Dayton seeks tornado aid from Small Business Admin.

Tornado damage
Residents took in the damage and started to repair properties in Minneapolis, Minn. Monday, May 23, 2011 after a tornado ripped through the area Sunday.
MPR Photo/Jeffrey Thompson

Gov. Mark Dayton is requesting a disaster declaration from the Small Business Administration for Hennepin County for damage done by a tornado that hit the area May 22.

The request was made Tuesday. It comes after the Federal Emergency Management Agency denied Minnesota's appeal for individual assistance on Friday.

Dayton says the request to the SBA is one more way to get the assistance Minnesotans need to recover and rebuild.

SBA provides low-interest loans for homes, personal property and businesses for physical and economic damage caused by a declared disaster.

Dayton says that if an SBA declaration is received, people may be eligible for financial assistance even if they don't own businesses.

The May 22 tornado developed with little warning and moved over 14 miles, from Golden Valley to Blaine.

(Copyright 2011 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)

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