary”— Dearborn Mayor Jack O’Reilly, Jr. used these words to describe the flood that devastated Metro Detroit on Aug. 11. However, thousands of flood-stricken Michiganders feel like they were left to face this stunning disaster on their own. The state and municipalities have limited capacities, funding and resources. The insurance companies are unavailable, as most policies do not cover floods and sewage backups. The people are alone.

It is time for the federal government to step in and help and compensate the people devastated by the floods.

The heavy rainfall caused sewage backup that turned 8,000 basements into swamps of filthy water in Dearborn alone. Most of these basements were used as living spaces. Their content— furniture, appliances, clothes, utensils— can still be seen on the curbsides of the streets, as the city struggles to clean up the mess. 

Meanwhile, residents face a harder cleaning task. Mold is growing on their walls, as fear and health concerns escalate. The people have no help in facing this problem, which could affect their children’s physical wellbeing. Not all families can afford a private contractor to disinfect their basements.

Essential appliances, such as water heaters, washers and dryers, are damaged beyond repair. Many of the victims cannot afford to replace them. 

Despite the dire need for federal intervention, O’Reilly said the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), is not likely to make a verdict on whether it will help residents until the first week of December. The prolonged process is perplexing when contrasted with the additional $225 million approved by the federal government on Aug. 1 to Israel’s “Iron Dome” missile defense system. The “urgent” aid bill passed both houses of Congress and was signed by the president within days after Israel requested it.

The $225 million is a fraction of the billions we send yearly to countries with atrocious human rights records like Israel and Egypt. This past year alone, the federal government allocated $666 billion to the Defense Department, while its citizens here are left defenseless and alone to face nature’s wrath.

The federal government should compensate citizens for their damages to avert a setback to Michigan’s already struggling economy. In addition to damages to homes and businesses, a number of people also lost their cars to the flood or are facing huge repair bills. In many cases, those cars may be their only means of transportation to work or school.

Michigan is a donor state to the U.S. government. We send more money to Washington in the form of federal taxes than we receive from the capital. It is time we get the benefits of our own money.

The rainfall that preceded this flood was unprecedented, but floods have been caused and roads have been blocked by less intense rain in the recent past. Our infrastructure is decaying. While we are engaged in “nation building” in Afghanistan and Iraq, the roads, sewers and bridges of our own nation are crumbling. Renovating our infrastructure should be an urgent matter of national security. It creates jobs and makes us better-equipped to deal with natural disasters.

Let’s not forget that President Eisenhower instituted the national highway system in part so that the military could move about quickly to defend the nation, if necessary. While we’ve never yet needed our highway system for that purpose, the very fact that freeways can and have flooded should be of more than local concern.

The misery of Detroit and its surrounding suburbs following the flood should be a wake up call to the U.S. government to turn its attention to its own soil. America is well-known for helping other countries— sometimes wisely; sometimes unwisely. Assisting the metro Detroit victims of the Aug. 11 disaster is a good place to start for Washington to affirm its commitment to its own citizens as well.