President Donald Trump has repeatedly teased eliminating the Federal Emergency Management Agency. Now, after severe storms, Kentucky officials hope he will approve FEMA aid for citizens with flooded homes.

Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear, a Democrat, has been a fierce defender of the beleaguered agency that the president wants to eliminate.

Eight people are dead following one of the most severe weather events “in the past decade,” Governor Andy Beshear said during a press conference Sunday afternoon.

Governor Andy Beshear says President Donald Trump has approved federal assistance to communities in Kentucky impacted by recent flooding.

People are hurting, it’s been [several] days, and they really need the help," Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear. FRANKFORT, Ky. — President Donald Trump’s administration has yet to sign a disaster declaration that would allow FEMA to provide individual assistance for those impacted in Kentucky’s recent bouts of devastating severe weather.

Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear said he's still waiting on the Trump administration to approve individual assistance through FEMA for flood victims.

Inside the Emergency Operations Center in Frankfort, officials are on high alert. Governor Andy Beshear announced that resources from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) have arrived to help bolster efforts during this critical time.

Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear said Sunday that hundreds of people stranded by flooding had to be rescued. President Donald Trump approved the state's request for a disaster declaration, authorizing the Federal Emergency Management Agency to coordinate relief efforts throughout the state.

According to research, about 95 percent of Americans live in a county that has received federal disaster aid since 2011.

Governor Andy Beshear announced on social media Monday afternoon that individual assistance has been approved for the first 10 Kentucky counties affected by flooding: This was a point of interest during Governor Beshear’s Team Kentucky press conference Monday morning.

The White House has already approved a request for an emergency disaster declaration, allowing federal funding to go to areas impacted by the floods. But if signed, the expedited declaration would allow qualifying individuals to receive up to $43,600 in individual assistance from FEMA.

The governor said state officials are still waiting for approval of an expedited major disaster declaration, which would grant individual assistance.