By Jacque Day
Southern Illinois – Illinois Governor Pat Quinn Tuesday asked President Obama to declare several southern Illinois counties major disaster areas to help with flood recovery. The list includes Alexander, Gallatin, Hardin, Massac, Pope and Pulaski counties. Damage assessments by the Illinois Emergency Management Agency and FEMA found 109 homes destroyed. About 850 more sustained some kind of damage. More than 600 businesses saw major to moderate damage. If the request gains approval, affected people could apply for grants and low-interest Small Business Administration loans.